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🎙 Bringing wine stories, tips, and expert interviews to everyday wine lovers. 🍷
00:00
Peter
Olivier Krug is, like, standing next to Rafael Baresh and, like, both of them are a little bit nervous looking at each other. You know, like, what are you doing here? It's like, well, what are you doing here? And now they're totally good friends.
00:13
Daniel
It was a bit of an earthquake when the houses and the growers. Not so much the growers. The growers were all for it. But for the houses, who are often directed by another department and marketing department say, no, you can't do this. But there was a bit of an earthquake. And you could see the look on their faces when you invited them. It's like,.
00:37
Matt Weiss
Welcome to the wine centric show, presented by Inventory. Download the app and manage your wine collection with ease. I'm Matt Weiss. This is the pre fete episode and the wine centric show is a media partner of Lafayette du Champagne. This year, The Fed is four days in New York City, October 14th through the 17th, where the people who actually make champagne come and pour it for you. Not brand ambassadors, the owners, the winemakers, the families. Grand tastings, masterclasses, dinners, and a gala at Pier 60. Daniel Jonas and Peter Liam started it. And the idea was almost radical at the time. Put the great houses and the small growers in the same room and stop asking people to pick a side. So I went to Daniel and Peter on how it began and then to three producers who will be pouring.
01:29
Matt Weiss
Olivier Krug, Laurent Shams of Vilmar, Arthur Lemonier of Le Mondier Bernier. It's just over two weeks away and I'll be there with the camera. So there's more of this coming. Tickets are@lafette duchampagne.com the link is below. Let's get into it. Welcome to the wine centric show. This is the pre fete du Champagne episode and boy, do I have some titans of the industry and the festival world here with me. You know this first man very well. This is his second time on the wine centric show. He is the oracle of champagne, Mr. Peter Liam. Welcome, Peter.
02:18
Peter
Well, thank you, Matt. Thank you. I'm glad to be with you again.
02:21
Matt Weiss
It's great to have you back. And then with his first time on the wine centric show, this man has been dubbed by Jay McInerney, the dean of the sommelier world. He is the corporate beverage director and wine director for the Dynex, Mr. Danielle Jonas. Welcome, sir.
02:47
Daniel
Thank you, Matthew. It's an honored to be invited onto the show.
02:50
Matt Weiss
Well, it's so great to have you here and to see your festival T shirt. To celebrate this. So really, we're talking today. It's the Prefet. We're getting everybody excited about why they should be joining this event. Coming up first, in New York City on October 14th through the 17th, we are having some of the best champagne producers in the world. I'll just name a few. Not to slight anybody, but the ones that come to the top of mind, we're having Krug, Dom Perignon, Ville, Martin C. Tarton, Taille, Pierre Peters. I mean, those are just a few of the highlights. And I want to start right from the beginning. And this is a question to both of you. So, actually, Peter, maybe I'll start with you. What was the genesis of this event? How did it come together?
03:32
Peter
Yeah, it seems like a long time ago now, but it's funny. So I. I've been a champagne specialist for a long time. A few decades now, and I always had this idea of doing a champagne event, right? Some. Some kind of event in the States. And Daniel had been doing, you know, La Palais, you know, for a very long time. And he, like, independently generated this idea of doing a champagne event. And Daniel and I have been friends since the 90s. I mean, we. We met in Burgundy, and. And, you know, so we've known each other a long time, but one day were just having dinner, and, you know, Daniel was like, hey, I want to do a champagne event. And I was like, really? I want to do one, too. And so we put our heads together and we generated this idea, and.
04:17
Peter
Yeah. And this turned into la fete du champagne, and we couldn't be happier.
04:21
Matt Weiss
Daniel, does that ring true to you? When you ask a couple about how they meet, you already get different stories.
04:28
Daniel
We're not going to get into a dispute over this, but I do have a few things to add.
04:33
Matt Weiss
Please.
04:34
Daniel
No dispute whatsoever. It's 100% the truth. I'd just like to elaborate a little bit. Because of Peter's deep knowledge and enormous respect in the industry, and also for, you know, for wine in general, but especially champagne. I did have this idea to do a champagne festival. But when we had our meal together, I said to him, I said, you know, I'd like to do this because I feel there's a lot of similarities between what is happening in champagne today and this was, what, 14 years ago, Peter. And what happened in Burgundy and then other similarities, such as the grape varieties, attention to terroir, new generation succession, respect for the viticulture. There were a lot of similarities between what was beginning to happen in champagne or had already happened for a few years and what had happened to Bernie earlier.
