Famille Rateau L.R.76 Edition 2.2

In the world of Cognac, some encounters feel less like a visit than an entry into an entire universe. Joël Rateau is one of those winegrower-distillers whose personality leaves as strong an impression as his eaux-de-vie. Curious, inventive and observant, he has always had a very personal way of understanding machines, nature and time.

The story of the Rateau family is rooted first in Malaville, then at Maine Frugier in Nonaville, where Joël settled with Annie in the mid-1970s. Becoming a young winegrower in 1980, he gradually took over the work of the vineyard and the family distillery. It was there that his resourceful spirit truly came into its own. At a time when modern automation did not yet exist, Joël devised an ingenious system using mechanical alarm clocks to trigger certain distillation operations. An invention very much in his image: practical, mischievous and free.

This cask was born from an exceptionally hot and dry year, which gave rise to an intense and generous Petite Champagne. The nose opens with vivid fruit: ripe mango, orange, peach and melon, joined by honeysuckle and rose, with fresh touches of mint and camphor. The palate is drier and more structured, with pear, fresh walnut, plum, cocoa and roasted chestnut. Fine tannins lead into a long, spicy finish, where mango returns alongside cinnamon, white pepper and an elegant note of black tea.

For this second label in the fresco, Lauriane Dupré continues her interpretation of Joël’s world through his taste for mechanisms, invention and tinkering. After the vineyard comes the press: pulleys, gears, conveyor belts and containers seem to come together in a curious machine straight from his imagination. Lauriane does not seek to depict a tool literally, but rather to translate Joël’s very personal way of observing, understanding and improving what surrounds him. A joyful, ingenious piece of machinery, where know-how becomes almost an adventure.