1270 and Esprit de Fleurs by Frapin
Since 1270, the Frapin family have produced Cognac on their domain in the Grand Champagne region in France. Since 2002 Frapin has also become known for their perfume. The 1270 Eau de Parfum bears its long past in its name with all that it implies: complexity, richness, depth and weight. Spraying a little on a handkerchief or on one’s skin offers different styles and evolutions. White cotton cloth gives off the fruity (candied orange), balsamic (cocoa, tonka), spicy and lovely floral (vine flowers, everlasting flowers, linden) tones of this perfume. Thus, the beautiful complexity strides in harmony. On the skin, however, it rather too quickly obtains the scent of tobacco and black coffee, which become darker as the middle notes of pepper and spice and base notes of wood appear to the surface.

Citrus green Esprit de Fleurs features a dry mix of bergamot, grapefruit and tangerine as top notes and very strong scent of jasmine followed by a slightly bitter basil and other middle notes of pepper and berries. The base notes are vanilla, cedar and vetiver. The citrus elements disappear in about thirty minutes leaving cedar.
Available at Les Senteurs, London. GBP90/100ml.

Sauvignonne, Le Boise and Botrytis by Ginestet
Ginestet, an historic company too, with more than one hundred years behind it, not only laid foundation to the Bordeaux Wine Council but now also to three fragrances that carry aromas of major wines in Bordeaux – a dry white wine, a Sauternes and a red wine. Can there be a wilder dream for a winemaker or a perfumier for that matter? As a result of an inspired meeting between the Managing Director of Ginestet and a perfumier of the Florescence perfume company in Grâce (France), a fresh Sauvignonne, sweet Botrytis and woody Le Boise were launched in 2002. Molecules that define the typical bouqets of Bordeaux wines were identified in a labaratory and transformed into eau de toilette.

Sauvignonne is an aromatic citrus fragrance for women. It features white peach, grapefruit and boxtree notes. It leaves a cool, somewhat masculine impression that would work perfectly well in a business meeting, but not on a first date. A scent that becomes cooler and pleasantly more intensive if it has been in contact with water.

Le Boise, for men, comes in a red wine bottle which is a lovely interior design detail to find in a bathroom or hallway. It has the equal power to attract and repell. Two drops would destroy your personal scent circle – a circle outside of which no one should be aware of your fragrance. According to the Fragrance Foundation it is at arm’s length from the body. Le Boise is powerful, masculine fragrance with strong sandalwood notes, which turn to wood underscored with spicy pepper and vanilla notes.

Botrytis is an oriental vanilla fragrance for women and has a golden colour. It immediately features sweet (honey) vanilla with a slight hint of fresh white flowers which after some 15 minutes turns into the scent of gingerbread topped with vanilla. Botrytis lasts several hours.
Ginestet perfums cost about 55€. For more information visit www.ginestet.fr.

Fleur de Vigne by Caudalie
Fleur de Vigne Fragrance by Caudalie is very fresh and energizing, whilst being feminine and sexy, yet discreet and pleasant – criteria which are rare to discover in just one fragrance. Their formula includes top notes of grape blossoms with a blend of citrus – lemon, grapefruit, mandarin, bergamot and orange. The scent of small fragile vine blossoms are skillfuly recreated from white rose, pink pepper and watermelon. Middle notes of blackcurrant buds and green maté which materialise in about 20 minutes after application and a base of sandalwood and cedar. The Fleur de Vigne line includes body lotion, shower gel and a soon-to-be-launched Gentle Conditioning Shampoo.
The fragrance is available at Space NK and Caudalie.com. £30.00 / 100ml and £21.00 / 50ml.

Tauleto Wine Fragrance by Cesari
Tauleto Wine Fragrance comes from the Umberto Cesari winery located near Bologna. Originally the vision of Guliana Cesari, who wanted to transform the aromatic bouquet of their Sangiovese Tauleto wine into perfume, has materialized into a fruity, flowery fragrance that despite it’ s complexity can be worn and reapplied all day and night without being obtrusive. Top notes of grape, orange and mandarin evaporate rapidly, leaving middle notes of magnolia, violet and a light touch of bulgarian rose on the base of liquorice, musk and humus. The scent lingers for about an hour. A matt glass rectangular bottle of Tauleto Wine Fragrance comes in a silky violet sack packed in a wood case. The Tauleto Wine Fragrance line includes shower gel, body lotion, massage oil.

