Artémis Domaines has taken a minority stake in the capital of Jacquesson in Champagne, the groups said in a statement this week. Financial details weren’t disclosed.
The partnership marks a new departure for Artémis, owned by the Pinault family. Alongside Château Latour, the group’s portfolio already includes Eisele Vineyard estate in Napa Valley, Clos de Tart in Burgundy and Château-Grillet in the Rhône.
Maison Jacquesson traces its history back to 1798 and has been owned by the Chiquet family since 1974.
‘Our family is delighted and proud, for itself, for Champagne Jacquesson, but also for Champagne, that a family group of this quality is now at our side,’ Jean-Hervé and Laurent Chiquet told Decanter.
The Chiquet brothers have been credited with helping to restore this boutique Champagne house to its former glory via an innovative focus on terroir and vineyard expression, as well as vintage character, as Decanter contributor Yohan Castaing wrote in a profile of Jacquesson in 2020.
‘To accomplish their audacious vision, they restructured their vineyards and instigated major renovations in the cellar. A form of haute couture and herbicide-free viticulture became the norm,’ wrote Castaing, adding that yields were also reduced.
Production is ‘voluntarily limited,’ to 250,000 bottles per year, said the joint-statement by Jacquesson and Artémis this week.
Through the partnership, Jacquesson has joined forces with a group ‘recognised for cultivating prestigious terroirs and producing exceptional wines in a strict respect the environment’, they said.
Champagne has been a top performer on the fine wine market in the past year, and demand for the region’s top cuvées has been particularly strong.
Global Champagne shipments rebounded strongly in 2021 to 322m bottles, up by 32% versus a previous year that saw consumer demand affected by the pandemic.
Provisional figures suggested Champagne shipments hit a new record value in 2021, at more than €5.5bn, said the Comité Champagne regional body in January. Its figures include domestic shipments within France and exports.
