Champagne producer House of Telmont unveils sustainability plan

A Champagne house has stated its aim to act "in the name of Mother Nature" in the production of its wines in a newly launched sustainability strategy.

The House of Telmont, founded in 1912 by Henri Lhôpital on his land near Epernay, believes itself to have a singular vision of viticulture. In a bid to uphold this legacy, Telmont has begun taking steps towards organic conversion - it obtained the first certification of a portion of its estate vineyard in 2017, with the goal to eventually become a 100 per cent organic house.

Telmont has five key objectives as part of its mission to reduce its environmental impact:

• preserving terroir and biodiversity - currently 72 per cent of the house's 24.5-hectare estate is certified organic or in the process of conversion, and it hopes to reach 100 per cent by 2025
• generalising eco-design - its new 100 per cent recyclable green glass bottles, made from 85 per cent recycled glass, are due to hit the market later this year
• transitioning to 100 per cent renewable electricity and promoting the use of 'green' energy sources for all its activities
• overhauling the logistics chain, upstream and downstream, to limit greenhouse gas emissions indirectly related to its business
• intensifying efforts in regard to traceability and information for consumers

The Rémy Cointreau Group became a majority shareholder of the House of Telmont in October 2020 and has thrown its weight behind the new strategy, which Ludovic du Plessis, president and shareholder of the House, will implement together with Bertrand Lhôpital, great-grandson of the House’s founder.

Ludovic du Plessis said: "My first tasting experience of Telmont Champagne was a beautiful discovery. The wines had a unique personality, presence, complexity and maturity, all the while preserving a remarkable ethereality. Backed by the Rémy Cointreau Group and alongside Bertrand Lhôpital, I feel very lucky to be leading this incredible adventure.

"Telmont is a house with character, boasting a legacy of craftsmanship and a strong ambition, poised to become the standard bearer of a new relationship with nature. We have one foot rooted in tradition and one in modernity, and both feet on (and in) the earth."

Bertrand Lhôpital, Telmont's cellar master and head of viticulture, said: "I'm proud of the wine-growing legacy which has been handed down in my family from one generation to the next. This heritage enables us to be in close contact with the earth and people, to work with the soil and create our wines the Telmont way.

"When Rémy Cointreau joined the adventure, contributing their proven commitment to terroir and savoir-faire, it added a new dimension to the quest for excellence which has driven our family for years."

2 August 2021 - Bethany Whymark