Wine Fragrance costs 80€/100ml. For more information visit http://www.tauletowinefragrance.com

Divine Perfumes is a post from: Fine Wine Journal

Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman examine a bottle of Pommard.

For the majority of cinema goers, the most famous bottle of wine in the history of cinema is without doubt that of a Pommard used in the film Notorious by Alfred Hitchcock. The bottle, discovered by Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman, has had the wine drained away to be replaced by powdered uranium, giving the intrigue. This was, in reality, a personal eulogy to the wines of Burgundy

After a career of 67 years and 53 films, Alfred Hitchcock was one of the greatest promoters of Burgundian wines, handing down to posterity unforgettable images, very French in their nature evoking the wines he loved. Conscious of this surprising notoriety, the Confrérie des chevaliers du Tastevin thanked him by inviting him to join their society in a ceremony which took place at the château du Clos Vougeot in 1960. Hitchcock was deeply honoured. It was one of the few occasions when he smiled. The main difference with someone like Spielberg, whose celebrity is today quite similar, and who acknowledges that he only drinks Coca-Cola, is that ‘Hitch’ boasted, in typical British style, that he possessed the most beautiful bottles in all of Hollywood. Proud of his professional and social success, the director took an almost malicious pleasure in taking people down to his cellar during one of his many famous lunches which he organised at his home in the fashionable suburb of Bel-Air, near, as he liked to mock, the 18th hole of the famous Los Angeles golf club. But woe betide anyone who tried to touch a flask of his precious wine without his permission. He or she would be forever banned from his presence. The screenwriter Evan Hunter discovered this to his cost when his wife did not behave herself to the liking of Hitchcock. But in truth, what were the most favoured bottles of this Ali-Baba of the cinema? Patricia, the only child of Sir Alfred, looks back with nostalgia to the family lunches and the preferred wines of her father, among which featured Mouton-Rothschild, Cheval Blanc and Montrachet, and including any number of Champagnes, single malt whiskies and legendary Cognacs.

Sir Alfred liked to drink as much as he liked to eat. His meals were legendary for their great quality. Despite living most of the time in North America, he ate mainly European style food, ordering direct his Dover soles from England, Scottish smoked salmon from the Highlands and capons from France. When he returned to Europe it was always with the intention of eating at the tables of the greatest chefs. Grace Kelly always liked to tell the story of how Alfred Hitchcock, before shooting the film To Catch a Thief (1956) had lost 5 kilos in order, specifically, to enjoy his food more when he arrived in France “when he did arrive, he took three days to travel down from Paris to Cannes, stopping in all the great restaurants.”

This interest found an early home in his cinematographic career. His second film, produced in 1928 in Great Britain, was entitled ‘Champagne’. The French title was, alas, rather more prosaic and less evocative: ‘ l’Americaine’. This light comedy was based in the world of a Champagne producer. The film was preserved thanks to the patronage of the Maisons de Champagne and the British Film Institute. In fact, nearly all of Hitchcock’s films possess a moment or two when its protagonists are drinking wine or alcohol of some kind. Vertigo, Marnie, North by Northwest, Topaz, Dial M for Murder or The Man Who Knew Too Much, all his great works are witness to it. In Rear Window, doesn’t the future Princess of Monaco seduce the unlucky James Stewart with a glass of Cognac in her hand?

In 1979, after receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute, Hitchcock retired. In the last years of his life, Sir Alfred particularly loved a Mimosa (Champagne and orange juice). This sometimes made him a bit licentious. Alfred Hitchcock died the 19 April, 1980 at 09.17… After so many crimes and murders, did he remember at this last moment, the place where Norman Bates, the assassin in Psycho, had hidden his dead mother?… It was in the cellar….!