05:21
Daniel
And so I wanted to harness that. But I said to Peter, I said, you know, I can't do it. I'm not a champagne specialist. I want this to be authentic. And if I do it, go ahead and launch it, I'll be able to engage with the Champenoir and their friends, but I won't feel as confident about it if I were to do it on my own. So would you do it with me? And then he thought about it a little bit and told me that he was thinking of doing it. And I have an amazing infrastructure with the team I have having built Rand La Pale. So it made perfect sense having the expertise of Peter, having the. The structure of production for my team and my relationships with the Chopin wine, the clients. So that's just to develop answer.
06:09
Matt Weiss
To your question a little bit more. So you guys, it sounds like it was kind of kisment you were having la. And just for our listeners that might not know and they might be somewhat starting out to the whole their wine journey or the festivals, LA originally like was started. It was a harvest festival in Burgundy, is that right? Where producers would come together to celebrate the harvest. Do I have the gist of that? Correct?
06:32
Daniel
You do. Polai is an event that occurs at the end of harvest at every single domain in Burgundy. It's a way of celebrating the grapes have been picked. They're either in their vats or the press and, you know, they don't have to worry about the vineyard anymore. And then in the twenties, when times in Burgundy were not so good, the region started a number of festivals to promote Burgundy. There was the Confreres de Chevalier de Testerin and a big festival at Clos Vougeau. There was the auction at the Hospice de Beaune and then the village of Meursault, led by the Count Jules Lafond, the great grandfather of Dominique Lafond at Comte Lafont, decided to do a community wide, a village wide pole. And so he got the entire village together. This was 1923. And that's been going on for over 100 years.
07:19
Daniel
So that's what a pole is. And Domi Clafort invited me to a Palais. And I found it so moving because it really distilled to the essence of wine appreciation and that is sharing and bringing people together, that I asked permission to bring it to the United States. I asked permission of the mayor of Meursault, the president of the Palais Meursault, and a committee of Dominique Lafange Jean Coulot, Pierre Moret and so on. So I started that in 2000. As it relates to la fete de champagne. Peter and I fortunately had known each other, had been friends, and I think there are more reasons of being friends other than just an encounter. The Pole is a festival that does not discriminate. We don't take a position saying we don't want big negociants, we don't want natural wine. We, we embrace everyone.
08:13
Daniel
We want to tell the story of a region, we want to tell the story of the producers. And whether it be natural wine being negotiate big production, there's a story to tell in all of that. And with Peter, I think champagne at the time was a little bit more reserved in gathering with each other, the big negotiation. Houses were very protective of their brand and were reluctant to get into a room with a small grower. Correct me if I'm wrong, Peter, but we agreed that we can't take a position, say no big houses only grow our champagne or only natural champagne, or so on and so forth. So it was really about telling the story of the entire region of champagne. And we continue to do that.
08:56
Peter
This is a really important point because so our first Lafaite du Champagne was in 2012. And you know, like, it wasn't all that long ago, like, you know, in real time. But in fact the atmosphere surrounding champagne and the way that champagne was consumed and the way that champagne was bought and sold, it was very different in 2012 than it is now. And so Daniel is totally right. Like there was a much greater segregation within the industry. So like, you know, growers and houses, they didn't hang out together, but also in the consumer market and in the professional market. Right. So sommeliers would feel like they had to take a stand, right? Like either you support, you know, Krug and Roederer and Bollinger, or you support like, you know, chartreuse and Baresh and you can't do both. And consumers were the same way.
09:50
Peter
You know, consumers really felt this like, like, you know, old school. Consumers were all about houses, you know, because, you know, they all have like 64 Krug and 59 Dom Perignon in their cellars, you know, whatever. And then like know, hip and cool consumers, they're all about embracing champagne growers and they turn their noses up at vauclicot and whatever. And so were completely against all of this. We're like, we are not making any distinction between houses and growers. We Want to showcase high quality champagne. We want to show you what the champagne region can do. And this, I mean, to my knowledge, this is. Is the. The first champagne event in the world that did this. And the producers support me in that. They were really surprised when they walked into the room in 2012 and Olivier Krug is standing next to Raphael Baresh.
10:43
Peter
And both of them are a little bit nervous looking at each other. What are you doing here? It's like, well, what are you doing here? And now they're totally good friends.
10:54
Daniel
It was a bit of an earthquake when the houses and the growers. Not so much the growers were all for it, but for the houses, who are often directed by another department, a marketing department, say, no, you can't do this. But there was a bit of an earthquake. And you could see the look on their faces when you invited them.
