Mr. Bertrand Praz
Mr. Bertrand Praz, is the Chief Winemaker & Purchase Director of J.P. Chenet which is the best-selling brand of wine of in the world from GCP Group “Les Grands Chais de  France”.

Together with the winemakers Ms. Hildegard Enk and Mr. Philippe Chabert, Mr. Bertrand Praz came to Stockholm to give a winemakers tasting presentation (organized by Stellan Kramer) of the new blending in J.P. Chenet´s wine portfolio called J.P. Chenet Gros Manseng 2009.

The company was founded by Mr. Joseph Helfrich in 1979, and is located in Petersbach in Alsace. Mr. Helfrich is the current president and owner. Within 3 decades the company has become from being a blend distribution company to today´s second most important wine company in France with a turnover of € 700,000,000; with 1,500 employees in 21 different countries. 73% of the GCF Group turnover comes from the export market which is to about 160 countries in the world.  

  Ms. Hildegard Enk, Mr. Bertrand Praz and   Mr. Philippe Chabert
Mr. Bertrand Praz, has a Master ICG and an oenology diploma from the Université de Reims. Before working at GCF Group he worked during 15 years as winemaker at the Alsace wine company Wolfberger. Today he’s the purchase director which means that he selects and tries to find the best supplier, matchmaking a good choice for customers and market. 

WB Center: What kind of grapes do you work with?
Bertrand Praz:We have our own properties, approximately 20 facilities in France and one in Germany. We have approximately 1000 hectares of own vineyards. Then we buy grapes and wine from all principal regions in France. Loire, Alsace, Jura, Languedoc, Bordeaux and so on. Then 80% are French grapes and the rest from abroad.

(The GCF Group wine-Growing & maturing: Loire (392 ha), Bordeaux (279 ha), Alsace (8 ha), Jura (33 ha), Beaujolais (10 ha), Diois (30 ha) and Languedoc (46 ha)
 
WB Center: Who are you currently selling to? J.P. Chenet is your mayor brand. Can you tell us more about the brand?
Bertrand Praz: J.P. Chenet was created in 1984 between Joseph Helfrich and Jean Paul Chanel, the the sales manager by that time. The unique bottle called Josephine (after Mr. Joseph Helfrich) won actually important awards like “Prix Verre Avenir” and the “Oscar de l’Emballage”.

The name J.P. Chenet comes from the initial of Jean Paul Chanel and therefore the name of the brand J.P. Chenet.  The success of the J.P. Chenet came in 1987. It was the first French brand name in the world selling between 7-8 million cases every year. Apart from the name and bottle design the success gave the new grape of bicepage (as for example Cabernet Syrah or Gros Manseng Chardonnay). The whole concept became very new for the French market and different from the French identity.

Today, big part of the vinification, winemaking and evolving process is dedicated in a careful and controlled breeding on the blending tracked.

 

WB Center: Can you tell us more about your new blend?
Bertrand Praz: J.P.Chenet Gros Manseng is a very specific wine since the Grose Manseng grape isn´t a well known one. This is due to that the grape is only planted in Gascony, south west of France. The grape has more complexity, fruity and in general larger in taste.  

WB Center: What are you going to do after your trip here in Stockholm?
Bertrand Praz: I´m going to Corsica to taste some wines from the new vintage because the harvest in Corsica started in August.  

Bertrand Praz Restaurant tips:

1) Restaurant L’Arnsbourg Baerenthal, at Barenthal which is a petite village close to Bitche. I like it for the very creative gastronomy they offers. They are really able to create something different with the food.

2)  Restaurant Jean Yves Schillinges Colmer in Alsace is a cozy restaurant given the food incredible taste.

Bertrand Praz motto is: Don’t forget that the wine is a pleasure to share. Wine is not only alcohol, sugar, tannins and acidity but a moment to be together.

Published August 2010 by Wine & Beverage Center, WB Center