Inside Champagne Henriot: Alice Tétienne and the Return of Les Enchanteleurs

"I wish I could tell the consumer who drinks my wine, that they may not realise it, but at every stage of winemaking we think of them: what they might expect, feel and experience when tasting our cuvées."

That mindset says a lot about Alice Tétienne. In Champagne, the title chef de cave rarely captures the full scope of the role. At Champagne Henriot, Alice Tétienne operates not only as cellar master but also as Deputy Managing Director, placing her at the intersection of vineyard strategy, winemaking, and long-term house identity. It is an unusual level of responsibility for a cellar master. Working closely with the executive leadership, Tétienne contributes to decisions that span the entire value chain, from vineyard management and sourcing to the strategic direction of the wines themselves.

Before joining Henriot in 2020, she worked at Laurent-Perrier and Nicolas Feuillatte as well as Krug, where blending is approached with almost forensic precision. Hundreds of base wines, separated by parcel and village, are evaluated individually before entering the final assemblage. That discipline, understanding the personality of each cru and how it evolves over time, is essential preparation for running a maison.

Tétienne’s path into the profession was not inherited.

“I was fortunate to arrive at a time when the industry was beginning to open up to more women.” A native of Champagne with no vineyard inheritance, she built her career through instinct, curiosity and a deep attachment to terroir.

And it is no coincidence she landed at Henriot.

---

Founded in 1808 by the widow Apolline Henriot, the house developed a distinctive identity built around Chardonnay from the Côte des Blancs, supported by Pinot Noir from the Montagne de Reims. Today, this identity is safeguarded by Alice through the Henriot style "A generosity held in check by constant elegance and freshness. We love aromatic complexity, but always with restraint and distinction.” Henriot farms roughly thirty hectares of its own vineyards, but the majority of fruit is sourced through long-standing grower relationships in villages such as Avize, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Chouilly, Verzy and Verzenay. Chardonnay forms the backbone of the blends, providing linear acidity and ageing potential, while Pinot Noir contributes depth and structure. Reserve wines also play a critical role, with each village stored individually in stainless steel, and reserves often representing close to half the final blend.

Under Tétienne’s direction, Henriot has taken a more analytical approach to vineyard management.

The house launched Alliance Terroirs, a precision viticulture programme that integrates artificial intelligence, soil analysis and microclimate monitoring to refine vineyard decisions.

Technology here is not an end in itself, but a way of deepening understanding of the living vineyard.

“We do a lot of analysis, but useful analysis. It tells us whether we actually need to intervene or not. That way we avoid unnecessary passes in the vineyard, reduce our footprint, and protect our teams.”

The goal is anticipation rather than reaction. And Henriot’s ongoing conversion to organic farming follows the same logic: structural adaptation rather than marketing gesture.

Henriot’s restrained precision is perhaps best illustrated by the story of its prestige cuvée. For a time, the historic wine Les Enchanteleurs was renamed Hemera in 2005, a title chosen to reflect the luminous style of the house and to resonate more easily with international markets. But the original name never truly disappeared. Inside the cellars it remained in use, and among collectors the nostalgia persisted. This year, the house is returning to the original name with the 2015 vintage.

The cuvée itself follows an unusually strict blueprint that has remained unchanged since 1889. The blend must come exclusively from six founding Grand Cru villages: Verzy, Verzenay and Mailly on the Montagne de Reims, and Avize, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and Chouilly on the Côte des Blancs, assembled in equal proportions with a 50/50 balance of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

It can only be produced when all six crus reach sufficient quality and achieve harmony together.

“It can happen that the harvest is excellent in all six villages but that no real harmony emerges in the blend.”

When it does work, the result can be strikingly different depending on the year. The powerful Hemera 2013, born from a late and difficult harvest, contrasts with the luminous elegance of Les Enchanteleurs 2015, a warmer vintage that nevertheless achieved remarkable freshness.

“The 2015 is very luminous, very floral. On the palate you’re really in citrus territory, something very crisp and vibrant.”

---

In the end, that broader perspective is precisely what defines Tétienne’s role. From vineyard to cellar to final blend, every decision ultimately leads to the same moment: the glass in front of the taster.

And if her wines succeed in creating the experience she imagines, the consumer may never realise how much thought went into it. But for a chef de cave, that quiet connection is the entire point.