11:11
Peter
It's like, yeah, very much so. It was. Politically, it was a big deal because also with Lafayette du Champagne, we're very particular in. It's not like other events where people can just fill out an application and pay their fee and attend. You know, it's by invitation only. And the producers that we select, we insist that a principal person comes, you know, so that might be the owner of the domain or the chef de cav of a house, you know, or like the, Like Olivier Krug. Right. The primary ambassador of Krug. It has to be somebody. It can't just be like, you know, the northeastern regional representative. I mean, not that we have anything against anybody in the trade. I'm not saying that. It's just that, we. When we feel that like we want the.
11:59
Peter
A primary person representing this producer, and that's part of the reason that people attend, is to meet these people and to be able to. To talk to them and to, you know, discuss wines with them and. And that's a major part of the Lafette experience for me.
12:13
Matt Weiss
Yeah, it makes it authentic and it makes it your people that you wouldn't normally, maybe if you're a consumer, have access to. You get access to. And that's what makes this so special. The other thing I want to say is La Fette du Champag, a bridge builder. And I think this is a. I don't want to get political, but this is like a metaphor for the political world. Or just to put that in, like, a small way that people can relate to. Like, imagine you had the biggest blockbuster actor in the world, like, let's say Tom Cruise and then Kristoff Vs. Let's say before, like, even, you know, something like the best indie actor come together in the same room and just be equally appreciated.
12:52
Matt Weiss
I think it's brilliant because there's no reason, there's no rules that you can't still enjoy the big grandmarques and also the independent growers.
13:02
Daniel
As Peter said, you can't buy your way into La Feteux Champagne. You can't buy your way into La Palais. And it's that sort of relationship with the producer, our respect for the producer, that creates an atmosphere and it has a ripple effect. When they come into the room, we know them and they're comfortable and they want to share their stories, they want to share their champagne with the people. And there's a certain, like, natural, just atmosphere that's created because of these relationships where it's no longer. It doesn't become a trade event, you know, where people pay to attend. So that's a really key part of it, whether it be La Palais or Lafitte or champagne. It's the depth of the relationships.
13:44
Daniel
Peter has the relationships I have and the team and the producers, you know, we, we invite producers who are making really good champagne. That's, that's our opinion. But it's also, you know, it's also that friendship. You know, we want to be with people we enjoy being with. And once that happens, it's like when you throw a pebble in a pond and you get that ripple effect that just spreads out so that friendship spreads throughout the room. And I think people really pick up on it.
14:18
Matt Weiss
Talk to me about that. Take me into the selection process of who you call. I mean, like, for example, let's go through who it was today that you have versus when you guys had that meeting on said restaurant on East 7th street, you know, 14 years ago. Who, once you guys decide to do this, who are the first producers? Phone calls you make?
14:38
Peter
This is the hardest part of my year.
14:42
Daniel
The.
14:42
Matt Weiss
Yeah, because.
14:44
Peter
So, so the way that our event is structured, we can really have a maximum of 35 producers there. Right. Just the. In terms of organization, in terms of costs, in terms of. Yeah, just the way that the whole event is structured is a little bit different than other events where you can have, you know, hundreds of producers there. So we can only have 35 producers there, but, you know, there are 150 that. That want to come and that we would love to see. Right. Like, we want them to come. We want, we want to be inclusive. And, and so it's, you know, every year we try and feature new producers who haven't been there before. But then also, you know, we have to honor our relationships with. With, you know, people who have supported us from the beginning.
15:25
Peter
So we don't have a systematic selection process. You know, it's probably less. Less orderly than it should be, but we have to. To try and find a balance, to strike a balance of every year. And that's. That's sometime for sure.
15:40
Daniel
There are some guardrails where we do want to support. We want to invite those who support us in the very beginning. But as Peter said, we like to bring new producers onto the scene and introduce them to our clientele. But we also try to balance it between the houses and the producers. The Cote d', Blanc, Montagne. We want to have an expression of the region, and that includes. We want to be sure we don't have 30 grower champagnes in five houses. So it's about. We put the list together, and then we look at it and say, oh, they've come, you know, eight times. Maybe it's time to bring somebody new. And you also have a new generation of producers in champagne.
16:24
Daniel
So part of our mission is to introduce, expose these new producers and show the public, look, don't just buy the big famous houses because you're buying a label, but try this. And that's the educative part process and part of what we do as well.
16:41
Matt Weiss
Yeah, I love that. And do you and Peter, do you get on calls and go through a selection process, or do you each present, like, I'm just curious about how that process works, or is there a whole team involved with, you know, the press bar team, et cetera?
16:57
Daniel
There's a whole team, but I have to tell you, we get requests. In the beginning, we invited a core group. Okay. But now it says, Peter said people come to us and ask if they can come. When I get those messages, I forward them to Peter, I step out. I step out of it and say this one.
