A journey born and honed by 10 generations of winemakers, Clos Henri is home to extraordinary, organic Marlborough wines. Nestled in the foothills of the Wairau Valley, carved by powerful glacial and tectonic forces, the Clos Henri Estate sits upon some of Marlborough’s most fascinating soils.Headed by members of the famous winegrowing family of Henri Bourgeois, from Sancerre, France, the Estate has been meticulously cared for since its establishment in 2000. Drawing on over 200 years of winegrowing expertise from the family, they craft organic wines that are textural and elegant, paying homage to unique soil types.We spoke to Damien Yvon, General Manager and Head Winemaker about his role as the face of Clos Henri.MV: Clos Henri’s journey took a significant turn when Henri Bourgeois acquired two hectares on the hills of Chavignol in the 1950s. Could you share insights into his passion for wine and the origins of his desire to produce it?DY: Henri Bourgeois together with his wife Solange have really been pioneers for the appellation Sancerre already back in the 1950’s. While the very steep slopes of the village of Chavignol were very difficult to cultivate (hence the name Cote des Monts Damnés translating as Damned Hills), Henri knew that those slopes would consistently show character, minerality, density in the wines. Early in the 1970’s, Henri was also particularly paying attention at the wealth of diversity of terroirs Sancerre was offering from the Clay-Limestone based soils on the western side of the appellation where their beloved village of Chavignol is situated to the Flinty (“Silex”) soils in the East end. Often local winemakers at the time would blend wines from both soil origins. Henri became very intrigued by the singularity of each soil and what it expressed in the wines. While the clay-limestones were already a very appealing style on its own offering fruit, soft minerals and delicate structure, the wines from the Flinty soils seemed to often show much tension, restraint making the wines less approachable especially in its early stage of maturation. Late 1970’s, Henri was the first producer in the region to experiment using an older barrel to ferment and age wine from flinty soil on its own. Henri discovered the benefits of the barrel helping to make wines from the flinty soil more approachable. He went on in 1985 to buy his first new barrel and experiment again. Unfortunately, he never enjoyed the result of his experiment as he passed away not long after the vintage 1985. However, his son Jean-Marie and Rémi carried on the legacy of Henri always paying particular attention to each soil expression.MV: When Jean-Marie and Remi Bourgeois inherited the estate, they were inspired to explore international wine regions. What specifically drew them to New Zealand, and why did they choose Marlborough?DY: Early in the 1980’s, Jean-Marie was in charge of the winemaking and Rémi was the man of the land always in the vineyard. At this time, they already realised the necessity to start exporting their wines and diversify their market. Jean-Marie has been one of the key producers of Sancerre who helped develop the reputation of Sancerre on the international scene, travelling with his stones in his pocket bringing the terroir to the table of each of his customers while tasting his wines. While travelling extensively over the 1980s and 1990s, Jean-Marie met many producers from around the globe. The family’s fascination for other terroirs of the worlds offering fantastic wines grew over time. From the early 1990’s, the family started visiting wine regions around the world each year with an idea developing that they could one day become one of those exotic producers! Towards the late 1990’s as New Zealand was impressing the world with the export of its first fine wines and particularly the unique style of their Sauvignon Blanc, Jean-Marie and his family met New Zealand producers at trade fairs to discover more what was special about New Zealand. I have very recently had a conversation with Jim Robertson of Pernod Ricard telling me he first met the family at Vinexpo Tokyo and how the family so curious about his wines and what was happening in New Zealand. It was at another fair in London that Jean-Marie met John Buck of Te Mata. Jean-Marie told meet that John said to Jean-Marie: “ you should come to New Zealand”. The Bourgeois family visited New Zealand for the first time in 1999 to explore the country. Only 12 months later, they found the special slice of land that has now become Clos Henri.