'Chais d’oeuvre’ wine club, wine for discerning tastes by the glass

Manuel Peyrondet collects titles. Best Sommelier in France 2008, ‘Meilleur Ouvrier de France’ 2011, Master of Port, Best Young Sommelier in France 2005… Such titles speak volumes about this enthusiastic sommelier who sealed his passion for wines at Taillevent and then at the Royal Monceau-Raffles as Chef Sommelier. Now 37 years old, for the last five years he has run a wine club with a thousand members, the cleverly christened "Chais d'oeuvre". Although Manuel Peyrondet's career speaks for itself, Chais d'oeuvre’s members would add that his particular talent is being able to get his passion and love of fine wine across.

"I started by offering my friends and acquaintances the chance to buy the few fabulous gems I discovered among the 10,000 wines I taste each year. Chais d'oeuvre quickly grew by word of mouth... I wanted to make it a real club where members can discover my favourites by receiving a box containing 2 or 3 wines each month, and attend tasting evenings and oenology courses, as well as offering them weekly sales of exclusive and rare wines. "

The name Chais d'oeuvre was landed upon – he remembers – over an evening with friends “over some great glasses of wine”. As a “favour” to these friends, he brought back a few hundred bottles of wine from his vineyard “jaunts”, which take place roughly once a week. Through these ritualistic visits, Manuel Peyrondet views his expertise as a responsibility, his knowledge of each wine’s evolution includes long-lost observations such as: "a Chenin grape can take on a truffled aspect when ripe or overripe", or "over time, Rieslings gain in depth, what they lose in fruitiness”. At the end of the day, it's about knowing how to transmit this knowledge: "Because being a sommelier means sharing both information and emotion."

The “price-pleasure” relationship

For a long time in Parisian brasseries and restaurants, certain wines were available to buy "à la ficelle” or “au compteur”, which meant that customers only paid for what they consumed, if, say, they drank just one or two glasses out of a bottle of wine on the table. This style of wine-selling has been more or less replaced by selling by the glass, which is better suited to modern drinking habits; customers like to move from one glass to the next while raving about their discoveries and the excellent price-pleasure relationship that often comes with this kind of consumption. Manuel briefly summarises the idea: "Pleasure is increased tenfold when wines are affordable and exceptional at the same time."

The chais d'œuvre concept

Chais d'oeuvre is a club that sends you a box of 2 or 3 different wines handpicked by Manuel Peyrondet every month. Each bottle is themed around a time when it could be enjoyed: "an unexpected occasion", "dinner in town" or "we’re polishing the silverware". The bottles are accompanied by tasting videos, recipes and the option of buying more at the best price. Club members also have access to benefits such as private sales, classes, tasting evenings, vineyard trips...

And in partnership with Barrière, new subscribers receive a free bottle of Champagne Bollinger (CODE: BARRIERE)

A brand new collection for Barrière

For Barrière, Manuel Peyrondet has hand-picked a special selection of wines by the glass. All in line with his taste for discovery and sharing. Sometimes focusing on the novelty of acidity, intensity or delicacy, Chais d'oeuvre has created a collection of wines by the glass. Here are a few examples...

The unexpected

Blanc. Bouzeron, AOC, 2015, Héritiers Louise Jadot. 

A Burgundy aligoté, a pearl from the Chalonnaise coast. 

Rouge. La Rosine, 2015, Stéphane Ogier

IGP Rhône hillsides, Syrah, approved by a Côte Rôtie master.

The unmissable

Blanc. Sancerre "Traditions", AOC, 2016, Domaine Vacheron.

Bio, Sauvignon. A "must".

Rouge. Dada de Rouillac, AOC Pessac-Léognan, 2016

Cabernet franc, Merlot. Timeless.

The sommelier’s secret

Rouge. Château de Montfaucon, AOC Côtes du Rhône, 2015

Grenache, Syrah, Carignan.  Red sunshine from the southern Rhône Valley.

And for rosé lovers…

Côtes de Provence. Château Saint Maur, "Maur & More", AOC, 2016

A rich tribute to good, honest soil.