17:17
Peter
Sorry. Yeah, yeah, fair enough. But I mean, already so, like, you know, the.
17:21
Daniel
The.
17:21
Peter
The 2026 Lafette hasn't even happened yet. I already have an Excel spreadsheet of, like, potential 2027, you know, that we have to keep in mind. And so, yeah, it's a. It's just. It's a constant process.
17:33
Matt Weiss
Peter, you're the master, not only of champagne, but the perfect segue. So let's talk about 2026 Lafette. Off the top of your heads, what are some of the events? So for those who have never been or not familiar There's a series of events concluding with the grand gala tasting on the 17th, and then there's a dinner after that. But before there's some individual dinners. Are there any ones in particular, Daniel, Peter, that you're, like, super excited, that are fresh and new this year, and they all have very dynamic culinary aspects to them as well. So can you speak to what's coming up this year and what you're kind of most looking forward to?
18:11
Peter
For my part, I'm looking forward to all of them because, I mean, you know, I. We created the events, so we're not going to create something that we're not excited about. But, yeah, it's pretty exceptional. Let's. I mean, of course, the centerpiece always is the grand tasting and the gala dinner. You know, this is the core of the event. And that happens on Saturday. And that's really special, you know, because, like, on the grand tasting, you get to, you know, meet 35, you know, champagne producers, you get to taste a bunch of wine. It's. We try and make it, you know, a very. A very positive experience. And then the gala dinner, you know, is. Is, of course, exceptional because you get to taste, you know, wines that you get to taste these legendary things.
18:52
Peter
But then, yeah, like, some of the other events that we're doing, I mean, one that, you know, comes to mind is this Paul Roget dinner that we're doing with a vertical of Cuvais Sil Winston Churchill. This is extremely rare, you know, like, to have so many vintages of Sir Winston Churchill in one room and be able to experience them, you know, all together. This is. This is very uncommon. And so we're very proud to be, you know, to be doing this for the first time with Paul Roget at. At La Fete du Champagne. So I'm really looking forward to that. We have. I've been wanting to do this for a long time.
19:26
Daniel
Yeah, we've talked about that for several years. And this really is exceptional. It goes back to 95, I think, is the oldest vintage we're going to be showing. And there are others, I mean, that are really important and something we haven't talked about yet is the importance of the food, the culinary angle of La Feteu Champagne. Because Peter and I both love to eat. We love food. We love relationships. We love with. With chefs. We know the importance of food in relation to the. The wines that we drink. And fortunately, we both have relationships with some of the best chefs in the world. So this Sir Winston dinner, Sir Winston Churchill dinner is extraordinary. We're doing it at Aquamit and you know that's going to be special. And then we've got a dinner with Arnaud Lallemand, Daniel Boulou at Danielle.
20:16
Daniel
That's what Chateaudain Meteller and Rudolph Peters. Yes, but you've got that the house champagne, the Pommerger and then we have grown champagne dinner after that and you know, on and on. But I wanted to emphasize the food because it's really important for us and for our clients who are spending a lot of money for a special event that they're fed well.
20:34
Peter
Well.
20:35
Matt Weiss
And also as we talk about all the time on the wine centric show, that you know, wine is most often meant to be enjoyed with food. Not that I say that it's always that you can't. But when you have these exceptional chefs providing food that are going to highlight these wines, it really presents them in the best way that they are going to ever be presented. So that's really cool. So that's the Churchill dinner which is on Wednesday the 14th and like you said, yes, at 6:30 at Aquavit. And then you have the Pierre Peters and Chantiller dinner with Chef Daniel Boulud and Chef Arnaud Lalimont. So that's pretty exceptional as well. And I believe I'll get salesy here for one second if you allow me. But I think it's. Well, it's.
21:17
Matt Weiss
It needs to be said that there are still tickets available for those two dinners currently. So if you just go to. Just google the Fete du Champagne and you will find all the information you need on there. A couple last questions, gentlemen. As I know time is getting short but Peter, what are the new houses this year that have never previously been to Lafayette?
21:39
Peter
Adrian Berger is coming. So you know, really up and coming producer, predominantly in the Cezanne that does a lot of things and really making some nice wines. I'm looking forward to having him there.
21:48
Matt Weiss
Peter, is there anything that you've tasted and maybe you tasted it when it kind of wasn't ready or showing weirdly or maybe in the press wasn't highly regarded and now you want people to experience this the way you have or you think like let's give these champagnes a second chance. Is there anything that I guess for a simpler way is maybe is gotten a bad rap and you're like actually you need to retaste this.
22:14
Peter
Maybe for example, the 2022 vintage. It's, you know, a lot of vintage wines haven't come out yet. But we've Been seeing non vintage wines. It was a very warm year. Some of the wines you feel, the alcohol you feel, you know, there's, it's not that 2022 is a bad vintage, but I think, you know, some people have been a little bit skeptical. You know, just this morning, I mean, I'm here in Champagne, you know, just this morning I, I, I was with Alex Charton and you know, were tasting his 2022s, and I was amazed at how he always does well in hot vintages. Right. And I was just amazed at the precision and the purity and the harmony of his 2022s. I mean, there's some of the most beautiful wines that he's ever made.
22:55
Peter
And I think that, you know, with the caliber of the producers that we're bringing, you're seeing some of the best wines that Champagne can produce. And so this is, it's really exciting to bring all these people together in one room.
23:10
Matt Weiss
Love it. Daniel, as we get you out of here, is there anything, something that you're most looking forward to or something that you kind of want to change the minds of the most consumers or even your team who we didn't even mention. It's, it is somewhat of a, it is this beautiful bringing together of both the trade, the industry and the consumers. So is there anything that you're most looking forward to sharing with both trade and consumers on this 2026 Lafette?
23:38
Daniel
Well, I think it's something that we've done since the beginning is that Peter and I took a position also that we want to, part of this mission is to tell people that champagne is not just a wine for celebration. You know, that you smash against the hull of a ship, that champagne is for food, it's for enjoyment, it's for many different reasons. And there's so many different styles that you think about it as a pairing for food just like you do should for wine. So it's always kind of a challenge for me when, you know, some of the customers just aren't familiar with some of the growers. They know the big ticket, the big names, and it's always fun to go up to them and say, hey, why don't you come over and taste Eric Rodez, for example.
24:21
Daniel
And the most rewarding part of it for me is seeing the look on someone's face when they taste something for the first time and say, wow, that's really pretty good, you know, and it just feels, it feels like mission accomplished. When we do that because champagne is well known. People don't know all the producers that we bring into the room. So that part of it is one of the more rewarding aspects of the festival for me.
24:50
Matt Weiss
Amazing. Well, gentlemen, thank you so much for your time this morning. And I for one am so looking forward to seeing both of you there on October 14th through the 17th. For all of you out there, we one stay tuned for the next segment of Preet du Champagne. And if you haven't, get your tickets to the fet du Champagne and you will drink deliciously. Cheers.
25:11
Daniel
Thank you.
25:11
Peter
Thanks so much, Matt.
25:32
Matt Weiss
Welcome back to the wine centric show for our pre fete du Champagne. And I wanted to let you know that this very special episode is brought to you by inventory making your cellar management easy. Today we have another titan of champagne. This man was one of the original growers and his sixth generation of his domain, Villemain. Monsieur Laurent Schantz. Welcome, sir.
26:03
Arthur Lemonier
Thank you, thank you, Matthew. It's a pleasure to share this moment with you anyway.
26:06
Matt Weiss
Well, the pleasure is mine. I appreciate you making time there in the evening in France. And Laurent, we're just going to start off with a little personal question. It's been said that if you weren't in champagne, you might have either been a race car driver or a pianist. Is that true?
26:22
Arthur Lemonier
Yes, that's true. But I was not good enough for piano and certainly for driving cars. But the job of being a winemaker, a winegrower, didn't start just at the beginning. In fact, I think I took minimum five, seven or eight years to go in to understand. And even today I still try to discover despite you have a certain experience. I have a certain experience, I imagine. But we work with the nature and the nature is the master, not a student. We try just to interpret the soil and the generosity she wants to give us every year.
27:08
Matt Weiss
We're going to go deep into that in a moment. But I just want to know, given that history personally, what do you think what side of you makes it mostly into your wines? Is it the pianist or the race car driver? Perhaps a little bit of both, I think.
27:23
Arthur Lemonier
A little bit of both. Because you need your spirit, you need your body, because you need strength to do that and you need your soul. It's minimum three parts of me to try to make this very special wine every year.
27:39
Matt Weiss
Yeah. And your father started in 1963, is that right? With making this wine? And your father would be considered the OG of grower champagne because nobody was doing this at the time. Everybody was selling their Grapes to the big houses. What made your father do this differently?
