Michel
Chapoutier: visiting one of the Rhône's most famous producers
Part 1, The Chapoutier story and tasting the wines
Chapoutier,
18 avenue du Docteur Paul Durand, 26600 Tain l'Hermitage
Tel: +33 (0) 4 75 08 28 65 Fax: +33 (0) 4 75 08 81 70
Website: www.chapoutier.com

Michel Chapoutier in relaxed mood
Michel
Chapoutier is, as they say in the trade, a bit of a character.
He’s clearly very smart, but also slightly—and one suspects,
deliberately—unorthodox. The 47 year-old Chapoutier has
established himself as one of the most visible figures in the wine
world in the 21 years that he’s been running his family firm. An
ambassador for the Rhône,
he is not without controversy, and while he’s feted by some
(notably the world’s most powerful wine critic, Robert Parker), he
has attracted his fair share of criticism.
In
May I met him for the first time, on his home territory in Tain
l’Hermitage, in France’s Northern Rhône
region. Also present on this quick trip were Chris Kissack (of www.thewinedoctor.com)
and Elizabeth Ferguson (of UK agents Mentzendorff). Within a few
hours of meeting him, he was driving us through one of his Hermitage
vineyards at great speed, with a Karl Jenkins CD playing at top
volume.

Looking at the hill of Hermitage from the west
bank of the Rhone
Typical
Chapoutier: he claims that he drinks at least two bottles of
Champagne a day. ‘I am probably the most important customer of
Champagne,’ he quips. Now he certainly loves Champagne, and on our
short visit we consumed quite a bit of it. But two bottles a day?
He’s not exactly a big guy. It wouldn’t leave room for much
Hermitage.
Michel
is a journalist’s dream, in that he talks in wonderfully quotable
soundbites. ‘My idea is not to try to make the best wine
possible,’ says Michel, ‘but to take pictures of the terroir.’
He suggests that there are three elements to terroir: soil, climate
and humans. He also adds in the vintage as part of the equation.
‘If vintage is part of terroir, we shouldn’t try to correct the
vintage; we should never acidify and never chaptalize,’ he
asserts. ‘Too many winemakers try to correct the vintage. For me,
the quality is done in the vineyard and the winemaking has to be
extremely simple.’

In Chapoutier's Le Meal vineyard, Hermitage
THE
CHAPOUTIER STORY
Michel
Chapoutier’s story is a remarkable one. In 1990, aged only 26 (he
was born in 1964), he bought the family business from his
grandfather (Marc), and promptly fired the other family members,
including his father Max. It was a mess.
Marc
had nominally handed over Maison Chapoutier to his son Max in 1977,
but had remained very much involved. The young Michel had been
travelling to other wine regions, and when he returned in 1987, he
assumed responsibility for vinification of the Chapoutier family
wines. However, his brother and father retained responsibility for
the maturation of these wines, so the wines were not Michel’s. And
the results weren’t good. The business was struggling.
In
1989 Michel had enough: he went to his grandfather and told him that
he was leaving, and that he couldn’t work with his family any
more. His grandfather said he couldn’t leave, and offered to skip
a generation, missing out Max and handing the reins directly to
Michel. But Michel didn’t want the benefits of his hard work to go
to underserving family members, so issued an ultimatum: he wanted to
buy the company himself, or he would leave.
Michel
got his way, and the company. Since then, the Chapoutier firm, which
was in grave peril, has been transformed beyond recognition. It is
now a thriving commercial success, and has expanded far beyond its
roots in the Rhône.
To
his credit, he’s a family man. Michel married Corinne in 1986, and
is still married to her. She is much quieter and more reserved than
Michel, but they seem at ease together. They have two children, now
young adults: their son Maxime is at university in Melbourne, and their
daughter Mathilde is currently living in Beijing. She speaks
Mandarin. A smart business move?

