Gérald Pierrard: Small is good

Gérald Pierrard is a youthful and communicative man of a certain age who has spent a life tasting and selecting vin clairs for some of the most famous Maisons in Champagne, last but not least Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin. A turning point for him came when an old farmer in Cramant, one of the most famous Grand Cru villages in Cotes des Blancs, offered him the possibility of leasing a small Clos (walled) vineyard named Les Hautes Bauves and this allowed the chef de caves to become a récoltant manipulant.

Today, Gérald and his wife make wine from the grapes of this small vineyard, just over a hectare, together with those from 22 other parcels in Cramant for a total of 2.12 hectares. They produce just 6,000 bottles a year and this only when the quality of the grapes lives up to their expectations, otherwise they sell them to one of the many local negotians. He lets his wine age long on the lees, no less and 6-7 years, much like the famous Maisons do for their more important wines, in accordance with his conviction that Champagne is a great ‘aging’ wine.

Gérald defines the grapes from his small clos as the “crème de Cramant”, considering them to be the best Chardonnay produced by this soil with its very deep streak of chalk. The experience he has accumulated in over 30 years of tastings is evident in the rare balance he has achieved in his Champagnes, conceived as ‘table’ wines and which are thus creamy, rounded and rich yet bracing and brilliant. All things considered,  he is a small craftsman who works with the precision of a great Maison.

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