Bubbly Taittinger back at helm of champagne firm

After a successful struggle to retrieve the family business, Pierre Emmanuel Taittinger has a sparkle in his eye once more, writes Laura Slattery

No champagne corks popped in celebration at Pierre Emmanuel Taittinger's house in 2005 when the family business was sold after eight decades.

Now, after an 18-month fight to buy back the business, the 53- year-old descendent of wine merchant Pierre Taittinger is back in control of Champagne Taittinger and ready to convince the world that champagne is not just about "celebration, seduction, love affairs", but a wine with delicacy and finesse.

Visiting Dublin earlier this week for a tasting with trade buyers, Taittinger was toasting his luck, which includes a successful €660 million buyback followed by two "glorious" harvests for the Chardonnay grapes used in Taittinger's blends.

Sales of the champagne are fizzing nicely, with volumes rising 12 per cent last year and turnover expected to be up 13 per cent at €110 million.

"More and more consumers are recognising that champagne is a wine that can be an accompaniment to French, Italian, Indian cuisine," Taittinger says. "Champagne refreshes the palate, and there is no tiredness from it."

The Irish are "elegant drinkers", he believes.

"Ireland is not a new market for us. It is a traditional market, a country of connoisseurs. The Irish are beer drinkers, and when you like beer, you love champagne."

He is on a mission to promote his premium cuvée, the Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs. This wine is only produced after an exceptional harvest worthy of vintage champagne, but global warming means such harvests are increasingly common.

Taittinger owns 288 hectares (712 acres) of vineyards in the Champagne region of France, providing it with 50 per cent of the grapes it needs. Independent suppliers grow the rest.

Visitors to the Gallo-Roman- era Taittinger cellars can walk among some 129 million bottles that make up the house's current stock.

But, although this seems like more than enough to fill the flutes and fountains required by whole generations of partygoers, supply of genuine champagne - that is sparkling wine made from grapes grown in Champagne - cannot by definition increase to satisfy all of its future customers.

"We may be able to expand 10-15 per cent in the next 15 years, but champagne will remain rare," says Taittinger. Even with the existing high stock levels, global demand is keeping prices reassuringly expensive.

"It's a small production. My goal is to have 500,000 friends in the world, no more. They have to be connoisseurs and they have to enjoy life and its pleasures."

Taittinger worked for the company for 30 years and was managing director for 10 of those before US hotels group Starwood made an offer for the business, which included hotels, real estate, crystals and fabrics as well as the champagne house.

"Only one branch out of the seven branches of the family - my branch - was not in favour of selling," says Taittinger, who describes himself as "sad" rather than angry when his cousins decided to take the money.

Fortunately, Starwood quickly sought to divest itself of the champagne house and, with assistance from French agricultural bank Crédit Agricole, Taittinger fended off rival bidders.

"It was not for my ego. I was in love with my customers, my staff and our growers, and our distribution network was shocked that Taittinger would no longer be family-owned."

Taittinger, who has a son and a daughter working in the business, says the 41 per cent shareholding owned by his family now puts him in a "comfortable" position.

"Whether I am in the cellar or on the road, we control the business very well.

"We are at the centre of the celebration and we all work to celebrate."