VertdeVin Magazine

Do you know this property nestled in Saint-Emilion? Château Boutisse is a family property that covers 27 hectares, 24.7 of which are planted with vines. The rest being occupied by buildings, hedges, embankments, etc. Today and since 1996 the estate is the property of the Milhade family. It produces two qualities of wine there. Seventy percent of the production made is the first wine, Château Boutisse and twenty percent is the second wine, Baron de Boutisse. Let’s go together to meet Marc Milhade, enthusiastic and fascinating owner of Château Boutisse to help us discover this nugget. Above all, why do you make wine as a profession? Marc Milhade: Did I really have the choice? I fell into it when I was little, coming from a family of winegrowers! So the question didn’t really…

Domaine Rossignol-Trapet is a family vineyard located in Gevrey-Chambertin, Burgundy. Rich in a history several hundred years old, it now operates more than 13 hectares. Currently they produce 13 different cuvées ranging from generic Burgundy to Gevrey-Chambertin, with an average of 55/60,000 bottles per year. These are estate wines that are produced with “100% of our grapes and our vineyards. Note that the family owns 95% of the vines. The remaining 5% comes from share cropping under contract with the family for over 40 years! Let’s go together to meet this illustrious Burgundian family. Why did you decide to make wine, to become a winegrower? Nicolas Rossignol: It already goes back a long way (laughs)! I remember when I was 15, during family meals with my grandfather, my father… I liked to taste wines…

Maison Camille Giroud is a former Bourgogne wine merchant whose origins date back to at least 1865. It is indeed on this date that Mr. Camille Giroud arrives in the region to marry a young woman whose father has combined the trades of cooper and wine merchant. He took over this last trade which means that that structure already existed before this union. It’s a Maison that has remained family-owned for a very long time with a very marked style at the time, as opposed to today. The recent history of Maison Camille Giroud was turned upside down in 2001 with the sale of the property. It was bought by a group, mainly American, of wine enthusiasts. It was for them a purchase purely of pleasure, passion and not an investment purchase.…

The winery was born with the idea of setting a new collaboration between Sicily and France. Serra Ferdinandea in fact, is the joint venture between the French family Oddo and the Sicilian family Planeta with the final aim on one side of the Oddo family of having terroirs all over the most representative wine productive areas of the world and on the other side Planeta’s willingness of bringing in Sicily foreign investors, in a land that has traditionally seen people leave and now is living a new Renaissance. Let’s go with Cecilia Carbone (marketing manager) to know more about this new winery. How was born this project? Cecilia Carbone: It was born as the best romantic stories with love at first sight between the two families that met through a common wine maker.…

What is the story of your Maison de Champagne? Where is it located? Christian Briard: My Maison is nestled in the heart of the Marne Valley western part, kingdom of the Meuniers. Its establishment is recent (a dozen years) but its history is much longer, with ancestors found in the trade in Meuse since the 18th century, and perhaps even before! When DNA gets involved there is no escape! So, after long studies in on-board electronics and a fascinating job in the emerging smartcards, this DNA woke up, reminding me of my origins and the land’s beauty. I felt for it! What is your vision of Champagne? C.B.: Champagne? You mean Champagnes! Because we are indeed a wine region with diversity like any other wine region. The know-how exudes the scents of the Terroirs…

Meeting with Domaine Rolet, one of the spearheads of the Arbois appellation. What is the signature of the estate’s wines? What makes it possible to recognize them in blind tasting? Regarding red wines, we have something very gourmand and crunchy. I think it is also a certain philosophy of work that allows us to have red wines that stand out a bit, with a lot of substance, balanced structures and tannins. We like reds easy to drink but which also keep their potential to be cellared. Our vinotheque hosts over 40 vintages waiting for wine lovers. Regarding the whites, we have a great reputation for both the non oxydative and oxydatives cuvées. There is a lot of balance in our whites and still good aging potential. We have topped Chardonnay, topped or un-topped…