Premier Grand Cru classé de Saint-Emilion 1947, Château Cheval blanc

A wine remembered
The candles along the side of the road threw a strange phantom light of barrels on the white walls. The evening dresses brought colour to the sombre dinner suits. A hundred invitees, no more, no less, from society: great men and women of the arts, from politics and wine enthusiasts, took their places at tables sumptuously adorned with Baroque candelabra, magisterial bouquets of flowers and red velvet tapestries from Château Talbot, Grand Cru classé Médoc. At the roll of a drum the cup bearers dressed in black aprons brought out the bottles which were put on the tables for the first service: d’Yquem, followed by Mouton-Rothschild, Labour, Haut-Brion, Ausone… A plump silhouette danced amidst the ballet of the waiters. Only a few attentive guests noticed, before it disappeared. Now, it is the moment to serve the mythical Château Cheval Blanc 47… Everyone waits with bated breath, impatient to taste the wine of the century… The wait continues, signs of impatience, whispers, anxiety grows and then a rumour starts, interrupting all discussions. There will be no ’47. The bottles have disappeared, vanished into thin air…. Stolen! The word is unleashed… The unthinkable has happened. The burglar is amongst the company, it could be anyone, the deception, palpable agony, terrible!

Towards midday the next day, the sun penetrates the living room of a house in the heart of the Entre-deux-mers, on the pedestal table the newspaper Sud-Ouest writ across the front page: “Cheval Blanc, le hold up”. On the table of the dining room, the sun’s rays highlight a bottle, on the white napkin some red powder, the bottle is half empty, and from which emanates scents of leather and truffle. The king of suspense, in raptures, savours in silence his pleasure. On the label of the bottle, next to the young woman who has accompanied him, is inscribed:  Cheval Blanc, 1947.
With kind permission from Les Idées Claires
from the book Grands Palais: 2500 Ans de Passion du Vin
By Corinne Lefort and Karine Valentin
Published by Les Idées Claires
www.lesideesclaires.net

Hitchcock and wine is a post from: Fine Wine Journal

Bordeaux is not only one of the largest wine producing regions in the world, covering an area of just over 121,000 hectares, it is arguably the largest producer of high quality wines. Within Bordeaux itself there are a number of Appellations (57 in total) forming part of many famous regions: the Médoc where many of the most famous names are located: Château Mouton Rothschild (Pauillac), Château Lafite Rothschild (Pauillac), Château Latour (Pauillac), Château Margaux (Margaux), the Graves and Pessac-Léognan (for both its red and white wines) where Château Haut-Brion comes from, and Saint Emilion, and Sauternes (for their sweet wines).

The impact of modern technology and improved vineyard management has had a decisive effect on the quality of the production of the wine in Bordeaux over the last thirty years. Nowadays, winemakers have an arsenal of corrective measures they can take in their cellars to try and improve the overall quality of the harvest: stainless steel temperature-controlled vats; if the grapes are diluted they can bleed off some of the wine (saignée) or concentrate through reverse osmosis; a lack of structure may be compensated with appropriate oaking; unripe tannins mellowed by use of micro-bullage, a lack of concentration adjusted by a pre-fermentation cold soak or through adding press wine and so forth. Research and development has not stood still for vinification any more than it has for, say, car production. Winemakers are now more apt to believe in technological advances, and research, to improve the quality of the wine they produce and, more importantly, make wines which take account of changing patterns in consumer taste. A taste which has been defined largely by consumers in the United States and who are the main driver behind price-setting in Bordeaux, and although Britain remains a big market for the Bordelais, to some extent this is due to the overseas trading run out of the UK. The growth in US wine consumption and production in the 1970s motivated a growing and inquisitive wine-drinking population into trying wines they may have known only by reputation which resulted in a wine consumption boom in the 1980s. This new culture of wine enjoyment concentrated their focus on Bordeaux.

Unfortunately, there was also an unfortunate clamour for Châteaux to age their wines in new oak barrels, irrespective of whether the wine could support this, a trend which has only started to reverse in the last few years. This ‘technique’ which harmed so many wines during this period, was promoted by evangelical US wine critics, and it is a relief to find that recent vintages provide the first real signs of a move away from this unfortunate path. Over-oaking stems from the process of ‘élevage’ (raising the wine and maturing it in oak casks) which is a feature of winemaking difficult to master.

