Jean-Louis & Denis Vacheron
For those who were drinking the wines of Sancerre and of Domaine Vacheron during the 1980s and 1990s, these are the names that will be most familiar. Jean’s children, two brothers named Jean-Louis Vacheron (pictured top, previous page) and Denis Vacheron (pictured bottom, previous page) began working on the domaine in 1965. It was Denis and Jean-Louis that really developed the domaine into one that was significant internationally. They started off with the same 3 hectares that had been worked by their father, but by the end of the 1980s they had built up the vineyard portfolio to an impressive 30 hectares.
The eldest member of the next generation was Jean-Denis Vacheron, the eldest son of Jean-Louis, and Jean-Denis joined his father and uncle at the end of the 1980s. One of the first tasks he undertook was to plant Les Romains with Pinot Noir for the new Belle Dame cuvée, in 1990, and today this cuvée is widely recognised as the Vacheron’s top red wine and also a leading example of red Sancerre. He was joined by his younger brother, Jean-Dominique Vacheron (pictured below, also on the first page of this profile, looking out for the next delivery of grapes during the 2013 harvest), in 1993. At this time Jean-Dominique was just 21 years of age, and it seemed as though the two brothers, both clearly dynamic, would be taking the domaine forward into the 21st century. The new vines in Les Romains had borne fruit, and the first vintage of this ground-breaking new cuvée was produced in 1995; all was looking well in the world.
Please log in to continue reading: