CHÂTEAU DE POMMARD RESTORES CLOS MAREY-MONGE NAME, BEGINS BIODYNAMIC CONVERSION WITH ANTOINE LEPETIT DE LA BIGNE

Pommard, France, May 31st, 2016

Château de Pommard Restores Clos Marey-Monge Designation

In the 1855 publication entitled History and Statistics of the Great Wines of the Côte d’Or, Jules Lavalle presented the official classification of the Comité de Viticulture de Beaune. With a consideration for traditional regional hierarchies, Lavalle ranked Clos Marey-Monge—renamed Clos du Château de Pommard in 1936—amongst the region’s premières cuvées, a qualification now designated for today’s premier cru.

With the deepest respect for the region’s values, history, and Lavalle’s 1855 classification, in May 2016 Château de Pommard proudly announces the restoration of its historic walled-enclosed vineyard to its original title – Clos Marey-Monge.
“The team at Château de Pommard is delighted to have the opportunity to reappoint the Clos Marey-Monge name. We take great care to constantly consider the historical legacy of our vineyards and the region’s historic roots. Restoring Clos Marey-Monge to its earliest designation is a step to blend local traditions with forward thinking,” said Michael Baum, owner.

Château de Pommard’s Conversion to Biodynamic Wine Production

Developing over a series of tiered phases, and beginning early in this year’s season, Château de Pommard is delighted to announce its conversion to biodynamic wine production.

Since 2007, Château de Pommard’s technical director, Emmanuel Sala, has produced all of the château’s wines. His simple philosophy, “to nurture and develop the specific vintage, to listen to nature and never upset its balance,” is a belief built on many years of local knowledge and intuitively understanding the region’s landscape. Remaining true to this vision, as well as his insistence to maintain a high quality yield, Emmanuel is committed to converting the Clos to biodynamic production. “Such a project fits into my perception of wines,” enthuses the winemaker. “Biodynamic winemaking incites me to listen to nature, to fully understand our terroir and the vines, and to retransmit this sensitivity through our wines.”

Developed with the support of Antoine Lepetit de la Bigne, oenologist and agronomic engineer, Château de Pommard’s biodynamic conversion project will begin immediately, under the now-restored Clos Marey-Monge name. Having previously spent eight years with Domaine Leflaive in Puligny-Montrachet, Antoine is now considered a specialist in directing winemakers towards biodynamic production. Convinced this burgeoning practice is the future of winemaking, Antoine recognizes that the Château’s commitment to biodynamic winemaking will “improve the expression and the depth of the terroir of Clos Marey-Monge within a logical and ecological context.” He continues: “By ploughing and maintaining the good soil that we have already, together with our technical ability and know-how of biodynamic processes, as well as training our team of winemakers and staff, we are confident that we will bring about a successful conversion to biodynamic production at Château de Pommard.”

In order to carry out the complex conversions to biodynamic production effectively as possible, Antoine hopes that everyone involved—from the technical support through to the commercial team at the Château—has a shared understanding of the task at hand, and the responsibility to the Clos to get it right. “This project is an exceptional team-building project and the team here cannot wait to begin this new chapter in the Clos’ already distinguished history and we look forward to producing some truly outstanding biodynamic wines in the near-future,” saysEmmanuel Sala.

The pilot phase of the conversion process will trial on a surface area that covers two hectares (five acres), before expanding to the rest of Clos Marey-Monge.

The Château’s first organic vintage will be available in 2018.

A Brief History of Château de Pommard
Château de Pommard has existed for 300 years, thanks to the Micault family, one of the oldest in Pommard. As a counsellor of King Louis XV, Vivant Micault began the construction of the Château in 1726, remaining faithful to pure French Regency architecture.

In the eighteenth century, the Marey family, one of the most influential in all of Burgundy, became stewards of the Clos and forged the Château’s great reputation for wines of undisputed excellence. Château de Pommard is renowned across the region for creating elegant wines from a blend of five distinguished terroirs in the heart of the Clos Marey-Monge. This historic Clos, with a surface area of 20 hectares (50 acres) is the largest monopole of a single owner in Burgundy. The vineyards exceptional terroir allows the best of each of the five cuvées to be used in the production of the wine, long adored for its elegance and complexity.

The philosophy of Château de Pommard is simple: to produce a wine that encourages shared moments of history, flavour and passion, all in one glass.
Today, Château de Pommard belongs to the Carabello-Baum family, the fifth family since 1726 to manage and maintain the estate, considered to be unmissable Burgundy experience and a truly breathtaking destination.

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Estelle Bidault
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