Champagne Philippe Doury – Interview With Enora Doury

The love of Champagne is infinite, a language that everyone can understand, a sparkle that can shine in anyone’s glass, it can connect people, brings them together and places a smile on faces around the world.

In this exclusive feature on Glass of Bubbly, we speak with Enora Doury, the skilled winemaker and co-director at Champagne Philippe Doury, let’s discover a little about her life, her journey into the industry and one of her most memorable Champagne memories.

It’s Great To Speak With You, Enora, Can You Tell Us A Little About Yourself & How Your Journey Into The Champagne Industry Began?

“I come from a Champagne family, this is what we have been doing since 1890, at the same place as today. We are located in the village of Pouillon in the massif of St Thierry. The culture of the vineyard and the Champagne runs in my blood and since I was a child I have always lived at the place of the vines from the calm and resting winter to the energizing harvest. I always wanted to work here, so it is natural that I studied the culture of the vines and all the processes of winemaking. I moved in 2019 to run the company with my parents and began at the same time the conversion of all our vineyards into organic farming. We do everything on our own, from the vines to the bottles, and we are totally independent in the process.

Last year, in 2023, I created our own press center and winery to realise everything at the same place.”

Do You Remember Your First Experience With Champagne? When It Was And What Kind Of Label It Was?

“I remember a tasting when I was younger during the launch of a bottling process but it was more like an experiment at the time, probably with my parent’s Champagne.

Otherwise, I have a souvenir of a bottle of Philipponnat – Clos des Goisses, when I was doing an internship at a wine shop. It was probably the most remarkable Champagne that I had tasted at the time.”

As A Winemaker, What Has Been Your Hardest Obstacle To Overcome In Producing Wine?

“This is a tough question to answer because there is a lot to manage in the wine production, mostly the Champagne production, because there are specifications that we have to manage to be able to make Champagne. Today I would say that the hardest obstacle to overcome is climate change. I’ve seen the beginnings of these changes, but also their recurrence through the years. We live in an era where the seasons are dysfunctional, and it is hard to work in this new environment full of weather changes but we do our best to bring back biodiversity, as much as possible, and contribute to a better environment. All this trouble has a direct impact on the wines and the major one is the temperature of the grapes during the harvest. Since the seasons have changed, days are much warmer year after year, so the harvest is frequently done at the end of August or at the beginning of September when the days are still hot. The consequences are warm grapes and sadly this represents a difficulty to work with in the winery. Maybe the solution is to harvest by night, it would be very interesting to try.”

What Part Of The Wine Making Process Do You Enjoy The Most?

“I really enjoy the blending process, starting with the tasting of our wines. It is so enjoyable to taste the production of a whole year, through the different plots of vines, the villages, the typicality of each grape variety, and then think about the blends, the outcome when it will be Champagne, this is really fascinating to do.”

When It Comes To Pairing Champagne With Food, Do You Have Any Favourite Combinations That You Would Personally Recommend?

“I love to pair Champagnes with a whole meal. To me, we can pair Champagne from the starters until dessert with different styles. One of my favourites is with our cuvée Saint Gorgon, a Champagne made with 100% Pinot Noir from the harvest of 2017, paired with a ‘Boeuf Bourguignon’, in other words tender pieces of beef, slowly cooked with red wine. This is truly a masterpiece with a powerful Champagne like the Pinot Noir can do.”

What Future Plans Can Enthusiasts Of Champagne Philippe Doury Look Forward To In The Coming Years?

“There are two major plans that are going to be born. The first one is the creation of a green clos, entirely made with local bushes to reborn a plot that had a clos before the first war. It has been destroyed at this time to rebuild the damaged houses of the village. This is a tribute to this vine that has always been in our family.

The second plan is the planting of an ancient grape variety to create a new vineyard for a future cuvée. For now, we don’t give more details about it but this is something to follow.”

Can You Share With Us One Of The Most Memorable Experiences You’ve Enjoyed With A Glass of Bubbly?

“One of the most memorable experiences is the discovery of small producers of Champagne during the harvest festival. I was discovering new Champagnes while walking around this amazing fair where you are immersed in the atmosphere of the harvest with exhibitions, animations and of course Champagnes. Moreover, this festival will be happening again in 2025 (11 & 12 October) in Pouillon, so there are chances that more experiences like this one will be enjoyed again.”

Thank you Enora Doury, for sharing your story and experiences with us and we at Glass of Bubbly wish you the very best for the future!

Images belong to Enora Doury. Glass of Bubbly was granted permission to use them.