M. Chapoutier | Rhône Valley

With roots dating back to 1808, M. Chapoutier is one of the oldest companies in the Rhône Valley. Yet, its world renown and the quality of wine can truly be accredited to the arrival of Michel Chapoutier in 1990. His willingness to change the set way, thirst for knowledge and open-mindedness, together with his drive to seek, discover and reflect the full potential of the terroirs, letting the soils express their true character, has put Chapoutier wines firmly on the wine world map. This philosophy is what gives the wines of Chapoutier their signature style and forms the basis of the M. Chapoutier ethos, driving the team to reveal the very best of what the soils have to offer.

The estate is one of the finest in the Rhône Valley and includes 34ha on the hill of Hermitage and vineyards all the way from Condrieu to Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Biodynamic viticulture is standard practice in all Chapoutiers vineyards, whilst chemical pesticides and herbicides are banned. Instead natural elements (minerals, plants and animals) have been introduced to preserve balance. The soil is fed with organic matter, thus preserving bacteria, which is the real 'Mother' of the vine and transforms the mineral into vegetal. Biodynamics is also about understanding the cycles of the earth, the sun and the moon. From these observations crucial decisions are taken as to when to prune and when to harvest. The winery is based in Tain l'Hermitage in the northern Rhône and is where the wines are carefully crafted to express their true terroir.

Since the mid 1990's all the Maison M. Chapoutier wine labels on bottles feature the wine information written in braille. This is a tribute to Maurice Monier de la Sizeranne, the inventor of the first abridged version of braille and who helped bring the blind and visually challenged out of isolation. There is even a wine in Chapoutier's portfolio that carries his name, from a plot that once belonged to his family.

Over the years, Michel's love of Rhône grape varieities has led him to discover other exceptional sites further afield in Roussillon, Provence, Alsace and Germany.

These are an exceptional range of wines worthy of discovery.

M. CHAPOUTIER