The Berthier family has been living in Central-Loire for several generations, with Jean Marie creating Domaine des Clairneaux in the Sancerre appellation in the early 1980s. Later, in 1998, the family expanded the domaine by acquiring Domaine de Montbenoit in the Coteaux du Giennois. Today the family run vineyards are managed by Clément and Florian, both who spent years travelling the world to learn more, now settle into their home terroir and continue the family legacy. Upon his return from working as a cellar master in America, Clément has taken on the responsibility of the vinification process and all sales at the domaine. Florian,who gained vast knowledge from working in Burgundy and New Zealand, is now in charge of all the work performed in the vineyards.  He has one hand tending his vines and one foot planted firmly in his vineyard soil.

In the Berthier family, the profession of winegrower has been handed down from father to son for five generations. Clement and Florian took over the business in 2012 and are continuing to write the family story. The development of the Coteaux du Giennois, the domaine’s flagship AOC, has always been their main focus but new AOCs, such as Pouilly-Fume and Menetou Salon, have also been added to the family. It is this passing on of knowledge and know-how that inspires them today to work for a better future tomorrow.

“Built on a combination of history, intuition and emotion… our wines have one sole aim: to bring you endless drinking enjoyment”

Stretching from one end of the Loire’s riverbanks to the other, the Berthier vineyards can be found from Sancerre and all the way to the Coteaux du Giennois. In line with their beliefs, Clement and Florian have been working to maintain a healthy, unspoilt environment for many long years. For them, the need to preserve soil life has always been self-evident. For many years now, this sensibility for nature, innate in each generation of the Berthier family, has been naturally directing them toward organic growing, for which they obtained certification in 2022. Some of their methods include: grassing the vineyards and ploughing under the rows, controlling yields through de-leafing and disbudding. By respecting and enhancing the biodiversity of the terroir, the Berthier family know they will get the best out of their vines year after year.

They cultivate three different grape varieties across several different appellations, producing Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay for the whites, and Pinot Noir for the reds and rosés. Their full range consists of 20 different cuvées, with almost half being Single Vineyard products that create pure expressions of their family terroir.

“The story of the domaine is above all one of preserving traditional know-how”

The art of winemaking is defined by the greatest respect for our terroirs and raw material. Taking pride in intervening as little as possible in the winemaking process, they allow each wine to express its full potential. Use of a pneumatic press for gentle extraction, and indigenous yeasts ensures the natural processes occur. There is regular pumping over on the red wines to allow for a gentle extraction, with a level of wine protection done using the gas from fermentation. Creating wines of simple pleasure for exceptional moments, their L’Instant range represents youthfulness, liveliness, and pleasure. With the pinot noir being fruity, intense and delicious.

We are very proud to be importing Domaine Berthier’s wines – they are exquisite examples of Central-Loire wines and a cherished addition to Clos Cachet’s portfolio.