The Loire is less a single wine region than a line drawn across northern France, running some 1,000 kilometres from the Atlantic at Nantes inland to Sancerre, southeast of Orléans. The climate changes completely along the way. Muscadet at the mouth is maritime and cool, making sharp, saline whites from Melon de Bourgogne; Anjou, Saumur and Touraine in the middle are mild and more continental; the upper reaches around Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé are continental outright.

Four grapes carry the region. Chenin Blanc is the most versatile white in France, giving everything from bone dry Savennières to the sweet wines of the Layon and most of the sparkling production. Cabernet Franc makes the light, leafy reds of Chinon and Bourgueil. Sauvignon Blanc is the grape of the eastern vineyards, and Melon belongs to the coast. Eighty seven appellations fall under the regional name, which says more about the variety here than any single description can.