Laurent Bénard
The history of the Bénard family is rooted in the heart of Champagne, with the first documents attesting to their work among the vines dating back to 1878. Champagne production began in 1934 with Raoul Bénard, in Mesnil-sur-Oger, and was consolidated in 1942 with the founding of the company in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, where the historic headquarters still stands today. It is from this solid heritage that the new adventure of Laurent Bénard was born in 2009, a microbiologist by training and a winemaker by choice, who created a line in his name, carrying forward an idea of Champagne radically linked to respect for nature and the terroir. Today, with the entry of his son Charles – an agronomist and oenologist – the fourth generation is already at work, ready to push even further a coherent and deeply artisanal vision. In a regional context dominated by large maisons, the work of the Bénards stands out for its authenticity, awareness, and strong connection to the land.
of chalk and clay-limestone. The cultivated varieties – Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Meunier – are managed using low environmental impact methods, integrating local agricultural practices and minimal use of external resources. The average age of the vines is about 30 years, and the Bénard family adopts massal selections to preserve biodiversity and the genetic heritage of the plants. The harvest is manual with careful sorting, necessary to ensure perfect grapes, especially considering the choice not to add sulfites in many cuvées. In the cellar, fermentations occur with indigenous yeasts, and malolactic fermentation follows spontaneously. Vinification adapts to the nature of the wine, which can mature in wood, enameled steel, or stainless steel, always without invasive interventions, to respect the identity of the terroir as much as possible.cellar, the wine is accompanied discreetly, following its times and needs. An interesting curiosity concerns the family's production philosophy: for them, true vinification occurs in the vineyard, while the work in the cellar is merely the completion of a process already begun in the soil. A vision that makes these Champagnes not only expressions of the terroir but also living manifestos of thoughtful, respectful, and deeply human agriculture.The history of the Bénard family is rooted in the heart of Champagne, with the first documents attesting to their work among the vines dating back to 1878. Champagne production began in 1934 with Raoul Bénard, in Mesnil-sur-Oger, and was consolidated in 1942 with the founding of the company in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, where the historic headquarters still stands today. It is from this solid heritage that the new adventure of Laurent Bénard was born in 2009, a microbiologist by training and a winemaker by choice, who created a line in his name, carrying forward an idea of Champagne radically linked to respect for nature and the terroir. Today, with the entry of his son Charles – an agronomist and oenologist – the fourth generation is already at work, ready to push even further a coherent and deeply artisanal vision. In a regional context dominated by large maisons, the work of the Bénards stands out for its authenticity, awareness, and strong connection to the land.
of chalk and clay-limestone. The cultivated varieties – Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Meunier – are managed using low environmental impact methods, integrating local agricultural practices and minimal use of external resources. The average age of the vines is about 30 years, and the Bénard family adopts massal selections to preserve biodiversity and the genetic heritage of the plants. The harvest is manual with careful sorting, necessary to ensure perfect grapes, especially considering the choice not to add sulfites in many cuvées. In the cellar, fermentations occur with indigenous yeasts, and malolactic fermentation follows spontaneously. Vinification adapts to the nature of the wine, which can mature in wood, enameled steel, or stainless steel, always without invasive interventions, to respect the identity of the terroir as much as possible.cellar, the wine is accompanied discreetly, following its times and needs. An interesting curiosity concerns the family's production philosophy: for them, true vinification occurs in the vineyard, while the work in the cellar is merely the completion of a process already begun in the soil. A vision that makes these Champagnes not only expressions of the terroir but also living manifestos of thoughtful, respectful, and deeply human agriculture.