It is true that whilst the technological and sanitary aspects to winemaking have evolved considerably over the last few decades — imagine, even, the simple utility of spreadsheet software (first invented in 1978) as essential to vinification as the temperature-controlled stainless steel vat — so does the pressure to utilise interventionist techniques which attempt to correct errors and faults in the vineyard if not the vagaries produced by the weather and terroir. However, notwithstanding the general principle that wine quality has improved overall it is still not possible to draw the conclusion that a particular wine will now be better in the best years than in previous great vintages in the early part of the 19th century. Nor do post-harvest remedies exist which can replace attentive viticulture.

It was the work of some far-sighted oenologists in the 1950s and 1960s who started the process of examining the work done in the vineyard which laid the foundation for this evolution (if not revolution) in wine quality. This assessment in controlling the viticulture to obtain a riper more mature raw material contributed the most significant improvements. However, the definition of what this ripeness may be is elusive. Whilst scientific (chemical) methods have been established for assessing grape ripeness it is largely a subjective term — ‘the definition of optimum ripeness will vary as it depends upon the style of wine being made; the working definition of quality; variety; rootstock; site; interaction of variety, rootstock and site; seasonal specific factors; viticultural practices; and downstream processing events and goals.’ Not as clear cut as one might imagine.

Physiological ripening is an alternative to chemical assessment but is even more prone to different interpretations. It relies much more upon an individual’s assessment, therefore subjective, of the ripening indicators such as skin colour, pip maturity, taste and visual observation.

The rather esoteric determining factor to produce a good vintage comes down to one basic event — that the vine is put under sufficient water stress at the beginning of the summer to enable proper berry evolution. Vineyard techniques can promote what nature may withhold in a particular year. But there are also problems where there is differing maturation in the vineyard — not just the each vine but the bunches and even grapes on each vine. All the elements which make up the care in the vineyard produce changes in the plant which must be adapted to each vintage: trellising, leaf pulling, defoliating, green harvesting (dropping grape bunches), controlling the vigour of plants, yield management and toilletage (taking off the unripe grapes) are just some of the work done to produce a good wine — in good or bad years.

Yields are not necessarily an indication of the quality in the wine. There have been years when the yields have been very high and the wine excellent, years when they have been low and not very good. They will impact more on the profits of the business than consumer pleasure. Although, the significance of yield is more complicated than this. The quality of a vineyard’s output will depend on the final blend: the inclusion of perhaps different varietals in different proportions, grapes from different parcels contributing complexity, tastes, colours and aromas. Lower overall yields, which may be as a result of either dry or wet conditions are often likely to impact the final blend. Whereas low yield is often touted as being a positive factor it can be rather more negative. None of the Premiers Crus estates produced a great (red) wine this year and the yields are low. Also, take the example of Mouton Rothschild in 2007. They produced the smallest number of bottles of their Grand Vin since 1969 — only 150,000 bottles. They emptied thirty thousand litres which would normally go into their Grand Vin (selling price per bottle approximately Euros250) into their second wine, Petit Mouton (selling price per bottle approximately Euros50) at a loss in revenue of Euros9 million. Good news though for Le Petit Mouton which is outstanding this year benefiting from the terroir and excellent wine-making skills available at one of Bordeaux’s top estates. Château Margaux even produced their wine without their usual signature Petit Verdot varietal. Château Valendraud (Saint Emilion) made a wine with no Cabernet Franc in it, unthinkable for an estate whose proprietor has often complained of the ‘merlotisation’ of his region.

Whilst the weather plays a vital role in a the quality of any vintage, it is hardly down to weather forecasting that a vigneron may decide his actions, as some have suggested. If the grapes aren’t ripe they can’t be picked, even if one believes it will rain next week. Although some vignerons may decide to pick early before the hunting season starts, but that’s another story.