27:59
Arthur Lemonier
I think he was a little bit crazy, because you can imagine 1970 he arrives. He knew nothing about vineyards, vines and wine. Because he was a carpenter, the man of the wood. He was a drawer. He was pretty talentuous with his hands, but never touch vines or a glass of champagne. So he came in 63 after in 1970s. And you can imagine in the village, it was the first decent harvest. 1970, Before it was a nightmare. And it choose this first harvest to buy the first large oak cask. He started in Biodynamic. He started with plowing, with new things. And people around said, this guy is totally crazy, he will not survive. Anyway. He was very close to the bankrupt. And he managed, step by step, years after years, to introduce Biodynami in the domain of Vilmar. The large oak cask, the oak winemaking.
29:12
Arthur Lemonier
Which was absolutely. Because in 1970 everyone looked for stainless steel tank for plastic tanks, for everything, but not for wood. And even 15 or 20 years ago were nicknamed dinosaur about wood winemaking. But today, give me one wine growing champagne, who doesn't use the oak. So it was absolutely a pioneer. Because 1970 tried to use another way in the vineyards. Winemaking in oak start. No malolactic fermentation. New prestige cuvee, new shape of bottle, new label, new name of cuvet that the Grand Sollier was born in 75. So he started like that. He was. Because unfortunately he passed away last July. But he was an artist. He was the 3W man. He was the man of the wood first, second, the man of the wine. And third, the man of the windows, stained glass. Because he was very active in our family.
30:21
Arthur Lemonier
We are very active. And for his retirement he needed to find new art. So he has been, we can say a master of glass, a stained glass artist. But you know that Matthieu, when you start something like that, you have to be passionate and you have to be a little bit crazy, because you don't have to know in advance what will happen. And all the energy you have to spend, if not you won't go. You won't do it, because it's too big.
30:49
Matt Weiss
He sounds like a gentleman that could have lived in any age if it would have been medieval Renaissance. I mean, he sounds mostly Renaissance modern times. But he would have found. Found his way and his passion and worked it.
31:02
Arthur Lemonier
Yeah, you're absolutely correct. I think it was more a man of the medieval age and Renaissance, the two best period he loved.
31:11
Matt Weiss
Yeah, the other thing about it which strikes me as interesting. I mean, the. It's fascinating, yes. Using wood against the trend, then using no malolactic fermentation. Obviously, for those of you listening, that's turning malic acid into lactic acid, for lack of a better explanation. Just think about. You have your morning coffee that's black, and then you put cream in your coffee. That's the malolactic fermentation. Right. Starts as black, then it's creamy. But also, what's fascinating is your vineyards are in Montane de Reims, which is historically known for predominantly Pinot Noir, yet your blend is predominantly Chardonnay. So how did that come to be?
31:52
Arthur Lemonier
It came from my grandfather, third generation, and my father, fourth generation. Then they felt. They felt that on this very specific part, you have to know that Rila Montaigne is facing east, north east and North Exposition. And my grandfather has been so lucky to make some beautiful exchange. And half of our domain is South Exposition. It's the best place of RL La Montaigne we call Les Blanchevois White Ways. And this is the most beautiful space and place for growing Chardonnay. South Exposition, nice slopes, pure chalk soil. So the Chardonnay is there. And that's true. They started with a very high majority of Chardonnay. And this is the style of Villemar, something very precise, elegant, with a Chardonnay with a lot of finesse, but a certain structure.
33:00
Matt Weiss
Is it the same escarpment and chalk soils you'll find in Crement? In the Cote de Blanc, it's a.
33:07
Arthur Lemonier
Little bit different, not clay, but a little bit more sandy. So the top of Le Blanche Chevoie is really. The topsoil is very thin, just 30 centimeter. And after it's a deep chalk. But just at the bottom of Planchevoie, the topsoil is a little bit stronger.
33:27
Matt Weiss
I see. So in a way, of the resulting wine, just if you were comparing it side by side with Cote Blanc or Crement would be a little bit more muscular, more. More tight. Whereas the. The. This plot that you're saying, the wines would be resulting in a little bit more finesse and elegance in a very simple way. Is that correct?
33:48
Arthur Lemonier
Correct. True, True. Absolutely correct.
33:50
Matt Weiss
Okay. How do you go about blocking the malolactic fermentation?
33:54
Arthur Lemonier
In fact, we. We work with a low temperature during our first alcoholic fermentation, which allow us to control and to manage the first acrylic fermentation within 10, 12 days maximum without sugar residual. That is very important. After I can control temperature, put around 1011 degrees. So normally the malolactic fermentation cannot start. And now, just for a few years, we are trying new. We call in French ecours d'. Oeuvreau. It's a yeast composition and it prevents the malolactic fermentation. It's new attempt. So I will tell you more in few years, Matthew. But we worked at that and we have a lot of Chardonnay. And every year with a low ph, even in very well ripe maturation, ripe harvest, we have low ph around 297. 298. So with this low ph, low temperature, we can prevent the malolactic fermentation.
