Clovis Taittinger's Indian Rendezvous

It’s the autumn of 2012. I, along with my co visitors am in the expansive conference hall of Comité Interprofessionel du Vin de Champagne (CIVC), listening intently to a presentation being made by Philippe Wibrotte, in-charge for public relations at  the Champagne regulatory body.  A particular infographic catches our attention. It’s about the Champagne consumption statistics of the world where India is shown as consuming a mere bottle for 5804 people. Despite being aware of India's nascency as a wine market  and the overall population perspective with relation to such figures, we are still flummoxed to find the stark data looking us into the eyes.

Cut to the autumn of 2016. Clovis Taittinger is on his maiden official visit to India. His aim is to familiarize himself with the country and as he puts it,  “ hope to fall in love with India and Indians”.

Clovis Taittinger (centre right)  and Sumit Sehgal (centre left) in conversation with wine lovers in New Delhi

On a  two city business tour to Delhi and Mumbai, Clovis  personally carries a consignment of his single vineyard Champagne Les Folies de la Marquetterie to share with Indian wine lovers, which unfortunately gets entangled in the infamous Customs rigmarole. Nevertheless his other equally famous Champagnes do the rounds, including the ever majestic Comptes de Champagne. I have the privilege to share his table and interact with him first hand amid a well planned dinner at hotel Leela Ambience.

The two narratives above may appear contradictory, where on one hand the Indian market for wine looks anything but rosy and on the other, the scion of a famous Champagne house approaching the country with such interest. But one thing is obvious, the only way for the Indian market for wine is to go upwards!

Above and Below: When the Cellar at Leela Ambience were awash with Taittinger Champagne

Knowing Taittinger

Many Indians would recognize the Taittinger name instantly courtesy the sensation caused during its unsuccessful acquisition bid in 2005 by the beleaguered liquor baron Vijay Mallya. That happening however, remains a small detail in its rich history which goes back well into the eighteenth century.

Maison Taittinger  was established in 1932 when Pierre Taittinger, a Cavalry officer of the French Army returned after the first world war to fulfil his long cherished dream of acquiring Château de la Marquetterie, a military headquarters where he was posted during the war.  In partnership with his brother in law, he  bought the 1734 established Champagne business of Forest-Forneaux Père & Fils and laid the foundation of the Champagne Taittinger as we know it today. Over the next few decades Taittinger established itself as one of the region's leading brands, joining the Syndicat des Grandes Marques in the 1950s.

In and around Château de la Marquetterie during my Champagne Scholarship itinerary at Maison Taittinger

In  July 2005, the Taittinger family facing a cash crunch as a fallout of its rapid expansion initiated in the nineties,  had little option than to sell the business  to the American-owned Starwood Hotel Group- a happening that put the French wine industry in gloom due to apprehensions related to preservation of its French heritage. Thankfully, the despondency didn’t last long, as in May 2006, Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger of the third generation re-acquired  the business, putting the Taittinger family firmly back into the saddle.

In the present day, Pierre Emmanuel Taittinger remains the President of Taittinger Champagne, with his two children- Clovis  as the Director Exports and Vitalie, as Artistic Director. Taittinger champagnes are exported to 150 countries with their top three markets being the United Kingdom, the USA and Germany.

The Indian Market

Despite an encouraging growth rate in the past years (close to 20% annually) the Indian market for wine still has a long way to go before appearing as a significant dot on Taittinger’s  export map. Compared with India’s Spirits consumption which is the fifth largest in the world, the overall market situation looks even more paradoxical.  What then brought Clovis from across the oceans to establish contact with the country’s wine lovers?

Clovis says - "I agree that that the current Champagne and the luxury imported wine market in India is  relatively small, but at the same time it is very much alive and growing. I think that the current trade barriers prevent a greater number of people to enjoy and discover wines."

Coming specifically to his maiden visit, Clovis adds-  "More importantly than anything else, I really felt the love of your country and the people I met during this visit. I can’t be  happier than sharing with you our culture, experience and products." On investing further in India, Clovis is optimistic but practical - "Believing and investing in India more in the future is a great and fresh challenge. The complexity of the market nevertheless makes it more fun and exciting."