Why were the whites in the Graves so good?
Successful dry white wines require grapes that are fruity, sugar-rich, sufficiently acid and low in tannins. All this may be easily achieved in limestone-rich areas, for example, where the vines’ water stress remains at moderate levels; and also when the summer is not too hot after véraison, such as in 2007. Generous in both sugar and acidity, these deeply aromatic Semillon and Sauvignon had not been seen since 1996. These varieties benefited from the cool summer temperatures, good conditions at maturation’s end (cool nights with warm afternoons), and ideal weather at harvest.

Why was Sauternes so successful?
The ideally-timed appearance of noble rot produced a great vintage in Sauternes and Barsac. September and October must have an alternating sequence of oceanic low-pressure systems bringing moisture to promote Botrytis, and relatively warm periods of high-pressure to concentrate grapes touched by the mould. The 2007 vintage offered these ideal conditions from the middle of September through to the end of October.

Saint Emilion
Saint Emilion, a Merlot dominant region, which suffered in the summer, were generally more successful because wine producers there have worked longer and harder than others on the sur-maturation of the grapes. They waited and with the improved and even ‘heavenly’ weather of September obtained some optimum fruit. However, Merlot suffered from its precocity being exposed to the worst of the weather in August. Some producers were unable to counteract the lack of proper maturation and there are many estates where the wine has the characteristic vegetal tastes of unripe grapes.

Médoc
In Médoc they suffered the most which didn’t stop some from making terrific wines – Cos d’Estornel, for example. It’s also interesting to cite Château Ferrière in Margaux. They have 10 hectares of vineyard with vines which are, on average, 40 years old. The key to their success was that they work the press very carefully judging the grapes’ maturity from the grape pips. They had significant problems with mildew which they had to treat in the vineyard but, otherwise, their essentially non-interventionist stance runs contrary to the whole exposition about the effects of new technology.

Conclusion
2007 was a difficult year for producers by any yardstick. The domains which succeeded did so less by the use of modern vinification techniques and more by virtue of the work they made in the vineyard. It is deceptive to admire the brand new stainless steel vats and new oak barrels of a winery. The main cost is in the vineyard. Difficult years such as 2007 can add considerably to this where very precise work is required and harvesters may be required to be retained for much longer periods than usual adding to the wage bill.

Grape maturity is everything. Optimum ripeness must take into consideration the balance of acids and sugars present in the grape. Tannins become less austere when sugar and acid levels have exceeded their optimum maturity but there is thus a danger that phenolically ripe grapes might produce unbalanced wines with high alcohol, rather jammy aromas and lower acidity. But difficult years provide the best lessons and 2007 will doubtless have provided its fair share of homework.

There is a rather hackneyed old adage: “Those who do not learn the lessons of history are condemned to repeat them.” More appropriate is to understand history and apply its lessons to the future. The Place de Bordeaux launched their high price offers for the 2007 vintage without any great fanfare, and there are few takers because prices were similar to those of last year, without any great discount for the disparity of quality in the last three vintages. Price levels are determined by the top estates and without any reference to the quality of the vintage or, indeed, the quality of the wine produced next door. If you travel to France on a regular basis you will probably find some terrific bargains late in 2009 in the supermarkets as the merchants will have to sell their wine somewhere and the ‘grands surfaces’ will have easy pickings. There are some very good wines from this vintage and they will continue to come down in price.

Wines we recommend (this is not intended as an exhaustive list):

Red | Excellent in 2007
Château Haut Bergey | Pessac-Leognan
Domaine de Chevalier | Pessac-Leognan
Château Langoa-Barton | St Julien
Château La Tour Carnet | Haut-Médoc
Château Trolong Mondot | St Emilion
Château Cos d’Estornel | St Estèphe

Good
Château Leoville Poyferré | St Julien
Château Carbonnieux | Pessac-Leognan
Château Grand-Puy-Ducasse | Pauillac
Château Phélan Segur | St Estèphe
Château Ormes de Pez | St EstèpheChâteau Rahoul | Graves
Château Haut-Bailly | Pessac-Leognan
Château Clerc Milon | Pauillac
Château Pape Clement | Pessac-Leognan
le Petit Mouton de Mouton-Rothschild | Pauillac
Château Ferrière | Margaux
Château Guadet | St Emilion
Château Canon La Gaffelière | St Emilion
Château Smith Haut Lafitte | Graves
Château Branaire-Ducru | St Julien
Château Gazin | Pomerol
Château Leoville Barton | St Julien

