Buy M. Chapoutier at The Finest Bubble
Chapoutier is one of the oldest names in the Rhone valley, buying the property in 1855. Michel Chapoutier and his brother Marc took over managing Chapoutier in the very late 1980’s. When Michel Chapoutier took over the company, they were producing on average close to 550,000 bottles of wine. By 2012, that number grew to more than 7,000,000 bottles per year, largely due to purchasing as much vineyard land as possible.
Today, Chapoutier owns close to 25% of the entire appellation. Prior to being headed by Michel Chapoutier, Domaine Chapoutier was known for producing lighter styled wines. That changed in 1989 with their Hermitage wines, especially Le Pavillon. A large part of the reason for their success is due to the decisions made by the young, brash, Michel Chapoutier. He became the first wine maker in Hermitage to focus on producing small batches of wines made from specific sites.
Michel Chapoutier lowered the yields, aged his wine in up to 100% new, French oak barrels and picked fruit when it was at full levels of ripeness. He also moved to a bio-dynamic farming approach. Today, these techniques are considered common place. But in 1989, they were well outside the mainstream in the Rhone Valley.
