Makers & Shakers...

Gilles de Courcel is as Burgundian as they come: born and raised in Pommard, he has worked in the wine trade his entire life. His family has owned and run the Domaine de Courcel for more than 400 years (famous for its extensive holdings in Premier Cru vineyards).

Indeed, you could say that Gilles, like the wines, "was born in the vineyard."

After completing a degree in business administration in the early 1980s, he left Burgundy to work in Reims as export director for one of the greatest houses of Champagne. The mid-1990s found him in Bordeaux where he worked with top producers in Médoc, Saint-Emilion and Sauternes.

In 2002 the Bollinger family asked him to look after their new acquisition, the Chanson estate. Of course, they wanted someone with his vast experience, but they also desired a bona fide Burgundian, an experienced manager and trusted friend who could restore the glory of this noble shipper.

"Attention to detail is everything in Burgundy," says de Courcel. "Detail, patience, and minimal intervention in the winemaking process are what make Chanson's wines stand apart," he explains.

"For me it is a great honor and very exciting to have been asked to work for such a historic and illustrious house of Burgundy, one of the original estates of the modern era where it all began."