Clovis’ impression of the Indian market for wine echoes something similar to  what Miguel Torres (President Torres S.A.), Mario Piccini (Piccini Wines),Willi Klinger (Managing Director Austrian Wine Marketing Board) and Dr. Giuseppe Martelli (President, National wine Committee of Italy) opined when I met them on various occasions during recent times. It  is something that should enthuse the Indian wine lover-  all these global wine leaders see a lot of promise in India on the wine front, translating into a continuing and possibly an increased availability of their wines in the country.
This positive sentiment is also validated through trade forecast figures wherein the  IWSR report for 2012-2017 projects the sparkling wine consumption in India to double and  the overall wine consumption in the country to grow by 73.5% .

The current (Nov 2016) Taittinger portfolio   in India includes Brut (₹ 6,100.00) , Prestige Rosé (₹ 8,800.00) and their Prestige Cuvée- Comptes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs (₹ 21,500.00). Taittinger Nocturne Sec (17.5 g/l dosage) was part of the offering sometime back but was discontinued due to business considerations.

Prestige Wines and Spirits Pvt Ltd, the importers of Taittinger wines in India have indicated that they may be adding more Taittinger wines to their portfolio in the near future.

Elaborating on Clovis’ India visit, Sumit Sehgal, Director Prestige Wines and Spirits said " It was good to have Clovis in India for the first time. He has a lot of faith in India as a Champagne market in future and has been a great support in making Taittinger a popular Champagne brand in India. He is very positive about the country and wants to make the name ‘Taittinger’ synonymous to all kind of celebrations. His idea is to position his family name to be associated with happiness and joy rather than making it complicated for the consumers. We hope to get the similar kind of support and inputs from him in future as well."

Champagne lovers would welcome such a prospect with raised flutes.

(L) Clovis 'batting' for Taittinger
(C) Taittinger sterling silver cuff links that I received as gift during my visit in 2012 &
(R) Clovis is happy to pose with me showing off the cuff links during his visit

What they teach you in a Champagne Masterclass

Having six Champagne glasses in   front of you with  corresponding bottles to be poured in distant vision is a proposition most of us would call fit for a dream. Add a tasting sheet in the foreground and the context changes from pure indulgence to a surrounding rim of onerous responsibility - a responsibility to objectively and platonically dwell into the virtues of Champagne- a fine beverage, subordinate only to the life sustaining aqua.

My side of the table 

The tasting line up

As Thibaut Le Mailloux, Director of Communication at Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (CIVC)  gave finishing touches to his Champagne Masterclass presentation and  the perfectionist Rajiv Singhal, Ambassador of Champagne in India  deftly stroked the final touches at JW Marriott, Aerocity, New Delhi this November, I greeted them with “Bonjour- Vous allez bien?” and saw Thibaut’s face light up with instant recognition. I had met Thibaut  in Epernay, in 2012 during my scholarship trip to CIVC in Rajiv’s company and it looked that the bond had just rekindled.

(L-R) Thibaut, self, Rajiv and Ankur Chawla (Beverages Manager JW Marriott)

The Champagne Masterclass, which is held regularly across the globe by CIVC aims at reinforcing the simple fact- that Champagne comes only from Champagne, with the historical perspective thrown in to emphasize the beverage’s centuries old tradition through the crests and troughs of  time. But besides the veritable history, it  dives deep  into various styles of Champagnes, peculiarities of different regions within the arrondissement  (department) and different styles of Champagne – to name a few.

The Masterclass in progress

 Beverages managers from different star properties (for whom the masterclass was meant) had their skills polished by Thibaut in this rendezvous, and their exuberance was quite palpable by the type of questions coming in- from dosage issues to simple but relevant ones like which Champagne out of the six for the day was Thibaut’s favourite? The seasoned professional but naturally, handled all the volleys with élan.

Coming to the Champagnes, these depicted the amount of brain racking that must have gone into their selection to emphasize each style. The table below amplifies the sequence:

The beauty  of the session was that it did not solely depend on sampling wines but to create the right perspective before the first verre was lifted. For hospitality industry it becomes absolutely essential to understand the evolution of iconic beverages like Champagne, to be able to present them better to their valuable clients for driving home the value derived. To that effect I think that the session achieved that and much more within a third of a day’s proceedings.

