Charlot-Tanneux

As with many of the trailblazing vignerons working today, Vincent Charlot grew up in a grape-growing family and decided to be the first in his family to stop selling to the cooperative when he took over in 2001. After studying in Alsace, Vincent returned home with an ambitious vision for his family’s plots spread around the Vallee de la Marne.

Vincent wanted each parcel to speak for itself and began converting his family’s vineyards to achieve organic and biodynamic certification. Each parcel at Charlot-Tanneux is harvested individually and vinified individually to pursue Vincent’s radical pursuit of terroir. With over 30 different plots, this is no small feat and, on occasion, Vincent releases over 20 different cuvees per year.

Vincent’s production is tiny with just four hectares and the quantities of each cuvee can be as low as 300 bottles. Fermentation and aging takes place in a mixture of amphorae and used barrels. Vincent typically lets the vin clairs age on lees for 9 months before secondary fermentation, which he sparks with concentrated grape must before extended lees aging before release. Bottles labeled Charlot-Tanneux come from smaller family holdings that aren’t certified because of their proximity to conventionally farmed vineyards or their small size.