White | Excellent in 2007
Sauternes, Barsac generally
Graves and in particular:
Château Haut-Brion | Pessac-Leognan
Domaine de Chevalier | Graves

Good in 2007
Château Ferrande | Graves
Château Smith Haut Lafitte | Pessac-Leognan
Château de Chantegrive | Graves
Château Haut Bergey | Pessac-Leognan
Château de France | Pessac-Leognan
Château Larrivet Haut-Brion | Pessac-Leognan
Château de Fieuzal | Pessac-Leognan
Château Pape Clement | Pessac-Leognan
Château Latour-Martillac | Pessac-Leognan

Fabian Cobb

Bordeaux: 2007 is a post from: Fine Wine Journal

Statistics speak for themselves. 90% of the Champagne region is owned by the ‘growers’ of grapes which may be used in Champagne and who may make Champagne too. There are 15,000 of these ‘growers’ of whom only 5,000 actually produce Champagne under their own name. The rest just sell the raw material. Of these 55% own less than one hectare. However, it is the ‘negoçiant manipulant’ of whom there are only 290 who account for two–thirds of all sales and 90% of exports.

Pierre–Emmanuel Taittinger is head of the eponymous firm Taittinger which is one of the best known in the region. They are also one of the largest, producing approximately five million bottles each year. Defying the trend of large corporations who have come in and bought so many of the large brands in Champagne he managed to persuade the Crédit Agricole to help him buy back his Champagne business in 2006. He thinks that his 31 years of experience counted strongly with his backers but so did his name and the fact he has children to whom the business will pass in the future. ‘The bankers knew that Taittinger without a family and spirit at its head would be different — not necessarily worse, just different.’ Taittinger believes that Champagne is also about ‘continuity and consistency. Being a family firm is a great guarantee of quality.’ The name of Taittinger is also a name associated with the social and political destiny of the region and is thus ‘part of the patrimony of the region. Essential,’ he argues, ‘that it should be restored to the family for its safekeeping.’ Clearly his bankers agreed.

Charles Philipponnat works for Champagne Philipponnat. His family have been making wine in the region since the beginning of the sixteenth century making a celebrated red wine in Aÿ which was even exported to England. When sparkling wine became popular in the second half of the nineteenth century his family started producing their own brand. Despite the problems which beset the region during the period from the late nineteenth century — Phylloxera, Word War I and the Wall Street Crash of 1929 —- Philipponnat managed to prosper buying several vineyards of which their ‘Clos des Goisses’ is the most famous. But the family was forced to sell up in the late seventies, the marque eventually passing to the Boizel Chanoine Champagne group. So, although it is no longer a family company, it is still headed by a member of the family which bears the same name as the Champagne brand and the group of which it is part, is owned by a Champagne family. Was this just coincidence? Philipponnat thought that there were still advantages to having the firm run by someone who is so closely identified with the brand. He felt this was as an important a reason as his fifteen years’ experience of negotiating grape contracts. Charles Philipponnat feels that when one is a member of the family one is even more motivated to make it work and there is no hiding from the responsibilities. For him, it is not just his life but the work of several generations he is now responsible for whilst continuing the family tradition. He feels the advantage is obvious. ‘The greatest advantage to a family run business unless one is mired in family quarrels, is that if the business is well–managed, then decisions can be taken very fast because day–to–day responsibilities lie in the hands of the shareholders themselves.’

Champagne production requires significant capital and this has been one of the difficulties for many families who have failed to organise their money in good time. For every 1.5kg of grapes already in the cellar one has to hold a further 3 kilogrammes (the approximate weight required to produce one bottle of Champagne is 1.5kg) where one might sell 1 of these in every 3 years. So the bankers have to be patient but the high cost of entry means the industry is also very stable. Right now there are still quite a few family owned businesses but one might ask what might happen in the future when the current generation moves on?

