Get to know: Stéphane Regnault
Highly coveted and difficult to procure, Champagne from Stéphane Regnault is an extraordinary thrill. In 2019, fatcork became one of the first to import Stéphane’s cuvées to the U.S., and every year since, we’ve been beyond grateful to secure a small allocation to offer to our customers.
To learn more about what makes his grower Champagne so special, join us in getting to know Stéphane Regnault.
But, first, some background …
In 2008, a visit to Champagne marked a defining moment for Bryan and Abby Maletis. The fatcork founders spent their most memorable day of the trip exploring the vineyards of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, a legendary Grand Cru village in the heart of the Côte des Blancs. At the famed Champagne Salon, they sampled the 1996 vintage of the one and only wine produced there — a single varietal (chardonnay), a single cru (Le Mesnil-sur-Oger), made in only the most exceptional years. The bottle they drank from had been open for a day, and the wine’s finish lingered so vividly that Bryan could still taste it 30 minutes later as they drove away.
That experience sparked not only the dream that would become fatcork but also Bryan’s deep fascination with chardonnay from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. With its pure chalk soils and ideal sun exposure, the village produces the world’s most delicious chardonnay — marked by a distinctive minerality in every sip.
The qualities Bryan and Abby loved in that 1996 Salon can still be found today in the Champagne of Stéphane Regnault. The couple met Stéphane in 2019 at his family’s estate in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. That same year, fatcork became the first to import Stéphane’s cuvées to the U.S., and every year since, we’ve been grateful to secure a small allocation to offer to our customers.
During our most recent visit in 2019, we arrived at his family domaine just in time to see this wine wizard squatting in a corner over a boiling pot of nettle and herb tisane, which he uses in lieu of pesticides.
The man
After brief stints working as a sommelier in London and as an aerospace engineer in Paris, in 2007, Stéphane Regnault returned home to Mesnil-Sur-Oger to take over his family’s vineyard estate. For decades, the Regnaults cultivated grapes, which they then sold to Champagne’s grand maisons. But upon his return, Stéphane followed the spark of an idea that had been bubbling in the back of his mind for years — to become a vigneron, making his own Champagne with the grapes from his estate. His wine, the first to be made under the Regnault name, would be something truly unique: the distillation of his various life experiences. Stéphane Regnault Champagne, as envisioned by the vigneron himself, would blend the methodical precision of an aerospace engineer, the refined palate of a seasoned sommelier, the intricate rhythms and layered harmonies of a jazz musician (a personal passion of his), and a profound respect for the land.
The land
In the Côte des Blancs, the legendary Grand Cru village of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger produces the world’s most delicious chardonnay. Just the right amount of sunlight and pure chalk soil impart a distinctive minerality that you can taste in every sip.
Stéphane’s domaine includes three distinct lieu-dits in the legendary Côte des Blancs village of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, known around the world for its rich, chalky soil, gently sloping hillsides and sublime chardonnay.
What is a lieu-dit?
Celebrated across Champagne for their unique, ultra-defined terroir and, often, historical significance, lieu-dits are specifically-named vineyard plots within a producer’s larger domaine.
Stéphane Regnault’s lieu-dits are:
Hautes Mottes — French for “high mounds,” the designation refers to the unusual veins of chalk that extend throughout the parcel of land. The vineyard receives southern exposure in a slight basin. It has very fine, well-structured, open and crumbly surface soil with clover-based grass cover. There is almost no transitional horizon, and the subsoil is pure and compact chalk.
Le Moulin — French for “the windmill,” Le Moulin faces due east with a 2% slope. The surface soil is well-structured with grass cover. It has an intermediate horizon, is rich in chalk and quite deep. The subsoil is fractured silky chalk.
Le Chemin de Flavigny — French for “The Flavigny Trail” (and likely a reference to a medieval route between Reims and Flavigny-sur-Ozerain), this plot is south-facing with a 7% slope. It has very light topsoil with natural grass cover. There is an intermediate horizon with low chalk content. The subsoil is made up of compact, slightly fractured chalk.
