Domaine Langlois-Chateau

These Crémants de Loire are among the finest of their appellation

The foundation of the Domaine LANGLOIS-CHATEAU in 1912 is a result of the association of two wine enthusiasts. One technician was wine (Edouard Langlois) and the other major landowner in St-Hilaire St-Florent (Baron Bodman). This was already the head of a vineyard: the Castle of St Florent. Through the pooling of skills they acquire in 1912 the Delandes home.

Today the buildings of the Domaine LANGLOIS-CHATEAU are always in the former premises of the Delandes home.

Since its inception, the founders of LANGLOIS-CHATEAU specialized in sparkling wine, using the traditional method.

LANGLOIS-CHATEAU today is still a family property with the heirs of the founding capital but also the Bollinger family. The latter saw the potential of the soils and the general knowledge of this house Saumuroise and they acquired a majority stake in 1973.

What are the guidelines for the wines LANGLOIS-CHATEAU?

“What is sought before everything is balanced wines made in the traditional Champagne method. We do not want to produce wines that are too exuberant, too powerful. We want wines like our land where our extensive range. The idea is to have beautiful fruit for beautiful wines. ”

I invite you to discover the page “Our know-how” of their site. This gives a pretty good overview.

A HVE (“High Environmental Value”) process implementation

Label HVE is a new agricultural certification to award agriculture that could be described as “rational”, developing sustainable production methods. It was created following the Grenelle de l’Environnement (2007 at the initiative of Nicolas Sarkozy and Nicolas Hulot) under Article 109 of the Grenelle 2 Act.

What is it? Aside from the fact that it is the label “sustainable development” the most controversial he aims to reduce the use of pesticides and to promote biodiversity, traceability and approach the cultivation of the vine in logical “global”. The winemakers seeking Label HVE must obtain minimum values of reference calculations environmental performance indicators on biodiversity, fertilizer management, pest strategy, management of water resources and reprocessing. This differentiates it from an organic label certification requires to follow a precise specifications. The label HVE “High Environmental Value” has three levels of recognition

Personal opinion: Good practice I find the approach in principle laudable and it deserves to promote a more environmentally friendly approach. Associate a type organic farming or sustainable “push” this can be a good thing. I strongly encourage growers to adopt an approach favoring some protection of their lands. However the label HVE is in my opinion an additional label in the batch of labels ‘sustainable development’ existing … standardization could be beneficial and more visible to the consumer. Moreover, it remains relatively unclear.

Where does the name “Domaine Langlois-Chateau” come from?

Contrary to what one might think the “Chateau” was not given any reference to a building, but a tribute to Jeanne Chateau, wife of Edward Langlois, founder of the MAISON LANGLOIS-CHATEAU. The property name is simply the junction of the surname of a founder and his wife.

So why the name of Baron Bodman, co-founder of the field does not appear in the name of the property? Simply because at the time of the creation of the Domaine LANGLOIS-CHATEAU it was not customary for the aristocrats giving their names to their properties.

Quick focus on the crest of the House LANGLOIS-CHATEAU

This coat of arms is made up of symbols telling the story of some of the founders of the property. The Chateau evokes the name of Jeanne Chateau. The leopard expresses English roots of Edouard Langlois. In fact, the leopard is the symbol of the Anglo-Anjou (Plantagenet), Langlois meaning the English Old French. The Vendee located in the heart of the Castle drawing recall the Vendée origins of Jeanne and Edward LANGLOIS.

Side anecdote:

This week there is not one but two stories. The first Langlois-Chateau and the second the name of the appellation “Champigny.”

Langlois-Chateau is not only popular in France but also across the Channel, in the Britain area. Indeed, if one day you have the unique and rare opportunity to visit the cellar of the Parliament of the United Kingdom you will discover a special vintage “House of Commons AOC Crémant de Loire.”

The very name “Champigny” comes from “Campus ignis” meaning “fields of fire” in Latin. This name was given because the name is made up of “air terraces” which garnered the ground heat from the sun.

Quick informations that can be useful: Currently Domaine LANGLOIS-CHATEAU has a school open to wine tourism. The objective is to teach the basics of tasting but also the complexity of the winegrower. Do not hesitate to go for a ride. Also do not be surprised to see the stands ‘LANGLOIS-CHATEAU’ during the events of the “Cadre Noir de Saumur” and the Tour Auto as the property is partner of these two moments that convey the same property values: tradition, know-how and elegance.