To be a woman in what most see as a man’s world has its special difficulties. Delphine Cazals is based in Mesnil, famous for its Chardonnay grapes where she is a grower and producer — a ‘recoltant cooperative’. Delphine Cazals is not only the owner and CEO of her own business but is also married to a Champagne producer. A healthy rivalry exists between them and at the time she married most assumed that her business would be subsumed into her husband’s. What’s in a name for her?

Cazals’ situation is a little complicated. Her marque is Cazals, the name of her forbears. Her married name is Bonneville. But her clients know her as Cazals which accords more with the modern fashion where women maintain their maiden name. But it still causes confusion. She has managed; although her husband bristles when people refer to him as ‘monsieur Cazals’. Her daughter, who might go into the business, is called Bonneville, the family name. But Cazals believes that the name she carries is important all the same because when someone meets here they say —- ‘oh yes, it’s you’. Bonneville–Cazals is a little long. Each label carries her name as the winemaker too —- ‘elaboré par  Delphine Cazals’.

Benoit Tarlant feels that a family business is defined through the communication across the generations: in his case his father, grandfather and great grandfather. So for the Tarlants it’s not about discussing things outside the family with external advisors notwithstanding the so–called ‘generation gap’ and its attendant problems. He illustrates this by reference to their terrain. Some of his vines were planted in 1946 and so he knows little of their lives and it is something in which the older generation can help him to assess their potential. But even if there is this tradition in this respect the older generation of the Tarlant family stand back in allowing Benoit to find full expression in the wines he makes.

Roederer is one of the oldest Champagne houses having started in 1776 and produces the legendary Champagne Cristal. Frédéric Rouzaud, his family name does not appear on the bottle, is a direct descendant of one of the original family members. The business is family owned and run.

He didn’t seem to mind that he was not called Roederer or that the business suffered too much as a result. ‘Maybe its easier to have one’s name on the bottle because one doesn’t have to say it is a family affair all the time’. But they are discreet people too and almost prefer the consumer ignorance in this respect even if most people working in the Champagne trade would know he is the owner. He maintains that his sense of responsibility is the same and few could doubt him or argue with the company’s success. Roederer now own vineyards around the world and only recently purchased the celebrated Bordeaux château, Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. He didn’t feel the urge to attach his name in a demonstrative way to that wine either.

But, he felt very strongly that a family concern had different objectives. Ones which enabled them to engage in profitable and worthwhile long term projects which a non–family owned company would scarcely be able to contemplate. He cited the establishment of their sparkling wine brand in California which took 12 years to fulfil. He also cited a ‘kind of liberty with people sharing the same values, and the same passion.’ They are all part of a special ‘family culture of wine’.

Jean–Marc Lallier doesn’t feel too sad about lacking proprietorship of the Deutz brand but then he doesn’t carry the actual name even if he is a direct descendant of the founder. However, as part of the Roederer group, it is effectively a family company run and operated from within the region. Lallier also makes it clear that they are an autonomous unit. Their future secured they can focus on the quality rather than the return. Whilst he doesn’t lament the eponymous contact through direct identification with the name of Deutz he is very attached to the past and the development of the philosophy that they have always had and tries to perpetuate his ancestors objectives.

So what does he contribute to the firm and why have a family member on the Board of Directors? Lallier knows the European market well and the new owners at the time told him ‘we need you to stay and keep the style of Deutz’. He is, of course, the embodiment of that Deutz style down to his atavistic characteristics but much to his wife’s relief without the big long beard of his ancestor.  Within a family business one ‘needs to have people around who understand where you want to go when it’s a question of continuity. Also, in a large company one is lost in a hierarchy which is not the case here.’

Jean Hervet Chiquet (Champagne Jacquesson) and his brother own 51% of their Champagne house. A business they inherited from their father who was a grower but had no involvement in the early founding of the brand. The Chiquets have ‘grower mentality’ which helps them buy in their grapes and in their relationships with the growers who supply them. Running the business is easy. ‘If I want to do something I just ask my brother and vice versa’. He doesn’t see the relationship between his name and that of the name on the bottle —- the ‘commitment is the same’. Their personal philosophy about the style of the Champagne they make is distinctive from what a normal company structure would require. They make the wine they want and try and persuade the customer that this is the best wine for them. A company would almost certainly choose to make a wine that required no such explanation.

