Franck Pascal

Franck Pascal runs a family estate with his wife Isabelle in Baslieux-sous-Châtillon, on the right bank of the Marne valley. He is the fifth generation of the family to grow grapes and make wine here. His grandfather Jean Pascal was a co-founder and president of the local growers' cooperative, and Franck's father began as a grower-producer selling under his own label in 1986. Franck and Isabelle have run the estate since 1994. Isabelle is a microbiologist and also comes from a champagne family.

A biodynamic pioneer

In 1998 Franck Pascal gave up insecticides, herbicides, fertilisers and treatments against botrytis. After converting to organic viticulture in 2000, he was certified by Ecocert in 2004. Since the early 2000s he has worked biodynamically. In 2005 he became the first grower in Champagne to hold Biodyvin certification. The estate's first biodynamically certified champagnes were made in 2008. The Pascals go further still: they apply bioenergetic principles to the vines, the must and the wine.

Vineyards, grape varieties and winemaking

The estate covers seven hectares, split across 44 biodynamically farmed plots. They lie in Baslieux-sous-Châtillon, Cuchery, Orcourt, Belval, Olizy and Montigny-sous-Châtillon. The soils are tertiary and clay-rich, and the slopes reach gradients of up to 35 per cent. The vineyards are planted with 55 per cent Pinot Meunier, 27 per cent Pinot Noir and 18 per cent Chardonnay.

“After converting to organic viticulture in 2000, he was certified by Ecocert in 2004.

In the cellar, the guiding principle is non-intervention. Collagen fining, cold stabilisation and filtration are no longer used. Malolactic fermentation is not induced. The range includes Fluence, a brut nature made from 69 per cent Pinot Meunier and 31 per cent Chardonnay, as well as Reliance and the rosé Tolérance. The cuvée Pacifiance is described as a champagne in perpetual reserve. The 2017 vintage of Cuvée Harmonie, an extra brut blanc de noirs made from 72 per cent Pinot Noir and 28 per cent Pinot Meunier, received 94 out of 100 points from Gault&Millau.

Visiting and tasting

Visitors can tour the vineyards and taste three champagnes, strictly by prior appointment. According to the estate, the tour is given in French. The regional tourism portal, however, lists English. It is therefore worth asking about the language when you book your visit.