An Interview with Brane Cantenac's Marie-Hélène Dussech
by CWA
@ 23 Nov 2018
Brane Cantenac hosted a wine-pairing dinner with restaurant WAKANUI Grilling Dining Singapore recently. We were fortunate enough to have Marie-Hélène Dussech, Commercial Director of Chateau Brane Cantenac, to sit with us for a quick interview while she was in WAKANUI for the dinner.
Over the 4-course menu showcasing the best of WAKANUI, earnestly made and curated by Executive Chef Kenyoshi, we managed to talk about the uniqueness of wine terroirs Brane Cantenac has, how the winery is working on combating environmental changes, and what the future holds for the winery in Asia-Pacific markets.
How receptive is the Asian market like for Brane Cantenac?
The Asian market is getting more and more knowledgeable about wine, so the market is extremely receptive to our wines, and they find many possibilities to pair them with Asian cuisine. They enjoy the style of wines we are making and the demand is growing every year.
What makes the terroir of your vineyard so unique?
Margaux (the wine estate where Brane- Cantenac grows its grapes) has different styles of wine because of the heterogeneity of the terroirs. The different terraces of gravels (6 in total), of the appellation determine the different styles that can be themselves intensified by the vinifications. Some people may attribute the disparities between neighbouring crus to different styles of vinification. But it is above all the terroir that induces marked personalities.
Brane-Cantenac’s terroir is mainly from the terrace 4, located on the plateau of Cantenac. It has deep gravelly mineral-rich soils with excellent drainage. Each plot is planted to optimally match the grape variety and rootstock with specific composition of soils, the aim being to achieve the highest quality grapes, not the highest yield. For years, when Château Brane-Cantenac was classified as a second grand cru classé, it was nicknamed, “the first of the second”. That says a lot.
What challenges have you faced to keep evolving and being ahead of the wine-making techniques?
Henri Lurton* ’s
( *Referring to the owner of Brane Cantenac) father, Lucien Lurton, was always a pioneer. 30 years ago, wines were of an excellent aromatic quality, finesse and elegance. They had a more, ‘British’ taste than an ‘American’ one and that had to be waited on. His father granted more importance to the quality of the fruit rather than the vinification techniques. Henri shares this point of view. If not, what good is a grand terroir for?
Nevertheless there are now 4 oenologists on the estate and it is a change of generation. Since the 1990s we realized that a more precise work in weaker terroirs could make them transcend and we work with the same precision in the grand terroirs. It’s, ’hand stitched’, the cost of production have more than doubled. We obtain a better ripeness and above all more homogeneous . Our grand vins have become, ‘haute couture’ and the second wines are treated like the Grand Vins 20 years ago, in other words, ‘luxury ready to wear’. For everything else, Henri’s philosophy at Brane is to make the best wine that the terroir can give.
At Brane we always think forward and move forward. From using high-speed optical analysis of grapes to select the optimum colour and shape, to constructing a super energy-sufficient winery with natural ventilation and thermoregulation, we are always searching for ways to innovate or use technology to our advantage.
In the vineyard we try to be as ecological as possible. We use bio-control products, totally harmless for the staff, friendly to the environment and which leave no residue in our wines. We avoid putting too much copper. We constantly strive to be less harmful, more efficient and more sustainable.
Environmental climate is important for someone working in an industry like yours. What methods are you using to combat climate change that’s occurring all over the world now?
Various methods are being conducted to take care of our environment. One way we did so was planting half a hectare of Carmenere in 2007, a decision made by current owner Henri Lurton. This was a great success. With the long sunny and warm and dry summers that we now have, carmenère can ripe very well. We harvest it late, after the Cabernet Sauvignon. This could be an interesting second varietal to blend. Henri has 4 children and he can teach them how to deal with Carménère if they have to increase a bit more its plantation. For the time being, it’s only a tiny bit, not even 1%, and it is more from an experimental point of view.
We have also regrafted old merlot onto Cabernet Sauvignon, which is our key varietal. It stops growing by the end of July and starts to mature early August.
We also take note of the dates of harvesting so that we can always choose to pick the grapes when they reach the perfect maturation but keep their freshness.
Lastly, we have been using organic and biodynamic methods in our vineyards to develop our wines as much as we can. However, we are located in the south west of France, which was dominated by an oceanic climate and we have to deal with humidity and pressure of diseases. Therefore we don’t prevent ourselves of using biocontrol products when necessary. Ultimately, we try our best to be as ecological as possible with little intervention.
What future trends do you predict would happen in the wine industry especially in the Asian-Pacific Region?
We are extremely optimistic. The interest in wines has been relatively recent in the Asian market, yet the Asian Pacific region is already much more mature and educated about wine knowledge than when we first travelled in this part of the world 15 years ago. We are amazed by the support, means, the quality of resources that all the actors devote to the wine industry. It goes very fast and we are extremely grateful to all for all their efforts.
