Jacquart

When it was first founded, JACQUART was located in the capital of Champagne, Reims, along the original street that gave JACQUART its name. Since 2009, however, the infamous Hôtel de Brimont has been the headquarters of JACQUART, located along the prestigious boulevard Lundy and surrounded by other well known Champagne houses. The return to our original neighbourhood has influenced the house dramatically. Elegance and contemporary design are the key features of the house that was designed by French architect Paul Blondel in the Louis XIV style and completed in 1897. Blondel was known to have helped Baron Haussmann in the extensive modernisation of Paris.

From the founders to the developers… Since 1964, the passion and commitment of our winegrowers has sublimated the terroir and created wines in their image. From the vines through to the cellars, it is their love for their craft and their shared passion that unites the men and women of Jacquart. They were thirty or so in number in the beginning, brought together by the pairing formed by Maurice Bonet, who was quite naturally to become President, and Director Joseph Fresne. They had the Jacquart name protected and registered the emblem of Renown on Pegasus as the symbol of the brand's dynamism. Thanks to the talent and perseverance of their successors, Champagne Jacquart has taken its place among the top ten international brands in less than half a century. A style specific to the Jacquart Cellar Masters From vintage to vintage, the Cellar Masters have succeeded each other, imposing and perpetuating the Jacquart style. They all share the same pride in taking part in this singular adventure, that of a fast-rising brand. At the end of the 1960s and then in the 70s, the Jacquart style took shape under the guiding hands of Michel Sohet then Jacques Peters. In 1979, it was Régis Camus who took over and made his mark on the quality of Jacquart Champagne. Today, Floriane Eznack perpetuates the House style.

Just as Floriane Eznack turned 30 she arrived in Champagne with a passion. As oenologist of the House, she is the one who embodies its spirit and is responsible for the winemaking. To say that choosing a woman is an audacious sign would be disrespectful! Floriane is compelled by her talent and she represents a sign of the changing times. She is young like our house and is investing in the future. «I work for the future of Champagne JACQUART and for the person who will be my successor. It is my job to know what the future of our wines will be in ten and twenty years time.»

The identity of our House is profoundly rooted in the land of Champagne, in its hilly landscapes, its chalk and its villages. Young as it may be in Champagne history terms, thanks to its 1,800 winegrowers, Jacquart boasts a terroir as vast as it is unique, covering 2,400 ha, to shape its wines with a very contemporary elegance. For over 10 years, the Alliance Champagne Group has been committed to sustainable vinegrowing, an innovation in Champagne. It is a choice guided by the need to preserve our environment and the determination to cultivate our vines with the highest possible quality standards. Sustainable winegrowing operates on a voluntary basis and aims to meet quality and environmental requirements while protecting the future of the vineyards. To consolidate this determined and respectful position, the Alliance Champagne Group has been ISO 9001 certified since February 2013 for "customer satisfaction" and "continuous improvement", and ISO 22000 registered for "food safety". We carry out awareness-raising with our winegrowers and advise them on how to enhance their vine-growing practices and optimise grape quality. The vines enjoy specific, attentive care from our 1,800 winegrowing partners. Each and every one of them has a passion for their work on the vines and follows the rhythm of the Champagne seasons. They work the soil, remove weeds and handle fertilisation in the course of the seasons: pruning, tying in, bud reoval, training, trimming, leaf stripping and finally harvesting the grapes.

Interview of Eric Guichard, winegrower for Champagne Jacquart

What does the 'cooperative grower' status imply ?

A cooperation is a mind-set and its intrinsic values make each person, member or artisan the center of organisation. As independant vine growers, we share our knowhow and our resources to contribute to the development and the appreciation to our Champagne. Our cohesion and the strategic vision that we share allow us to gain in international markets, positioning ourselves at the same level as multinational companies.

How do you work in the vines ?

For the past 15 years, we have been members of to the group of wine development. Are vines are grown organically and we follow minimal intervention in the vineyard to encourage biodiversity. We regurlarly attend meetings and training seminars, which allow us to share our methods and experience in winemaking and how it's evolved. We are constantly mindful of our impact on the environment and the quality of our product is our main priority.

From vine to wine… making Champagne requires know-how combining respect, genius and humility. When the grapes are fully ripe, they are picked carefully by hand and transported quickly in to the press. Once the best of the juice has been obtained and clarified, strictly-selected natural yeast is added. The first fermentation, or alcoholic fermentation, is carried out in temperature-controlled vats, specially designed to preserve all the aromatic freshness and riches. The second or malolactic fermentation contributes to the Champagne Jacquart style and reduces the acidity of the wines naturally. With all due respect for the crus and their typical character, and for the unrivalled quality of the Champagne grapes, Floriane Eznack, the Maison Jacquart oenologist, selects the very best for the blend to form a harmonious champagne. The wine is then bottled and starts its second alcoholic fermentation. It then rests on the lees. This ageing period is exceptionally long at Jacquart to bring out the very best in the wines: 3 years for the Cuvée Brut Mosaïque, between 5 and 6 years for the vintage wines and our prestige Cuvée Alpha.

Since the day it was founded, Champagne Jacquart has boasted sophisticated winemaking equipment and research facilities, and it owes it to itself to keep up with cutting-edge techniques insofar as they can serve to reveal all the excellence and diversity of the terroirs cultivated by our growers. The meticulous gestures of our craftsmen of the vine are followed by the latest technology in the winery, guided by scsientific progress and the greatest respect for the sensorial expression of our wines