Vincent Charlot/Guillaume Sergent

Speaking to his ghostwriter shortly before he mic-dropped this mortal coil, the artist forever - sorry, 4ever -  known as Prince chided critics tethering his music to otherworldly concepts like “alchemy” and, especially, “magic.” Exactly wrong, he explained. Like the song insists: his name is Prince, he is funky - and funk “is the opposite of magic.” Indeed, “funk is about rules.” 

 “Funk is about rules” is what gets stuck in my head whenever I am in wine country and watching rows of carefully braided vines curl horizon-ward. We like to valorize our favorite visionaries as inspired, unknowable geniuses, but the heights of human creativity mostly get summited via order, organization and repetition. This month we have two vignerons whose originality and iconoclasm are made possible by adherence to self-imposed limitations. Like his Royal Purpleness, they are radicals after the term’s earliest meaning - from the Latin radicalis “originating in the root, or ground, or body parts vital to life.” Seems like a wise place to start when you want to take it higher. 

Rather than winemaker, Vincent Charlot proudly identifies as a “peasant of terroir.” All of his plots are cultivated organically and biodynamically, which is rare for the area  - only 2% of the Champagne vineyards are biodynamic. He adopted this approach gradually - after an apprenticeship in Alsace, and studies with biodynamic pioneer Pierre Mason, becoming convinced only after he observed the effects in his own vineyards. Since taking over for his parents at the turn of the millennium, he has never tilled the soils - “mixing layers destroys biodiversity”, he says; his trust in natural balance is so strong that he avoids seeding the plants himself, save for an occasional lavender or rosemary.  He also vinifies each of his tiny parcels individually,  producing only single vintage and parcel bottlings, an insanely labor intensive process that results in uniquely layered and lively Champagne, bursting at the bubbles with energy, tension and nuance. 

The Sergent family has a long history of growing vines in the Vrigny region in the northwestern part of Montaigne de Reims, dating back at least as far as the mid-nineteenth century. The family produced and bottled wines at the local cooperative and sold them under the Roger Sergent label until 2008, when Guillaume and his brother took control of the family estate. Guillaume kept just around 1.5 hectares of the family holdings, while the remaining 2 hectares went to Guillaume’s brother, who now sells his fruit to Moët. Before that,  Guillaume earned a degree in geology, and  trained as oenologist, working for several well known Champagne producers, including Louis Roederer. When he started releasing bottles under his own in name in 2011, he forged his own approach. Guillaume never blends Chardonnay and Pinots nor harvest years, aging in five demi-muids for an entire year, plus one year ‘sur latte’ with a minimum dosage. The end result is aromatic wines with laser beam intensity. Les Prés Dieu comes from two premier cru parcels, and eschews the local stalwart Pinot Meunier grape for pure Chardonnay. His is an extremely limited production - 4,000 bottles a year - so we are very lucky to be able to share some with you.  

Cheers!

The PlumpJack Family