Chandon California
CEO
Stéphane de Meurville (Estate Director)
Creation date
1973
Headquarters
Winery One California Drive Yountville, CA 94599 - USA
IdentityCHANDON CALIFORNIA
One day back in 1968, as Robert Jean de Vogüé, CHANDON’s founder, was attending a distributors’ conference in California, he inadvertently found himself in the wrong room. Members of the Wine Institute of California were gathered there, discussing and tasting. The wrong room turned out to be the right room.
An idea was born: CHANDON would again lead the way as the first champagne house led sparkling outpost in the USA. The idea was considered revolutionary both in France and in America. CHANDON California was founded in 1973, betting on the emergence of a sparkling-wine market, and began producing under the direction of Dawnine Dyer in terroirs found by John Wright.
Today, CHANDON California pushes the limits of the state of the art to produce sparkling wines that are US market leaders.
An idea was born: CHANDON would again lead the way as the first champagne house led sparkling outpost in the USA. The idea was considered revolutionary both in France and in America. CHANDON California was founded in 1973, betting on the emergence of a sparkling-wine market, and began producing under the direction of Dawnine Dyer in terroirs found by John Wright.
Today, CHANDON California pushes the limits of the state of the art to produce sparkling wines that are US market leaders.
I knew aged 14 that I wanted to be a winemaker, and specifically to make sparkling wines. I grew up in Champagne, so it was all around me.
I chose California because I have a huge love for the place. It was supposed to be a three-month internship, but I ended up staying 14 years, and counting.
I definitely brought a sense of my identity with me here. I introduced a new wine style. It’s very much about expressing the Californian terroirs and the grapes. It’s sunshine, it’s easygoing, it’s fruit expression. Approachable. I wanted to make wines to drink on a Tuesday or Wednesday night. That’s a common thread for all the CHANDON houses: that feeling of friendliness rather than high occasion.
Pauline Lhote
Chief winemaker
1973
DATE OF FOUNDATION OF CHANDON CALIFORNIA
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BEST CALIFORNIAN SPARKLING WINE 2022 @THE CHAMPAGNE & SPARKLING WINE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
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POINTS FOR CHANDON ETOILE @ 2024 DECANTER WORLD WINE AWARDS
ICON
CHANDON BY THE BAYCHANDON's Carneros vineyard is situated at the north end of San Pablo Bay – an ideal location to grow exceptional Chardonnay, with night harvesting to keep the fruit cool. Fresh nose of white flowers, grapefruit, and lemon, with layers of brioche, almond, and honey, define this zesty, elegant and mineral batch. Complex and Creamy. Elected Best in Class Californian Blanc de Blanc 2022 @The Champagne & Sparkling Wine World Championships, the “Oscars” of world’s bubble world.
EVERYONE IS WELCOME AT OUR TABLE
Our home in Napa is housed in a curvaceous state-of-the-art 4,000m2 building designed in 1977 by ROMA architects and recently revised in the same spirit in 2023to create a naturally easygoing, hospitable site. The feel is authentically northern-Californian and sensitively connected to the environment. In its spaces, interiors and materials, the place is constructed using environmentally friendly materials with a minimum of disruption.It sits happily within its surroundings and community, and serves as an exemplar of contemporary luxury: informal, spontaneous and focused on enlivening the moment. From our Club CHANDON Lounge to the Epicurean Hub, from the Galleria concept store to our Garden Lawn, the site typifies our ethos of inclusivity, generosity and warmth, with an emphasis on communal experiences to educate, inspire, engage, and celebrate.The way we host is thoughtfully, generously crafted, from tutored table tastings to picnics and the ultimate culinary journey. Elected Winery of the Year 2024 by the FACCSF | French American Chamber of Commerce of San Francisco, and Winery of the Year 2024 by the prestigious Luxury Lifestyle Awards.
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TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE AND RESPONSIBLE FUTURE
At CHANDON California as at all our estates, we take our approach to sustainability, responsible farming and the people we rely on very seriously.As farmers, we are very thankful for our harvests. We never take our precious relationship with our land for granted. Over the years, we have initiated a number of sustainable farming practices that consider the entire ecosystem – vines, insects, animals, other plant species, soil life, soil type, and bordering ecosystems – in order to minimize pests and diseases and create a healthy symbiotic relationship between our crop and the environment. We don’t go in for quick fixes or blanket one-size-fits-all treatments, instead considering each parcel of land and each vine variety individually.We cover crop to create a polyculture; we compost; we encourage natural predators; we have engaged in reforestation projects and preserved 40 per cent of our land as natural and undeveloped. Water is carefully conserved and recycled; waste is carefully separated and recycled too, and our energy use and carbon footprint are carefully monitored and minimized. As a result of these thoughtful practices, our vineyards and winery have achieved Regenified Tier and Napa Green certifications.
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