35:09
Matt Weiss
I see. So it doesn't seem like you ever have a struggle to prevent it. It's just very. It's precise and the way. Just to. Again, the resulting wine is going to be very precise. High acid, crisp in a simple way. Talk to me about how you got involved with Lafayette du Champagne. This. This crazy New York party.
35:31
Arthur Lemonier
Yeah, two fantastic men of the wine, Daniel and Peter. I think I met Peter for maybe more than 25, 30 years with our friends, mutual friends, Terry. Terry thieves and we met several times. Peter in the US in Champagne. He was everywhere. Peter all the time there, harvest during the summer. So he was all the time there. So I can't remember maybe now, more than 15 or 16 years ago, he told to me about Lafayette du Champagne. And the idea was so great. And we met Daniel. And Daniel is full of energy all the time. And he's. I can say he's the man of Burgundy first and now the man of the Champagne. And he wanted to start this crazy, absolutely crazy idea. And he did it the first time in Tribeca Grill in the Tribeca quarter. And it was absolutely great.
36:35
Arthur Lemonier
And I can imagine that even maybe Peter and Daniel never thought that it will take this amazing place in New York because now it's like an institution for shame institution. Everybody wants to be there. Everyone wants to be there. The smugglers, the big chaman houses, all the instants, everyone. So it became crazy. But it's thanks to their humanity, their energy, their kindness and their passion. They are absolutely passionated for champagne and their knowledge, of course.
37:12
Matt Weiss
Absolutely. And how do you decide, for example, this year which wines you're bringing to the. To the show? Is that. Does Peter ask you and say, oh, can you bring this vintage, that. That Cuvee, or is this. He says, bring me what you think is. Is best?
37:28
Arthur Lemonier
No, they are really cool about that because for the grand tasting, you normally you bring. You Your four Cuv. What you want, what you are releasing and the current release. So that's the deal. But for the very special dinner, we bring some Magnum. And it comes from our own Unotech. Because we are lucky. I started 30 years ago some Unotech and every Vilma Unotech bottle are original disguisement. So every year I'm so happy to choose old vintage. Sometimes I never present it to Lafette and it's just a sharing moment. If I could tell you a small secret, Matthew. I have never thought, never made this beautiful work, this beautiful job for me. Just for sharing what we can receive from the nature. Sharing our patient, sharing our wine. And just to give emotion and to make guests dreaming.
38:38
Arthur Lemonier
Just that I think we can't make just for ourselves. We made it to make everyone happy who wants to taste the champagne. And to say, wow, I can't believe it. This I did every week. But last week we tasted grand salido. 30 Years old. And with 25 years of disgorgement. And all my friends were absolutely blown away because they didn't thought that it was so old. So it just the patience of making that and sharing. We cannot drink our wine just ourselves. It's impossible. We want to share it and we have to share it.
39:18
Matt Weiss
It tastes better when you share it, right? I'm wondering, does that ever influence your blending? For example, is there ever times when. And I know now your son Thomas has joined the domain and so he'll be. Is there ever a time when you're blending and you think, I like this wine better, but this wine is more representative of the domain.
39:42
Arthur Lemonier
Maybe from my grandfather and from my father, for the respect of the vine and of the wines. But that's true. I can tell you today, after 30 years. I worked alone for 30 years, and now for more than five years. I'm so lucky because Thomas has joined us now six years ago. And it's so great to share emotion, to share ideas, to share new feeling and for the future blend. And I was so happy. Six years ago, it was his first harvest, 2020. And I said, this is your turn. My son, he was pretty young, but I found for him eight beautiful barrels just from the top of the hill, pure oak. And I said, I found the barrels. You make your wine take what you want, the grapes you want from all the vineyards Vilmar.
40:41
Arthur Lemonier
And he was very surprised, very happy, high responsibility. But he found a new way and a new blend. So it will be the surprise in maybe three, four years. Because he wants to wait minimum six Seven years. And I have. I have a motto. I say to be a. A good wine grower or winemaker, you need three things. Patient, humility and intuition. That you need time. And you have to respect the nature.
41:16
Matt Weiss
Yeah. Patience is hard. So we'll have to wait. The La Fetti Champagne 2029. To taste this cuvee by your son, by Thomas.
41:26
Arthur Lemonier
It's correct. Correct.
41:27
Peter
Matthew.
41:28
Matt Weiss
Okay, that's fair. We can wait. What are you looking forward to? Sharing mostly one of your wines. And then what are you looking forward to? Tasting of other people's wine at Lafayette. This year in New York and Chicago,.
