Château-Chalon Berthet-Bondet 2011

Lot presentation

Château-Chalon Berthet-Bondet 2011

The wine

Domaine Berthet-Bondet was created relatively recently in the mid 1980s. The Berthet-Bondets were not descended from local winegrowing families. Jean Berthet-Bondet's family worked in the spectacles industry in the Oyonnax region, where the family had its roots. But Jean-Berthet-Bondet soon decided that he wanted to follow a different path and studied agronomy at Montpellier, where he met Chantal, his future wife. A little later, this attachment to working the land took more concrete form in 1985, with an apprenticeship and then permanent settling in the Château-Chalon region; Chantal continued to work at the Agricultural Lycée in Montmorot and then as an agronomy engineer in the Regional Department of Agriculture. The house was bought in 1984 and the first harvest took place in 1985. The central part of the building with its vaulted cellar dates from the 16th century! Over the years it has gradually been expanded by several generations of winegrowers. In 1986 a vat room was installed in the old barn, and in 1987 a 400 m2 cellar was constructed for ageing the wines; in 1997 a storage and labelling facility was added. Chantal retired from her job in the civil service on 1 January 2012 and joined the team to manage the property's administrative affairs. Clearly, Château-Chalon is one of the finest wines in this superb appellation that has very exacting quality standards. Six years and three months barrel-ageing produces one of French gastronomy's most prized wines. An unforgettable experience!

About the Producer Berthet-Bondet

Domaine Berthert-Bondet was set up in the mid-1980s and is a relatively young domain for this region. The Berthet-Bondet family don't come from a winemaking background but rather they were artisans from Oyonnaux. Jean Berthet-Bondet had other ambitions however and chose to study Agronomy at Montpellier. It was here that he met Chantal, his wife. Later on, this desire to work the land led him to landing an apprenticeship and then a job at Château-Chalon while Chantal continued her studies at the agricultural school in Montmorot. Soon Chantal became agricultural engineer under the Regional Department of Agriculture. In 1984 Jean and Chantal bought this domain and carried out their first harvest in 1985. The property boasts a 16th century vaulted cellar. The couple gradually extended the domain: in 1986 they converted an old barn into another cuverie and in 1987 they built another cellar for ageing the wines as well as a new storage and labelling area. In January 2012 Chantal retired from her position in the civil service and concentrated full time on the domain. Jean's daughter Hélène now also works at the domain. The vineyard spans 15 hectares across the Château-Chalon and Côtes du Jura appellations. The domain produces Savignin, Chardonnay, Trousseau Poulsard and Pinot Noir and has had organic certification since 2013. Fruit forward and fresh, the wines are excellent and have made a very good name for this domain.

Detailed characteristics