The vision
With these prized plots under his command, Stéphane set out to learn how best to care for them. He prioritized traditional farming practices and soon began the transition to sustainable viticulture, working toward HVE and VDC certifications. In 2020, his domaine also earned a certification in organic agriculture. Stéphane is also influenced by biodynamic viticulture, and he uses such methods as horn dung, silica, fermented valerian blossoms and nettle-infused teas to enrich and protect the soil. As a result, Stéphane’s vineyards attain their full potential, producing some of the finest fruit in all of the Côte des Blancs.
In the cellar, Stéphane brings out the best of these exceptional grapes through a highly skilled method of minimal-intervention winemaking. With each vintage, Stéphane risks everything by slowly fermenting the grapes in chilled, stainless steel tanks. When successful, fermentation at low temperatures preserves the minerality and brings out more delicate nuanced flavors, but if it dips too low, fermentation can stop altogether. If the tanks get too warm, bolder flavors take over, and some of the signature minerality is lost.
The Champagne
Our favorite Stéphane Regnault cuvées are his intensely terroir-driven, plot-specific blanc de blancs, each made with a perpetual réserve from the previous vintage.
Beginning with his first vintage in 2014, Stéphane created a perpetual reserve to which he adds a portion of each subsequent vintage release. Each of his single-vineyard, single-varietal cuvées is a blend of wine from the perpetual reserve and the latest vintage, and he employs a naming system that reflects his affinity for numbers and analytics.
For example, Stéphane’s Lydien No. 62 is made with 100 percent chardonnay from the Le Chemin de Flavigny vineyard. About 40 percent is from the perpetual reserve holding vintages 2014, 2015 and 2016, and 60 percent is from the 2017 vintage. 14 + 15 + 16 + 17 = 62. Similarly, Dorien No. 45 is made with 100 percent chardonnay from the Hautes Mottes vineyard. About 40 percent is perpetual reserve holding vintages 2014 and 2015. Wine from the 2016 vintage makes up the remaining 60 percent. 14 + 15 + 16 = 45. Stéphane doesn’t release his vintages at the same time; rather, he waits to release them when he deems them to be at their peak readiness.
Up until now, we haven’t been able to secure enough of Stéphane’s plot-specific releases to include them in our online store. Rather, we’ve offered them to local customers in person at the cave and to our VIP Merrymakers club members via exclusive Founders’ Stash offers. But, we recently received a slightly larger shipment, and without further ado, we can’t wait to share those bottles with you. Get to know Stéphane Regnault, and shop his Champagne below.
Stéphane Regnault Single-Vineyard Legacy Collection - $285
Treat yourself to the ultimate Stéphane Regnault collection: a bundle featuring the latest releases of this legendary producer’s stunning, single-vineyard Champagnes. Sommeliers and wine industry VIPs clamor for these wines, and now we’re thrilled to offer them to you. But act fast: We only have 25 packages available, and they'll go fast.
Lydien No. 80 Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut Nature - $115
Fruity, fragrant and bright, this cuvée is pure chardonnay “muscaté,” a variation of the chardonnay grape with tropical notes that is rarely found in Champagne. The most expressive of Stéphane’s plot-specific cuvées, Lydien No. 80 offers a distinctive openness and energy.
Mixolydien No. 62 Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut Nature - $115
Complex and beautifully balanced, this pure chardonnay from Le Moulin is best known and revered from its rare silkiness on the palate.
Dorien No. 62 Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut Nature - $115
100% chardonnay the Hautes Mottes plot: structured topsoil, pure compact chalk and clover-based grass cover
Floral and structured with nuanced citrus flavors, this pure chardonnay is one of the most powerful blanc de blancs in all of Champagne. It will benefit from aging under cork and taste its best from the wide bowl of a Burgundy glass.