our
Philosophy
Two passions drive us Domaine Pasquet: producing quality organic Cognac from our vines and of sharing our finds as “Treasure Hunters”.
We create Cognac, naturally…
We are obsessed
with a well-expressed terroir.
As Jean likes to say, “we don’t claim to have the ‘best’ terroir, but we strive to express the ‘best’ of what we have.” We are, first and foremost, winegrowers.
The vine now occupies a unique place in the Pasquet estate since Jean-Luc arrived in 1971. Previously, Uncle Albert’s property counted 6 hectares of vines out of the 9 hectares of the farm.
Before the 1970s, our entire geographical area including the south of Grande Champagne where it borders on the Petite Champagne, was populated with farms of mixed crops and livestock, where the vine often represented only about a quarter of the cultivated area. In the 1960’s in France, the chemical revolution emerged as the saving grace for agriculture and especially viticulture.
Farmers lost their fear of mildew, powdery mildew, black rot and other vine diseases. They no longer faced back-breaking manual labor fighting competition from weeds, nor fear of soil depletion and poor harvests. Of course, Jean-Luc, a novice in everything a the time, began his activity using all the phytosanitary products, herbicides, and chemical fertilizers under the “indispensable” advice of the technical salespeople.
« 1994 : a year
of testing in
organic farming... »
However, one summer day in 1993, looking at his young and scrawny vine plantation, he asked himself, “Am I doing my job well?”
By a stroke of luck, Jean-Luc discovered Organic Agriculture and at the end of second information meeting, he told his wife, Marie-Françoise: “the organic technician, in his speech, may not be 100% right, but I know I’m 100% wrong… 1994 was his year experimenting in organic farming and 1995 marked his official declaration as using only organic agricultural methods. In 1998 we celebrated our first vintage of organic cognac.
Today, at the beginning of the 21st century, I continue my father’s commitment to Organic Agriculture with the same enthusiasm.
« ADAPT TO DIFFERENT
CHALLENGES... »
Now, our mission is to adapt our viticultural practices to the climate and societal challenges that we face today.
We cannot deny our environmental impact and our responsibility towards the women and men who live and work in this area. We can trace the history of cognac back to nearly a half a millennium.
Our generation and those who follow have the responsibility of ensuring the survival of this exceptional spirit for the greatest pleasure of all.
In the near future, we will reflect and focus on new activities related to wine tourism and a greater promotion of cognac in France.
« Treasure
Hunters... »
Our second passion is sharing old, rare, and remarkable Cognacs with spirits lovers the world over.
In 2011, when Jean took over the estate, there were nearly no old cognacs left in the cellars. In 2017, with Amy, we decided to go on a quest to find real “Treasures” hidden in the cellars of neighboring winegrowers.
What an adventure! We learn the history of our region and our spirit through meeting these characters who produce it. Our “Family Treasures” collection pays tribute to all these talented distillers who enable us to share the beauty and diversity of our region.