The Chapoutier family from their Christmas card,
2012
Michel
is very well travelled, and his horizons spread far. The Chapoutier
name can be found on bottles from Alsace, the Roussillon and
Australia. He’s also involved in Champagne with Devaux in the
Aube, and has set his sights on making wine in England—an as yet
unnamed location, but somewhere west, with granitic soils.
‘You
judge a winemaker by the diversity of his or her cellar,’ says
Michel. He says that he doesn’t drink his own wines at home, but
instead drinks wines that he exchanges with other winemakers. ‘I
never exchange by value,’ he emphasizes. ‘We exchange a passion,
not a potential profit.’ As well as making wine, Michel owns a
wine import company. ‘I have an import company because I have a
duty to fight against French chauvinism.’
Some
Chapoutier themes. He loves terroir, and in particular is a huge fan
of granitic soils. ‘More and more I look for granite and
gneiss,’ he says, adding, ‘where there are different soils in
the vineyard the wines are really good.’ He’s also one of the
most vocal proponents of biodynamics, and believes that the life of
the soil is vital for good terroir expression. He’s also
unconvinced of the need to blend varieties to get complexity. ‘I
consider some of the most interesting wines are from Burgundy not
Bordeaux,’ he says. ‘Plenty of great regions are mono
cepage. The complexity of the wine comes from the bacterial life
in the soil around the roots. To play with single varieties should
be enough for complexity.’

In
Chapoutier's holding of L'Hermite, looking down to Bessards where
Pavillon comes from
I’m
particularly impressed by his white northern Rhône
wines, and here his focus is on Marsanne. ‘Marsanne is an
interesting grape with a low level of acidity,’ says Michel.
‘It’s not the acid that gives the potential for ageing; it is
the phenolics. This comes from the maturity. The maturity of
Marsanne will bring the phenolics that help the expression of
terroir.’ He says that he doesn’t use Roussanne, because he
wants whites that can age, and Roussanne is sensitive to oxidation.

The famous chapel of St Christopher
(La Chapelle) in L'Hermite
THE
WINES
Here
I am just focusing on the wines of the Rhône.
Understanding the Chapoutier range is quite a task. A lot of
different wines are made each vintage. There’s the negociant
range, made from bought-in grapes, and then there are the estate
wines. At the top of the tree are the single vineyard bottlings
known as Fac & Spera (the family motto, which translates ‘do
and hope’), or alternatively Sélections
Parcellaires. We kicked off with a tasting of the Fac & Speras
from 2007 (whites) and 2000 (reds).
Chapoutier
Les Granits St Joseph Blanc 2007
From a 2 hectare plot with very poor, stony, granitic soils,
this is just Marsanne. Full yellow colour. Intensely nutty, toasty
nose. Floral with some vanilla notes. Fine and complex. The palate
is powerful, intense, herby and bold with lovely mineral complexity.
Very lively, textural and mouthfilling. 94/100
Chapoutier
de L’Orée
Ermitage Blanc 2007
From a 3.5 ha plot with alluvial deposits; all Marsanne.
Rounded, aromatic nose is quite creamy and rich with generous ripe
pear and peach notes. Fine and seamless. The palate is rich and
complex with subtle minerality and perhaps a hint of matchstick
reduction under the plump, textured fruit. A beautiful wine. 96/100
Chapoutier Saint-Peray Les Tanneurs 2009
13.5% alcohol. This
is mainly Marsanne with a little bit of Roussanne. Lively and
focused with bright citrussy fruit and some richness of texture,
finishing with nice acidity. Pure and fresh with some waxy notes in
the background and hints of straw. Fresh and complex. 91/100 (£15
Alfred the Grape, Hercules Wines, Tanners, last Drop, Hailsham
Cellars)
Chapoutier
Condrieu Invitare 2009
13.5% alcohol. From granite soils. Very rich, bold and mealy
with a slightly oxidative character on the nose. Buttery, toasty
notes. The palate is richly textured, nutty, creamy and toasty.
Broad and distinctive, but perhaps lacking a little in fruit purity?
90/100 (£35 Majestic, Corks Out, Handford, Hennings, Alfred the
Grape, Slurp)
Chapoutier
Chante-Alouette Ermitage Blanc 2007
Beautifully aromatic, this is a powerful white wine with
rounded, honeyed peach and pear fruit backed up by subtle nuttiness.
It’s fine and elegant, while at the same time being quite rich.
Textured and broad with a lovely soft mouthfeel and a warm finish. A
great expression of Marsanne. 94/100 (£42 Handford Wines, Lancelot
Wines, Planet of the Grapes, Selfridges, Wimbledon Wine Cellar,
Harrods, The Wine Society, Laithwaites)

