Richard Billett, managing director, talks to me about this 40-year milestone moment. He has been heading up Maisons Marques et Domaines (MMD for 12 years, in which time the company has grown in terms of portfolio, people, “and hopefully reputation,” he says. He attributes this to the energy, drive and vision of its producers, a collection of family-owned producers with iconic brands “striving to excel at what they do.”
Maisons Marques et Domaines MD Richard Billet. © David Pearce Different Perspective
Billett comments that working with family businesses means the shared outlook is focused on legacy creation and handing over the business in a better state to the next generation. While his plans are to continue to grow MMD in a measured way, producers will have to share the same long-term vision and priorities. Billett says large expansion is not on the cards, “we are happy to be niche and at the top of our profession, representing some of the most iconic producers in the world.”
To celebrate its 40th anniversary, the MMD portfolio tasting this year not only brought together Roederer brands with the family-owned producers in the portfolio, but also iconic wines and back vintages from across the portfolio.
Highlights included Castiglion del Bosco Brunello Campo del Drago 2021, a single vineyard expression with concentrated fruit and silky tannins; and Domaine Ott Étoile 2023, a gastronomic rosé with time in ceramic vats and bottle before release. From Burgundy, Billaud-Simon Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre 2023, was citrusy and mineral with a long finish while Domaine Faiveley Mazis Chambertin Grand Cru 2011
was delicate, floral and red-fruited. Other standouts included Domaines Schlumberger Clos Saint-Léger Riesling 2019, a beautiful and age worthy example from the Kitterlé Grand Cru; Ornellaia 2015 showing ripe fruit, tobacco and savoury notes; and Meerlust Rubicon 2009, rich and earthy with layers of dried leaves and dark fruit.
Overcoming Sauvignon Blanc prejudice
Producers of wines shown at the Sauvignon Blanc masterclass
I also headed to two masterclasses on the day, the first hosted by Peter Richards MW on the diversity and age-ability of Sauvignon Blanc. The panel discussion was a chance to counteract what Richards calls “pernicious snobbery” around Sauvignon Blanc, with vertical tastings from wineries in Italy, France, New Zealand and the US.
Attems is an estate in Friuli owned by Frescobaldi, close to both the sea and the mountains. Michele Drusian, sales and marketing director, says they look for “elegance, beauty and balance” in the wines. Attems Cicinis 2018 is smoky and toasty, with notes of baked peaches and almond biscotti.
Mahi Wines is a small family winery in Marlborough. Brian Bicknell, owner and winemaker, told us how Sauvignon Blanc is a variety which shows its place, with differences between vineyards. Mahi Alias 2019 has a delicately baked and nutty nose with an underlying stony minerality, while the Alias 2015 is surprisingly youthful with notes of pea shoots and cut grass remaining alongside a creamy roundness.
Merry Edwards in Russian River was acquired by Roederer in 2019. Meredith ‘Merry’ Edwards was one of the first women to graduate from UC Davis in the 1970s, becoming “obsessed with clones”. Merry Edwards Sauvignon Blanc 2013 from magnum uses the Sauvignon Blanc 1 clone as well as Sauvignon Musqué and is full-bodied and textural.
Founded in 1987, with vineyards in Sancerre and Pouilly Fumé, Pascal Jolivet focuses on quality of fruit in the vineyard and minimal intervention. Pascal Jolivet Sauvage 2013 has a ripe nose of lemon sherbet and peaches and a creamy note on the palate.
Pio Cesare, founded in 1881, is well known for its Barolo and Barbaresco. Sauvignon Blanc was initially used to add a splash of aromas and freshness to its Chardonnay before being bottled as a varietal wine in 2017. Pio Cesare ‘Blanc’ Langhe Sauvignon 2022 is reminiscent of a white Bordeaux, with fleshy fruit, a lovely viscosity, and Sémillon-like lanolin notes. Showing the updated house style since the 2022 vintage, Federica Boffa Pio, owner of Pio Cesare, says now is the “time for white wine to shine” and wants their white wines to reflect the character of Barolo and Barbaresco as much as the reds too, with structure and concentration alongside elegance, finesse and, above all, ageing potential.
100-point wines and the pursuit of excellence
Mark BIngley MW hosted the 100-point wine masterclass © David Pearce Different Perspective
The second masterclass showcased a selection of 100-point wines from the MMD portfolio. Hosted by Mark Bingley MW, the tasting included conversations around the meaning and importance (or not) of achieving 100-point scores, with a general conclusion that it is an encouragement to strive for excellence. The tasting included wines from Roederer Estate, Domaine Faiveley, Château Pichon-Longueville, Tenuta Luce, Ornellaia and Delas Frères.
It feels audacious to pick favourites from such a tasting, but the standout for me was Marqués de Murrieta Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial Blanco 1986, not merely for its sheer rarity and uniqueness. Made infrequently and so long aged that 1986 is the current release, it is 97% Viura and 3% Malvasia and aged for 21 years in barrel, 5 years in concrete and 2 years in bottle before its release in 2016. The first Spanish white wine to be awarded 100 points, and showing a freshness that belies its age, it is simply, as Bingley puts it, “extraordinary.”
My other favourites for drinking now were the Diamond Creek Estate Volcanic Hill 2013 from Napa, a single-vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon with intensely concentrated cassis on the nose, a hint of mintiness and velvety tannins. Champagne Louis Roederer Cristal Brut 2008 has rich layers of honeyed toastiness and an almost saline minerality, showing a balance, depth and freshness that indicate it could age even longer.
Maisons Marques et Domaines 40th anniversary tasting, London
MMD’s anniversary tasting showcased four decades of championing premium family-owned estates, and with its measured vision for the future and a portfolio of producers focused on long-term legacy, the next chapter looks to be equally as distinguished.
