“No one is above the Loire!” Especially Champagne native Timothé Toïgo, the unofficial doppelgänger of the singer Raphaël and owner of Canon Canon, a wine shop tucked in between the Rochefort-sur-Loire church and a PMU betting bar. The place’s look? A solid wood bar, a mishmash of furniture, a dartboard on the wall, winemaker posters highlighted by the sunlight… and a huge shelf where the young owner lines up clean wines, most of which are from the Loire: Les Tailles, a red blend from Jean-Christophe Garnier (€14), Souffrer n’est pas jouer, a Chenin from Jérôme Lambert (€23), Jolie Surprise, a sparkling wine by Didier Chaffardon (€20)…. And to go with all that, a range of nibbles for apéro hour, like pork rillettes, vegetarian tapenade, plus cheese and charcuterie platters. // R.P.
The bullet-proof bottle: À nous la liberté, a Chenin from Simon Rouillard (€18).