Chapoutier
Les Varonniers Crozes-Ermitage 2000
From a 3.2 hectare plot with granite soils. Showing some
evolution. Earthy, graphite nose with some roasted notes, and
cherries, plums, tar and spice. Quite taut still with plum and black
cherry fruit on the palate, which is vibrant and quite elegant. Nice
freshness, some minerality and good acidity. 92/100
Chapoutier
La Mordorée
Côte-Rôtie
2000
Meaty, spicy and quite animal with smoky notes and some grilled
meat, as well as olive and bacon. The palate is fresh and meaty with
some earthy notes. Spicy and warm, this is quite complex with a
lovely mature quality. 92/100
Chapoutier
Le Méal
Ermitage 2000
Dark, spicy, slightly roasted nose is meaty and intense with
some animal characters. Powerful, concentrated palate with bold
black cherry fruit and some plummy notes. Intense, lively and ripe
with a strongly mineral dimension and firm tannins. Real precision
here. 95/100
Chapoutier
L’Ermite Ermitage 2000
Fine, mineral spicy nose with some notes of tar and roast
coffee. Beautifully aromatic, perfumed and floral. The palate is
lively and intense with mineral and savoury notes, a bit like rain
on pavements. Structured and lively with high acidity and dark
fruits. 94/100
Chapoutier
Croix de Bois Châteauneuf-du-Pape
2000
5 ha of Grenache here. Sweet herby nose is quite ripe and full
with warm caramel notes, as well as some soy sauce. Meaty and broad.
The palate is spicy and a bit earthy with broad flavours and some
mineral notes. Tastes quite old. 90/100
Other
Sélections
Parcellaires tasted during the trip:
Chapoutier
De l’Orée
Ermitage Blanc 2001 (magnum)
Complex, broad, nutty and intense with lively pear and citrus
fruit. Real freshness and complexity here, showing lovely depth. So
fresh. 95/100
Chapoutier
La Mordorée Côte-Rôtie 2006
Lovely freshness and intensity here: lively and precise with
raspberry and black cherry fruit. Lovely subtly meaty notes here.
Very fine and elegant with good acidity. Lively and precise. 95/100
Chapoutier
Le Pavillon Ermitage 2001
Hints of meat and spice on the nose. Fresh but earthy with some
bloodiness. The palate is fresh and vibrant with nice cherry fruit.
Nicely savoury with gravelly grip and a drying finish. Notes of
spice and earth, in a savoury style. 93/100
Chapoutier
Le Pavillon Ermitage 1991
A rare wine. Michel made this in the year that he and his wife
Corinne had their first child. Yields were down to 10 hl/ha to make
this wine—Michel had recently taken over and wanted to make the
best wine he could, even in a difficult vintage. One-third was aged
in the 228 litre chestnut barrels that were then still being used at
the domaine. We were served it blind. Very fine, fresh and bloody
with lovely cherry fruit and some meatiness. Firm tannins on the
palate. A fresh, vital and beautifully complex wine with some
earthy, spicy maturity but also lovely freshness. 95/100

