When Raphaël Piconnet and his wife Hannah took over the family estate in Neuville-sur-Seine in 2015, they immediately converted to organic farming. Their model was Vouette & Sorbée, which is also home to Drappier. Today, Domaine de Bichery is one of the most sought-after addresses in the region.
Eight hectares of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Meunier are fermented with wild yeasts, aged in casks and bottled without dosage and with minimal sulphur. Only 5,000–15,000 bottles per year.
More about de Bichery
From Bichery to Bichery
Raphaël Piconnet grew up in the lieu-dit of Bichery in Neuville-sur-Seine. His grandfather Charles tended the vineyards on the slopes above the meandering Seine for decades. After his formative years in various French wine regions – with a stopover in Switzerland – Raphaël returned in 2013. He had worked in Burgundy, Alsace and the Jura, bringing this wealth of experience back with him. During the 2012 harvest he met Hannah from East Frisia. What began as harvest assistance became a life partnership: in 2015 they vinified their first Champagne.
One plot, one wine
The principle is radically simple: each of the 8 hectares in Neuville-sur-Seine and Gyé-sur-Seine tells its own story. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier grow on the chalk-rich soils of the Côte des Bar – that southern Champagne region which long stood in the shadow of the Montagne de Reims. Since February 2019, the estate has held Ecocert certification. Spontaneous fermentation, ageing in used wooden casks, neither fining nor filtration – Raphaël and Hannah give the wines time.
The Côte des Bar renaissance
With a maximum of 12,500 bottles per year, de Bichery is one of the smallest producers in the region. Yet what is created here radiates far beyond Champagne. In the Côte des Bar, Olivier Horiot and other pioneers are also working towards a new understanding of Champagne: wines that convey origin rather than style. The Les Terres Mêlées literally weaves the different soils together into a cuvée whose name says it all: mixed earths.
Brut Nature as a statement
All Champagnes from de Bichery are bottled as Brut Nature – without dosage, without corrections. What remains is pure grape, pure terroir. The La Source springs from the source vineyard above the village, while the Les Fontaines Rosé reveals Pinot Meunier in its finest expression. Every bottle matures on the lees for at least 24 months. Hannah and Raphaël have proven that Champagne can be reimagined even from East Frisia.