However, the association with a family name is significant for François Billecart–Salmon (Champagne Billecart–Salmon). ‘It is very important for me. It helps one to try and make the best product you can because you know one day you will be in front of your consumers with your name on the label.’ Of course, running a family firm can mean relations think it is a meal ticket.’ Not so at Billecart–Salmon. They don’t practise nepotism. But human problems are easily dealt with. As a family firm they can determine the kind of dividends they need to distribute. More problematic can be finding sources of finance. ‘It is limiting to only be able to call on the bank for money’. François Billecart-Salmon identifies five key areas where a family firm works best: ‘1. As it is not a big company they are of a size where they can keep things under control. 2. The family is in for the long haul. An investor when he comes in looks at the exit, as a result they can invest and work for the very long term. This helps for storing stock and when deciding to release a vintage — even after 10 years. 3. As a native of Champagne they have a lot of contacts with growers and this is important for a Champagne house. 4. The workload can be spread amongst the family 5. They share the same priorities.’

Stanislav Henriot’s family have been active in the region of Champagne for 300 years but it was only in 1908 that the Champagne house was formed.  For him, there is no question of bringing anyone from outside the company to run it. But, the Henriots are a fecund family and this can cause problems of succession and division. Stanislav’s father’s sisters had 21 children between them. However, when the group was rebuilt, they established a structure to avoid problems associated with withdrawal of shareholders funds and a partition to protect the management of the company from shareholder action. Henriot thought that having a family member so obviously associated with the company was more important than ever. A genuine product is more than just a story that the brand can tell you. A person that can risk his name and he has a very strong link with their clients. His signature is on each bottle that he sends to the market.

Bruno Paillard is unique in Champagne —- as the name of the brand is also the name of the founder, the owner, and the winemaker. He comes from a long line of Champagne producers and has built up his company from scratch since it was founded in the 1980s. Today,  they own 25 hectares of which 12 are grands crus. He produces half a million bottles a year and exports 75% to more than 30 countries. Separate from growers’ champagne he stresses the importance of being a negoçiant because this is where the artistic creation comes into play, creating the blend. A negoçiant can buy grapes. As good as his own vineyards are he is happy to have access to other vineyards in order to create the aromas and taste which an ‘assemblage’ will give him. If he owned 75 hectares he would be happy too. His balance sheet would be more ‘beautiful’ but they would also have to be located in the most ideal locations. He would be self-sufficient but it might be more difficult to achieve the level and quality that his wine achieves now — an odd paradox.

When Paillard started his business the important thing was to gain access to quality grapes and this was not a matter of money. It’s a question of being accepted by the growers when they have everyone queuing at their door and ultimately growers are very loyal to their customer base — 90% of contracts are renewed with the same buyer. Back in 1980s it was comparatively easy to develop these relationships but today it is a different situation because Champagne has become so successful and it will be a long time before more grapes may become available. Money would not help. Being part of the wider Champagne family does.

Not everything is plain sailing in a Champagne family. Investment can be hard in a business where some years the quality may be better than others. This is more marked for a grower than a negoçiant who through the use of the assemblage can disguise some of the year’s poorer qualities. What’s worse is that family inheritances can cause problems. But Champagne is still largely a family affair and likely to remain so for the future.

We spoke to:
Pierre Emmanuel Taittinger — Champagne Taittinger
Charles Philipponnat — Champagne Philipponnat
Delphine Cazals — Champagne Cazals
Carole Duval–Leroy — Champagne Duval–Leroy
Benoit Tarlant — Champagne Tarlant
Frédéric Rouzaud — Champagne Roederer
Jean–Marc Lallier — Champagne Deutz
Jean–Hervet Chiquet — Champagne Jacquesson
Stanislas Henriot — Champagne Henriot
François Billecart–Salmon — Champagne Billecart-Salmon
Bruno Paillard — Champagne Bruno Paillard

Fabian Cobb

Keeping it in the family — The world of Champagne and its families is a post from: Fine Wine Journal

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Take a tour of the top Bordeaux Châteaux is a post from: Fine Wine Journal