Mastering
your own environment
Our Expertise
« It is not a question of taking up residence there to declare that an environment is
one’s own. You have to gauge it, test it, try it out to know its truth. You have to let your
intuition speak while trusting the facts. »
In 1929 our great-grandparents, Philippe Dérot and Yvonne Delugny, were the first to found
our company with their two names: Dérot-Delugny. Being winegrowers and winemakers,
they introduced an ancient grape variety, the Pinot Gris, into our rows where the vine plants
were lacking.
« Evolving sometimes means giving up. To certainties that we never thought we
would challenge one day. We don’t have to step back. Freed from our constraints, we are
more able to move forward. »
Being forward-thinking, our grandparents Bernard and Yvette doubled the surface area of
our vineyard which surprisingly opened up to Chardonnay. Our range had been expanded
with a Blanc de Blancs. As for the Pinot Noir, it was the work of our parents, François and
Marie-Odile, as well as the reintroduction of the Pinot Gris, through a dedicated cuvée, now
known under the name Retour en Avant.
This heredity has been passed on to us. We officially arrived at the wine estate in 2010 for
me, Laurent, and in 2014 for you Claire. We have relied on our plural experiences: for my
part, viticulture, and oenology, which have led me in France and abroad, and opened me to
the supervision of our vines and wines. As for Claire, it has been analytical chemistry. The
diversity of her tasks offers a great similarity with the communication of our brand and the
management of our teams.
Our daily exchanges are based on these multiple views.
Embracing
Change
Observers of our environment, we may have asked ourselves the right questions at the
right moment to move in step with the times… To the point that we have sometimes even
anticipated it!
Here again, our desire is not to be locked in a particular era but rather to imagine what
tomorrow will bring. Just like the progressive renewal of our vineyard that we carry out every
year, to anticipate and not rush the future.
Thus mental visualization has naturally shaped our approach to cultural evolution. Since
always, our 13.5 hectares mainly spread on Crouttes-sur-Marne have been worked in a
sustainability logic and are thus certified High Environmental Value and Sustainable
Viticulture -level 3- since 2017.
Classification over 13,5 ha
Dominant Characters
Classification over 13,5 ha
Dominant Characters
One particular oddity: 3,85 % Pinot Gris
South, south-east, north-west exposures
Slopes/bottom/top/ middle of the slopes
Planning
the future
We experiment in the vineyard and we like to prolong this spirit in the winery. Driven by curiosity and the desire to move forward, Claire and I, Laurent, follow our ideas, even if it means causing new chain reactions.
This willingness to challenge ourselves and to question the intrinsic nature of things can be seen in our father’s choice to have planted a certain grape variety since the end of t he 1990s…
« Of course, the Pinot Gris from Alsace. Let’s see of t his one would like it in our Champagne lands. »
After having been invited to taste the production of a friend from Alsace, I decided to try this experiment on our vineyard. The result was conclusive for what became our single-variety cuvée, now known as ‘Retour en avant’!
« The wood reveals the best of the Burgundian terroirs. It must be the same for our Champagne wines. »
Another initiative was the introduction of some beautiful pieces of wood in our winemaking park. Each of our barrels has its own particularity. The two Rhône barrels (from Condrieu in the Rhône Valley) welcome our 100% Meunier Côteaux Champenois while the Burgundy barrel contains the Pinot Noir transformed into a red wine and used to make our blended Rosé. The latter is only made if the quality is exactly what is expected, and not otherwise
We give time to time:
- We age our wines in vats for at least a year before their bottling in October
- = more aromatic maturity and tertiary aromas
- -> Marketing of the champagnes at +3-5 years/ 10 years for the vintages
= Extra richness and fullness
We give time to time:
- We age our wines in vats for at least a year
- Before their bottling in October
- = more aromatic maturity and tertiary aromas
- -> Marketing of the champagnes at +3-5 years/ 10 years for the vintages
= Extra richness and fullness