41:41
Arthur Lemonier
It's to meet again, champagne friends, all the New York American connoisseurs and crazy people about champagne. And to taste the new release of the other growers and. And champagne houses. And of course, on the evening. I'm not looking for. It's always a surprise. Because a lot of friends, they say, hey, would you like to taste that? Taste that. So it's all the time a surprise. All the time it's. It's a. It's a cuvee with the old vintage. But all the time, it's. It's a surprise. Anyway.
42:14
Matt Weiss
Can you share one? In the past, that has been really surprising. Like, either you thought, oh, this. I don't. I don't love this style, or I don't love, you know, this area. And then they. You tasted it, Lafette, and it changed your mind. Or it was a. It was the biggest surprise.
42:31
Arthur Lemonier
Oh, I tasted so many. So many champagnes or wines because it's universal. It's not only champagne, But a funny story. It was last year at Lafayette. Peter, at the end of the dinner, just told me all around, please taste this one. It was a Magnum grand salid d' or, 1988. Magnum 88 Grand Salidor. I tasted it. It was delicious. But I don't want to say more, but 12 seconds after another friend knocked on my shoulder and say, oh, Laurent, please taste this. Magnum. It was Magnum vintage Krug 1988. What is the percentage? You can have this on the same time. So it was so funny and so great. These are the magic moment of Lafitte.
43:28
Matt Weiss
Those are the beautiful things. And that's why you come to Lafayette. I just want to leave you with the wines that you will be presenting. You are slated to grands Salier Base 2022 Grand Salier d' Or, 2021, Corps de Cuvet 2017, Blanc de Noir 2014. And at the Epiro du Champagne, which is on Friday The Corduchamp Cuvee at 2013 in Magnum. Just want to make sure you're ready for those. Anything you want to say about. And so the new Release is the 2022, is that correct?
44:07
Arthur Lemonier
Yes. The future release of Grand Sidot will be 2022. Yeah, sure.
44:10
Matt Weiss
Okay, perfect.
44:11
Peter
Yeah.
44:11
Matt Weiss
Anything you want to say about those wines or that we should be surprised by or expect from them?
44:17
Arthur Lemonier
You will have to come at Lafayette for the dinner because we will present three or four other enotech Magnum really older than that, and some beautiful vintage, original disgorgement, and all the time very surprised by the freshness, the vinosity, and the balance of the wine.
44:40
Matt Weiss
Amazing. One last question and then let you go on with your day and your evening there. I would say when I was working in New York and I was a sommelier and there was this on trend, we'll say, towards grower champagne, that Villemar and C was, you know, the first one that was in that was coming out of people's mouth that sommeliers and wine buyers were talking about. Beyond the things you mentioned, the no malolactic, the focus on wood, the idea about, you know, humility and patience and all those things. What else is the secret that made you guys the first one on the sommelier's tongue, especially in New York City,.
45:24
Arthur Lemonier
I think it's spirit and love for you wine and the patient of sharing. Because I tried just to get what the nature wants to give me. And this year, 2026 was absolutely crazy. You heard about it. We had a beautiful harvest quality, amazing, like the other girls. But the quantity was beautiful to tell too much. But I think it's the wine is maybe reflecting a little bit your image and your spirit that is very important. So I can tell you we put a lot of energy, a lot of intensity, a lot of patience in our wines, and we are to share it and to exchange and to see how mature our wines even after 15, 20 or 30 years.
46:24
Matt Weiss
Well, it's very clear about your spirit, your intention, and your love and your passion for the wine. So I for one, cannot wait to meet you in person. Person at Lafayette du Champagne in New York City. And I thank you for your time. And I'll tell everybody else out there, come to Lafaite du Champagne. Taste Villemore nc and you will drink deliciously.
46:46
Arthur Lemonier
Thank you so much, Mathieu. Look forward to seeing you at Lafette.
46:50
Matt Weiss
Thank you. That's Daniel, Jonas, Peter, Liam and Laurent Schontz of Villemore And C. Part 2 is out tomorrow, and it's Arthur Le Mondier of Le Mondier, Bernier and Olivier Krug, a biodynamic producer in Vertu and the sixth generation of perhaps the most important and historic Champagne house people who 20 years ago would not have been standing in the same room. Lafayette du Champagne is in New York October 14th through the 17th. Tickets are at Lafayette Duchampagne.com or the link below. I'll be there with a camera so there's more of this coming. For now, subscribe so part two finds you tomorrow, whether that be on YouTube or anywhere. You may listen to your podcasts. Until then, drink deliciously.