The
estate and negociant range
This is where you have to pick and choose a bit. While the Sélections
Parcellaires, and in particular the whites, are remarkable
world-class wines, the remainder of the range is maddeningly
inconsistent. And these wines are expensive for what they are, too.
To be perfectly blunt, some of these wines should be a lot better
than they are given their prices, although there are some real
highlights.
Chapoutier
Saint-Peray Les Tanneurs 2009
Marsanne with a bit of Roussanne. Lively, focused, citrussy and
bright with some richness of texture and nice acidity. Very pure and
fresh with some waxy notes in the background and hints of straw.
91/100 (£12 Alfred the Grape, Hercules Wines, Tanners, Last Drop,
Hailsham Cellars)
Chapoutier
Condrieu Invitare 2009
Very rich, bold and mealy with slightly oxidative notes on the
nose, as well as notes of butter and toast. The palate is rich
textured, nutty and creamy. Broad and distinctive; perhaps lacking a
little in fruit purity? 90/100 (£35 Majestic, Corks Out, Handford,
Hennings, Alfred the Grape, Slurp)
Chapoutier
Hermitage Blanc Chante Alouette 2007
Full yellow colour. Nutty nose with some bright citrus notes.
The palate shows waxy, nutty notes with some herbs. Quite a fresh
profile with nice fruitiness. Lively and complex. 92/100 (£42
Handford, Lancelot Wines, Planet of the Grapes, Selfridges,
Wimbledon Wine Cellars, Harrods, The Wine Society, Laithwaites)
Chapoutier
Côtes
du Rhône
Belleruche 2009
Stylish effort for the price, with focused fresh cherry and
berry fruit and some spiciness. A hint of minerality, too. 88/100 (£8.99
Majestic, EH Booth, Last Drop, Eagle Wines, Little Tipple, Hailsham
Cellars)
Chapoutier
Crozes-Hermitage La Petite Ruche 2009
Very fresh with lively cherry and raspberry fruit on the nose.
Lovely purity. The palate is bright, pure, fresh and primary with
lovely sweet fruit and a hint of peppery complexity. 90/100 (£14 EH
Booth, Eagle Wines, Hennings, Last Drop, Wimbledon Wine Cellars,
Sainsbury's)
Chapoutier
Crozes-Hermitage Les Meysonniers 2008
Lively fresh peppery nose, with some sappiness. The palate is bright
and focused with lovely fresh red cherry fruit and attractive
pepperiness. Lovely tannins: so fresh and elegant. 92/100 (£17 EH
Booth, Averys, Eagle Wines, Four Walls, The Wine Society, Lancelot
Wines, Partridges, Tanners, Hailsham Cellars, Tesco.com)
Chapoutier
Saint-Joseph Les Deschants 2009
Some nice direct black cherry fruit on the nose. Nice, pure,
fresh black fruits on the palate with some meatiness. Pure and
simple. 89/a00 (£19 Alfred the Grape, Last Drop, Partridges, Planet
of the Grapes, Hailsham Cellars, Direct Wines)
Chapoutier
Gigondas 2009
Nicely forward with sweet, fresh berry fruits, showing good
definition and purity. Spicy, peppery savouriness adds interest.
90/100 (£21 Averys, Corks Out, Butlers Wine Cellar)
Chapoutier
Chateauneuf du Pape La Bernadine 2008
Sweet herby nose is slightly baked and has hints of caramel. The
palate is sweet and quite elegant with red cherry and plum fruit, as
well as some earthy minerality and hints of raisins. 88/100 (£28
Averys, Eagle Wines, Lancelot Wines, Last Drop, The Wine Society,
Wimbledon Wine Cellars, Partridges)
Chapoutier
Cornas Les Arenes 2007
Aromatically shy. Fresh, expressive and mid-bodied with some
subtly meaty notes. A bit of pepper. Expressive with subtle green
herby notes. 87/100 (£32 Averys, Butler Wine Cellar, Corks Out,
Tanners, Wine Society)
Chapoutier
Cote Rotie Les Becasses 2007
Fine, subtly spicy peppery nose with some green notes and a hint
of olives. The palate is bright and peppery with red cherry and
berry fruits, as well as good acidity. Just lacking a little depth.
89/100 (£45 Alfred the Grape, Planet of the Grapes, Tesco.com)
Chapoutier
Hermitage Monier de la Sizeranne 2007
Midweight with quite elegant black cherry and plum fruit,
fine-grained tannins, and a bit of supporting oak. It's not a showy
wine but it has elegance and finesse. Midweight style with some
mineral notes as well as well-judged fruit. 90/100 (£50 Alfred the
Grape, Planet of the Grapes, Wimbledon Wine Cellars, Selfridges,
Tanners)
See
also:
The
Hill of Hermitage: one of the world's great appellations
Photographs of
Hermitage: pictures from this remarkable appellation
My
blog posts on the Northern Rhône
Wines
tasted 05/11
Find these wines with wine-searcher.com
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