{"id":3043,"date":"2019-05-10T09:55:32","date_gmt":"2019-05-09T21:55:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/grape-to-glass.com\/?page_id=3043"},"modified":"2020-11-22T09:06:43","modified_gmt":"2020-11-21T20:06:43","slug":"winemaker-interview-dominique-petit","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/grape-to-glass.com\/index.php\/winemaker-interview-dominique-petit\/","title":{"rendered":"Winemaker Interview – Dominique Petit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Dominique Petit – Winemaker Series:<\/strong> <\/h3>\n1999 was the first vintage vinified by Dominique Petit for the Champagne House of Pol Roger, as Dominique had formerly been at Krug, where he worked for over 20 years. This experience and craftsmanship brought a controlled sense of power and concentration to the new cuv\u00e9e\u2019s. Though an important character that has not been reduced is the supreme elegance and harmony for which Pol Roger is famous, the wine demonstrating an almost symphonic elegance due to the extended time in their most sought after cellars.
\nChef de Caves Dominique Petit believes that great Champagne is all about the fruit. Pol Roger owns over 85 hectares of vineyards, which supply some 50% of the fruit required for annual production of around 1.6 up to 1.8 million bottles.
\nCareful attention in the vineyard is matched by meticulous care in the winery and cellars. Four \u2018remuageurs\u2019 hand riddle an astonishing 50,000 to 60,000 bottles per day in Pol Roger\u2019s vast network of chalk cellars underneath rue de Champagne in Epernay.
\nSince Dominique Petit joined Pol Roger, more than 9 million Euros has been invested in upgrading the winemaking facilities, and has continued in several key areas. I remember when I visited Pol Roger back in 2010, there was an amazing energy around the company and a great deal of activity, with new custom-made cold settling and fermentation tanks being installed, six new tiny 2200L tanks, and the old concrete tanks being upgraded, the cellar extended and the cellar floors concreted to reduce vibrations. Since then a great deal has continued to develop and another exciting structural project will break ground in *2019-20.
\nDominique Petit is regarded as one of the most articulate winemakers in Champagne and even though he retired in March 2018 – *(passing on the ‘chef de cave’<\/em> chapeau to Damien Cambres) – he has been an excellent addition to the family, continuing the high standards set by Pol Roger over the past 169 years and to craft sophisticated though elegant Champagnes from the sites they work. This attention to quality paid off in 2019 when Pol Roger was named the ‘World\u2019s Most Admired Champagne Brand’ – voted for and published in Drinks International magazine.
\nEven though Dominique is enjoying his retirement – here are some of his thoughts on the industry he contributed so much.<\/em>\n\u2022 What first attracted you to the wine industry and as a winemaker?
\n“I come from a family of winemakers; so I discovered winemaking at an early age \u2013 though it was at the age of 16 that I naturally chose to do studies to become a winemaker…”<\/em>\n\u2022 When and where did you study winemaking?
\nMy Oenology studies were made at:
\nBeaune Wine College in 1970 \/ 1971
\nThen the Wine College of Avize from 1971 to 1973
\nThen finally at the Faculty of Science in Reims from 1973 to 1977.<\/em>\n\u2022 Which person has influenced you the most as a winemaker and why?
\n“Professor Michel Feuillat was undoubtedly the person who most influenced us as winemakers (I say us – because my colleagues at the time have all done well). Michel Feuillat, a great wine and great science teacher knew how to discover the different ways of winemaking that might arise (depending on the case) when we were students…”<\/em>\n\t\t\t\t\"Dominique-Interview-Image-01\"\n\t\u2022 What was your favourite grape varietal(s) to work with and why?
\n“These grape varieties would be Chardonnay, Pinot Meunier and Pinot Noir. These are the three Champagne grape varieties I work with; I cannot separate or rank them, because they each have their own unique quality, and their interest in our assemblages…”<\/em>\n\u2022 With the above in mind, is there a grape varietal you are looking at as the future of Champagne…?
\n“It would be Chardonnay and Pinot Noir; removing the Pinot Meunier grapes more rustic notes with aromas that may be much less interesting with global warming – (which would be valid for Meunier in Champagne)…”<\/em>\n\u2022 With each new vintage what did you most look forward too?
\n“There is an expectation: during the tastings, the wines are a discovery, namely those that are maturing and we try to foresee their future conditions…”<\/em>\n\u2022 To date what has been your most interesting \/ challenging vintage and why?
\n“The 1979 vintage was the first vintage of my professional career. Maturity was spectacular with a purity that was extraordinarily beautiful. The wines were all without exception wonderful, and the few remaining examples in the cellars are still the same…”<\/em>\n\u2022 Which person \u2018past\u2019 or \u2018present\u2019 would you most like to meet and why?
\n“I would have liked to meet one of the forerunners of wine who practiced this science before the word was invented. We owe them all the foundations of wine that are always true, and we must not forget that the means at their disposal were rudimentary. I will name \u2018Pasteur\u2019, keeping a thought for Francois, Maumene, Chaptal and others…”<\/em>\n\t\t\t\t\"Dominique-Interview-Image-02.2\"\n\t\u2022 If you were stranded on a desert island and you could take one bottle of wine with you – what would it be and why?
\n“He replies with a smile: Champagne \u2018of course\u2019 rather a magnum: by nature, a bottle of Champagne to be enjoyed in full after it opened, which would thus require to keep it until help arrives, with the further advantage of keeping the morale maintaining the hope of their arrival (to be recovered or the magnum?: no answer)…”<\/em>\n\u2022 If you could have made wine anywhere else in the world – where would it be and why?
\n“I think in Chile; because I had the opportunity to visit this beautiful country, most of the natural barriers to pests and diseases formed by the Pacific Ocean and the Andes, provide a culture of more ‘rational’. This could also be New Zealand or Australia, but I have not had a chance to visit…, so I don\u2019t have a preference as yet for this part of the world…”<\/em>\n\u2022 What advice would you give a young person starting out as a winemaker?
\n“I would advise them to enjoy the offering available to be ‘young’ – to discover the most from French wine regions and foreign, that is offered by internships and contracts that are proposed by winemaking…”<\/em>\n\u2022 If you hadn\u2019t been a winemaker – what would you have liked to be and why?
\n“I have always seen myself as a winemaker – my core passion because I’m from a winemaking family, time spent on a modest farm. This is a tough job physically – though wonderful rewarding for anyone who are dedicated\u2026”<\/em>\n\u2022 In the future, what changes can you see, or would like to see for Champagne…?
\n“I do not want to see dramatic changes in our wines or styles. Though, it is likely that global warming will force growers and winemakers to adapt precisely to preserve the style of wines, and this will be their challenge. For example, in the first place, there will certainly be a need to manage a hot harvest and there you must choose the appropriate means to limit the minimum impact on the wines and their styles…”<\/em>\n\t\t\t\t\"Dominique-Interview-Image-03\"\n\t

Where can you find Pol Roger Champagne:<\/strong> <\/h3>\nPol Roger Champagne’s ‘sophisticated simplicity’<\/em> are available in New Zealand and around the world from quality wine retailers, restaurants \/ wine bars and hotels. Or visit the Pol Roger website – CLICK HERE<\/a>.\n

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