Some random  ‘ Pearls of Wisdom’ gathered from the session were :

• The Champagne viticultural practices are  highly environment focused with advanced R&D being incorporated at all stages of production. One  such measure is ‘Sexual Confusion’ wherein plastic capsules containing phermones are located strategically within vineyards. These phermones emit same sex perfume for pests, deterring them from reproducing and hence pesticides are not required for their control.

• The Champagne Appellation has faced brand infringement issues not only for sparkling wine producers but also global luxury brands making perfumes, shampoos, cigarettes  et al. It has successfully contested many such cases in the courts. 14 Champagne Bureaus located in top 10 export markets as well as BRIC countries  act as Champagne’s vanguards. In India the bureau  is headed by Rajiv Singhal.

•  No Champagne bottle across the world  is available without a proper label indicating its provenance. If one is lured by a purported Champagne without label  at a bargain price- it would most certainly be a fake.

• 83% of Champagne sales are consumed within 10000 km radius of the region. This is due to ease of geographical access as well as taxation issues.

• Out of the 11 mn € of wine and spirits exports of France, two thirds is wine and out of this, two thirds is Champagne.

•  Many Champagne houses have interesting stories  to their names. For example, Drappier Champagne comes from a family enterprise, which started its business with bed linen several centuries back and switched over to Champagne production when it started becoming popular in early nineteenth century. In French language Draps means Bed sheets and hence the name. 

The session concluded with a photo for posterity

My French Wine Odyssey: Champagne Taittinger

La Marquetterie! The enchanting  18^th century Taittinger Estate,   that   must feature on the itinerary of  any visitor to this Champagne house if the visit is to be considered complete!  These were the thoughts that crossed my mind while I partook of the 5 course gourmet  dinner accompanied with their finest Champagnes at the manor. And to think that I had already started summarizing my visit to Taittinger after admiring their picture perfect cellars earlier in the day!

La Marquetterie is the French word for ‘The Chequerboard’ and the estate is named so due to the alternately planted plots with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes. During autumn when the leaves of these different grapevines turn into hues of red  and yellow, the whole estate looks like  God’s own chess board - albeit in colour. The magnificent Chateau de la Marquetterie also has a depth of historical significance being  originally a  Military Headquarters during the first world war where many a battle was planned. It was during those times that Pierre Taittinger, a Cavalry man with the French Army fascinated about returning back some day and acquiring the estate. Return he did- and voila! Seeds were sown for one of the well known Champagne houses of  of the day. Despite a turbulent past where the control of the Champagne house slipped from the hands of the Taittinger family, it is once again back  with the family with Emmanuel Taittinger at the helm and his children Clovis and Vitalie playing active roles in keeping up with the times.

So much for history. Coming to  serious Champagne business, our visit to Taittinger kicked off with a visit to their famous cellars at the Saint Nicaise Abbey- one of the erstwhile abodes of Benedictine monks that was once a chalk quarry . The Benedictine monks enlarged these 4th century chalk quarries to create  an  optimum environment  for storing Champagne with just the right levels of humidity and temperature. Taittinger acquired these cellars in 1931, and since then, millions of their bottles age in this wine friendly environment. In one of these caves, we came across an overwhelming 1,00,000 bottles of their prestige cuvée Comtes de Champagne resting before their tryst with the outside world!

Following the visit to cellars, we were received at La Marquetterie by Madame Dominique Garreta, Directrice Communication at Taittinger and  proceeded immediately to the vineyards adjoining the manor. While we soaked in the breathtaking landscape with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay on  either sides ready for harvest, the first Champagne of the rendezvous- Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs 2002 was offered for tasting. The experience was as under:

Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs, 2002

 Taittinger calls this as its ‘Holy Grail’ due to its out and out exclusivity. It is a vintage Champagne  matured for 8 to 10 years in the chalk cellars  and is made entirely from Chardonnay grapes grown in the best Grands Crus of Cotes des Blancs. Only First Press wines are used for this cuvée that impart  it the finesse so rightly associated with it.

