Roederer completes organic conversion

By Andrew Catchpole

Published: 13 November, 2020

Champagne Louis Roederer has joined the growing global club of big name producers that have completed conversion to organic certification.

The house was among the leaders of the shift to organic when it embarked on an organic certification process for half of its estate in 2018, with the whole of Roederer’s 115ha of vines now completing the process by which they can gain organic growing certification (The ‘AB’ symbol in France).

The Champagne House first embarked on a more sustainable path two decades ago, when the company began a transition to ‘renaissance viticulture’ in its vineyards, with a focus on massal selection, gentle pruning, daily care and “practices that respect the living environment”.

This brought biodynamic composts and “eco-friendly practices inspired by the permaculture model” to the fore, paving the way for later organic conversion.

Described as “the culmination of 20 years of hard work by Roederer’s cellar master, Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, and his team, the 2021 harvested grapes will now be certified as organically grown.

"It is the belief, deeply grounded in my family for generations, that we owe everything to nature and that when we listen to her and provide her with the attention and care she needs, she will give us the gift of a terroir at its finest expression, the source of great fine wines,” said Frédéric Rouzaud, CEO of Louis Roederer.

“Achieving organic certification for the historic Louis Roederer vineyards is a source of great pride and joy to us. It is also a formidable encouragement to us all to continue this demanding yet rewarding artisanal winemaking approach."

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