André Clouet

The Family Clouet have been living in and around the grand cru village of Bouzy, in the Montagne de Reims vineyards since 1492. The Montagne, the highest point between Germany and the UK if you look down a straight line, has been fought over for centuries - Attila the Hun camped on it in 451 AD, but it is the Pinot Noir grape which is now the King of this particular hill! The soil is volcanic schist over a chalk base, and the vines work hard giving quality and concentration to the wines. Jean-François Clouet is an ebullient character, larger than life, who believes passionately in himself. His goal is to turn Pinot Noir (and he only uses Pinot Noir) into the best grower’s champagne on the market. By appointment to, and on first names with the Royal Family of Sweden, he regularly welcomes dignitaries and pop stars from all over the world, many of whom now arrive by helicopter to collect a case or two of his fabulous wines.