Established since 1785 at Cumières, the Vadin-Plateau family saw not less than eight generations ardently plough the soil. Guy, the grandfather, and Jean-Luc, the father, are always present on the estate, but since two years, Yann Vadin (heir of the 9th generation) manages it. His two short-term objectives are the reworking of the range Exceptionnel and the development of export sales.
The Domain Vadin-Plateau extends over 7 ha and 7 villages, among which four classed growths at Cumières, Ay, Avize, Hautvillers; and 3 hectares around Château Thierry. The vineyard is maintained in integrated farming with ploughing between the rows, natural grasscover and minimized treatments. Aged 40 to 50 years old, it offers an average yield of 8,000kg per hectare, with a very concentrated, very flavourful must.
Yann Vadin's arrival at the management blew a wind of change on the estate. Very aware of the work made by his elders on his nourishing earth, of the quality of the soil in the classed growths, the young man wants to put a new value on his heritage highlighting the different vineyards as done in the XIXth century, by even writting the name of the village on the label. He also began to take out the heart of the cuvée from the rest, to produce really exceptional wines. “All the classed growths will be handled by plot. And will have a particular vinification”, he explains.
“The tests are conclusive. Some of the jewel wines placed in barrels have already benefitted from an alcoholic fermentation at only 15°C that lasted fifteen days, followed by a malolactic fermentation on fine lees, with rackings after each operation. From January till July, wines are regularly tasted by the three generations, before their cellaring for 2 to 10 years. Three grape varities of Cumières have already been vinified: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and more recently Pinot Meunier but have not yet been released”.
Yann, citizen of the world, studied wine making at Avize Viti Campus, passed his vocational degree in Bordeaux and a bachelor's degree of international trade in Reims followed by a training period in Australia. With his impudent youth, he went to conquer new horizons already last year. In the United States, his new cuvées met overwhelming success in two states, Georgia and California. In Japan, the Cuvée Y like Yann, a Blanc de Noirs with 100% Pinot Noir from Cumières, aged in oak barrels, seduced the importer. Its 100% Chardonnay replica called Aurélie (his sister's name) is not less attractive. These two plot-selected creations stemming from the 2013 harvest will be sold in the future as vintage Champagnes and will be launched in 2020!
Nevertheless the traditional range has a good quality. Blanc de Noirs, a Brut with 60% Pinot Meunier and 40% Pinot Noir added with 15 to 20% reserve wines and dosed with 8 g/l); Carte Blanche, 60% Chardonnay and 40% Pinot Noir with 15% of reserve wines whose blend, added with 3% home-made red wine, is used for the rosé. The culmination of the range: Grande Réserve, a classic blend of Pinot Noir (40%) and Chardonnay (60%) with 5% reserve wines, an old-style presentation with a cork and a staple providing extra complexity, and an ageing of five years to assert it. On the palate, its reveals to be a delicacy with white-fleshed fruits, a beautiful freshness evolving to notes of biscuit and brioche, and has a good price-quality ratio (€22, suggested ex-cellar retail price).
Marie-Caroline Bourrellis
Château Belmar is run by a man and a woman who set themselves a crazy challenge: producing wine in the northern Sarthe region.
In the spring of 2022, Champagne Philipponnat celebrated its 500th anniversary during two exceptional dinners, in Reims and in Paris. Charles Philipponnat, the 15th generation, who has been...
During the harvest, we discovered some of Gérard Bertrand's properties. This is definitely a real eye-opener for the identity and personality of the wines!