Adrien Renoir

From Vincent to Adrien

The Renoir family has been growing grapes for four generations in Verzy, a Grand Cru village located in the Montagne de Reims. Until recently, their wines were sold under the name “Champagne Vincent Renoir.” However, in 2014, when Adrien returned to the estate and began working alongside his father, the situation changed dramatically.

At first, their views were almost completely at odds. Vincent believed that organic farming in this northern region of Champagne was unrealistic. However, Adrien stood his ground and gradually converted all the vineyards to organic farming. They stored the first few vintages in the same cellar, but by 2016, Adrien had fully taken over management. Since 2019, his own name has appeared on the labels.

He took over management of the estate before he had even turned 30. In this region, where traditional methods are the norm, he has transformed virtually everything: from cultivation and winemaking methods to the composition of the portfolio. Instead of a single signature blend, he began bottling individual “lieux-dits” (wines from specific plots) to showcase the true character of each plot in Verzy.

Verzy, hill by hill

This vineyard covers an area of about 5-6 hectares, and virtually all of it is located within the village of Verzy. Verzy is situated on the eastern side of the Montagne de Reims and is one of the 17 villages in the Champagne region with Grand Cru status. Since the terrain here consists not of a single slope but of a chain of three hills and valleys, the plots owned by Renoir face in completely different directions.

To produce single-vineyard wines, he uses the following three plots, each with its own name:

• “Les Montants”: Chardonnay is grown here; the vineyard is located on the eastern side facing Villers-Marmery, where Cretaceous deposits are exposed close to the surface;
• “Les Epinettes”: old Pinot Noir vines growing on a northwest-facing slope with late ripening;
• “Les Vignes Gosset”: a plot planted with Pinot Meunier, which is rare for Verzy

Most of the vineyards in this village were planted before 1965, and 50-60% of them consist of the “Massale Selection” (cuttings taken from old vines in the estate’s own vineyards, rather than commercial clones). All “lieux-dits” plots belong to the “Massale Selection.”

Two soils, one village

The dual nature of Verzy is also evident in the characteristics of the soil. On the Villers-Marmery side, where “Les Montants” is located, the topsoil is only 30-40 centimeters thick, and beneath it lies a layer of pure chalk. It is precisely this fine-grained layer of chalk that gives the Chardonnay from this region its lightness.

On the Verzy side, the situation changes dramatically. The topsoil is 1-2 meters thick, and before the chalk layer appears, the soil consists of dark, heavy clay. “Les Épinettes” is located even lower down the slope, on the northwestern slope, where poor chalky soil extends. Thanks to the cool conditions and later ripening of the grapes, the Pinot Noir retains its acidity, resulting in a wine with a firm structure rather than a plump flavor. Even though it is the same village and the same appellation, completely different wines are produced here.

The three Champagne grapes, one per parcel

Renoir uses all three main Champagne grape varieties, but generally does not blend them; instead, he bottles them as single-varietal wines from specific plots:

• “Le Montant”, made from Chardonnay
• “Les Épinettes”, made from Pinot Noir
• “Les Vignes-Gosset”, made from Pinot Meunier

Producing a single-varietal wine from Meunier grapes grown in Grand Cru villages is quite rare, but Renoir approaches this with the same seriousness as he does the other two varieties.

Organic vines, wood cellar

Adrien Renoir stopped using herbicides in 2015, and in 2020, the estate received organic certification. Biodynamic farming is practiced in the vineyards, though the estate is not certified under this method. Agroforestry is also practiced, and grass grows freely between the rows.

At the winery, virtually all wines are now aged in oak barrels. They started with just one or two barrels, but, satisfied with the results, they now age all their wines in wooden barrels. “Reserve” wines are aged in foudres (large oak barrels). Natural yeasts are used for fermentation; temperature control is not applied, and the lees are stirred during aging. No clarification or filtration is performed at all. During disgorgement, instead of adjusting the wine with a large amount of dosage, the jet method is used, allowing the wine to be bottled with only a minimal amount of sugar added.

The “Les Années Solera” cuvée deserves special attention. This is the estate’s permanent reserve, a wine produced using the solera method by blending vintages from 2013 to 2018 and aging them in “foudre” barrels. Each time the wine is bottled, the barrels are topped off with wine from the latest vintage, allowing the wine to continue aging while never becoming a single-vintage wine.

The range

All the wines presented here are classified as “Grand Cru” and are produced in Verzy. Three of them are vintage wines from the 2019 harvest, all from a single vineyard, while one is from the permanent reserve.

• Les Épinettes Grand Cru 2019: Pinot Noir grown on an old, northwest-facing plot. It has the most robust structure and firm texture of the entire lineup.
• Le Montant Grand Cru 2019: Chardonnay grown on a plot with fine chalky soil within the village. It has the most vibrant aroma of all the wines produced from the three separate plots.
• Les Vignes-Gosset Grand Cru 2019: Pinot Meunier from Verzy. This variety is rarely found in this village and is one of the reasons why this estate attracts attention.
• Les Années Solera Grand Cru NV: An “eternal reserve” aged in oak barrels. A blend of vintages from 2013 to 2018.

None of these wines are produced in large quantities. By Champagne standards, “Renoir” is only at the very beginning of its journey, and these bottles reflect the process of finding its own style, which this house is undergoing right before our eyes.