Francis Boulard

'Les Murgiers' Champagne 2011

With 3 tiny hectares of vines in Vallée de la Marne and Montagne de Reims, Champagne Francis Boulard et Fille is a minute operation in a sea of large producers. Francis is the son of Raymond Boulard, but a dispute with his siblings led the Raymond Boulard name to dissolve and for Francis to start his own operation. The argument was centred on biodynamics. Francis became increasingly aware and concerned of the effects of chemical pesticides and was pushing toward to a more sustainable approach. Of the mere 3.2ha in Vallée de la Marne certified organic, Francis now owns 1.2 of them. Wines are vinified in barrels of various sizes and batonnage is performed weekly. The resulting wines need little dosage if any to round out their flavours. Delphine Boulard, his daughter, has taken over the reins as of 2017.