Tasting Notes

Pale gold colour with abundant  bubbles forming a persistent mousse. The bouquet is fresh and mineral with citrus and toasty notes. A refreshing palate with flavours of pineapple, melon and toasted  brioche. With smooth long finish, this wine can work as an aperitif and also with rich and creamy food. We sampled it with finger food ranging from puffed pastries, to  assorted skewered meats.

After sampling this exclusive wine, we moved inside Chateau de la Marquetterie for dinner at a round dining table with historical artifacts all around. The Champagnes served with the dinner were:

Taittinger Prélude Grands Crus Brut

A 50:50 blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, the grapes for this wine are sourced from vineyards with a 100% rating in the Champagne classification system. Again, only First Press wines are used in this blend and it is aged in the cellars for several  years more than the stipulated minimum regulation (15 months for a Non Vintage Champagne).

Tasting  Notes:

A shimmering pale gold colour with aromas of citrus fruits and white flowers. The palate is refreshing with flavours of  peaches,geen apples and a pleasing minerality. The finish is rich and explosive that lingers for a long time. Good as an aperitif or with seafood. We were served this with the Entrée course of grilled petit vegetables and roasted shrimps.

Taittinger Brut Millésimé 2005

This Brut vintage cuvée is a blend of equal parts of Grand Cru Chardonnay from Cote de Blancs and Grands Crus Pinot Noir from Montagne de Reims and top of the Marne valley. Made exclusively from First Press juice, it matures for a long time in the cellars.

Tasting Notes:

Bright golden straw yellow colour with vigorous effervescence. The nose is intensely aromatic with initial flowery notes developing into ripe fruit and dried fruit aromas. The palate is complex and rich with a fruity character that lends it a subtle sweetness. A long and fine finish makes it a good food wine. We appreciated it with the main course of Fish Fillet  stuffed  with scallops,nuts and saffron and Zucchini Ribbons in fresh butter.

The Famous Gate Carneros 2006

This wine is a Pinot Noir from Taittinger’s wine estate Domaine Carneros in Napa Valley, California held jointly with Kobrand Corporation of the USA. Domaine Carneros produces three sparkling wines (note that these cannot be called Champagne) and two still red wines.  

Tasting Notes

Bright and deep cherry colour. Explosively fruity on the nose accompanied  with an earthy aroma. Medium bodied and fruity on the palate with flavours of raspberries, red cherries and a hint of spice. Light tannins  and a medium-long finish make it an easy drinking red wine with a lasting impression We relished it  with the Fromage course of aged cheeses and dry fruits compote.

Taittinger Nocturne Sec

Taittinger highlights this as a Night Time Champagne due to its propensity to accompany the sweeter  things in life, and with perfect  reason-  this Champagne has 17.5 grams per litres of dosage (added sugar in the last stage of Champagne production) that classifies it as Sec (Dry). As compared to Brut, Extra Brut and Brut Nature Champagnes, Sec Champagnes are sweeter but only subtly. The added sugar lends them a fuller and rounder body that makes them good accompaniment with a host of desserts. the compostion of this wine is 40% Chardonnay and 60% of  Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.

Tasting Notes:

Pale bright lemon  colour . A delicate nose of peaches, dried apricots and white flowers. A smooth full bodied  creamy palate with good levels of acidity and a sensation of ripe fruits and  raisins. The finish is long and smooth with layered complexity. A good dessert wine but could also be enjoyed on its own- maybe as a digestif. We sampled it with Pistache Macarons, Strawberry Sorbet and a collection of Red Fruits.


The indulging dinner concluding, we bade farewell to Madame Dominique Garreta and the house of Taittinger with a hope of finding these wines more abundantly at customer friendly prices in India in the near future. As per Taittinger, the present volumes are not significant in India primarily due to the high landed cost of wines, but there is great hope due to the ongoing  dialogue  of trade concessions between India and the European Union. Needless to say that as wine lovers  we would wait impatiently for that to happen!

Pic Courtesy: Shalini Kumar, Editor, Spiritz