For this 18th episode of the Wine Makers Show, we go to meet Laurent. After a study trip, he took the wild bet of buying land in Romania and launching his own wine there. So today we look back at the creation and growth of the Catleya estate. For our part, we had the chance to taste Laurent’s wines and we loved them. So we invite you to keep a close eye on this estate, which has not finished surprising us.
Laurent, can you start by introducing yourself?
Of course. I am Laurent Pfeffer. I spent a good part of my youth in Versailles, so I had no direct connection with wine. But I always liked being in the countryside and I always wanted to work in the farming world. So I studied biology at the university in Versailles and at the ENITA in Bordeaux. In the final year, you can move towards the viticulture and oenology option. That is what I chose to do and I do not regret it at all today. All of that brought me, through plenty of twists and turns, to planting vines in Romania and creating the Catleya estate. Today I am 44 and I have been in Romania developing this estate for 12 years.
How did your passion for farming come about?
I spent all my holidays on a farm in the Poitou region when I was young. It was a mixed-farming operation with a goat herd. It was a real pleasure. I did not want to work in an office. I wanted to work outdoors as much as possible and in the farming world. It was really when I arrived at the ENITA in Bordeaux that I realised viticulture was made for me.
So you came to wine quite late in the end
Yes. My grandfather appreciated wine a lot, but you cannot say it was my family background that pushed me into this world. It was the various choices that came my way and the friends I made in Bordeaux that brought about this passion for wine. It became obvious.
What do you learn about viticulture during that option year?
From my first year, I did an internship in a vineyard. Château Laujac in this case. I had an excellent internship. Then I went to Canada. There is little connection with viticulture (although they do have ice wines). In the final year, there was a decentralised cooperation between the Nouvelle Aquitaine region and the Romanian region of Galatz along two lines: viticulture and medicine. In that context, a viticulture and oenology internship is offered to two students. So I took part in it. I spent four months on site in Romania. It was love at first sight for the country, in particular thanks to the head of the vineyard. He took us around a large part of Romania and we got on very well with him, so much so that he is now my daughter’s godfather. We really discovered a country with an underrated wine potential. We half-joked about doing something with my colleague during the trip. On returning, I was in contact with Frédéric Vauthier, who owns Château Lucas in Lussac Saint Emilion. He was looking for investment opportunities abroad. We told him about our stay and he concluded that there was potential. That is how it started.
So you set off on the adventure
In January 2007, I decided to go to Romania to look for land. Of course, I started by working with my daughter’s godfather. It did not work out because the area is very poor and a bit depressing. I started travelling all over Romania, but it is very hard. You need to know the right people. After a while, I said to myself: either I find work, or I go back to France. We met a Romanian who spoke perfect French in Corcova. He had bought land and buildings but he had little training. I was available to work. So we had a gentleman’s agreement: I worked for him but he helped us find land. The search for land lasted 7 months: you need the right relationships and the right contacts. After the fall of communism in Romania, they returned the land. To avoid making anyone jealous, they returned plots that ran from the river to the hill. On one plot I wanted, there were nearly 60 owners for a few hectares. Inheritance is often complicated too, because Romanians are not obliged to settle their estates. When you want to buy an old plot, you have to find the ownership deeds, everyone has to agree, go before a notary, and so on. It can be a nightmare.
What were the lands like when you started working them?
The history of the area is very interesting. Originally, it was Prince Bibesco who had a large property in Corcova with more than 3,000 hectares of crops. This was between 1900 and 1945. It developed a great deal and developed viticulture. When the communists arrived, the estate became a collective farm. Since 1989 it slowly collapsed. In 2005, out of 400 hectares of vines, only 12 remained, in fairly average condition. Cherban arrived in 2005 and bought those 12 hectares and the winery. When I arrived he was at 25 hectares and was starting to want to renovate the winery. It is functional today. I was a young graduate and it was an incredible experience for me because I was able to do everything: the planting, the trellising, the choice of rootstock, a winery renovation on an existing building. At the same time, we were planting the first vines for Catleya. No one knew the name Corcova as a wine-growing area any more. We restored this region’s reputation.
How many hectares do you have under cultivation at Catleya?
I have 14.5 hectares. That is small on the scale of Romania. For the last year or two we have seen a few estates of less than 20 hectares appearing, but until now a small estate has meant 100 hectares. There are still giants from the communist era with estates of 3,000 to 5,000 hectares.
Can you tell us a little about your wines?
The first point that is very positive for Romania is the presence of native grape varieties of great quality that are under-recognised in the world. Our initial project was to plant mainly native grape varieties. There are very few clones of these varieties. The flagship variety is Fetească Neagră. We started with international varieties to play it safe. In 2015, we planted the Romanian varieties: Fetească Neagră, Fetească Albă, Fetească Regală. So for the last two years I have had wines made from Romanian varieties and I am delighted. I hope to have even more in the years to come.
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We have 3 ranges. The entry-level range is called Freamăt. It means the rustling of leaves, the shiver you feel when you fall in love. It is a very poetic word that is hard to translate into French. No oak at all on this range. The white is made with native varieties. We then have a mid-range called Perfect Simplu, which means the simple past tense. It is a tribute to our region in Romania because they do not use the compound past here. It is a single-variety wine. The top range is called Epopee. These are micro-cuvées made with the best years and the best grapes. We limit production to 3,000 bottles. Editor’s note: We tasted Laurent’s wines and it is very clearly a great success. His bottles could quickly join your wine cellar.
How do we find your wines?
There is a stock of wine in Bordeaux and we are listed in a few restaurants. We have a website where you can order online. Since we have had Romanian varieties, there is real curiosity among consumers about our wine. So I am looking for a distributor, but I have not yet found one in France. For a customer who wants to buy wine in France, there is an online shop.
What does wine consumption look like in Romania?
It is heading in the right direction. Romania is a country of extremes. There is a fairly young urban population with big IT companies and salaries higher than the average. There was even a nightclub that served only wine. Conversely, in the countryside, there are still many small farms with a little vineyard that produce their wine from hybrids and love their wine.
On the production side, do you see growth?
Yes, it is really the positive side of Romania joining the European Union. Quality estates with foreign investors have been appearing since 2007. It is still not enough. There are giants that farm 3,000 hectares. In terms of the number of producers, there must be 200 to 300 of us in total. There is still room. My regret is that there are very few French investors in Romania.
Is climate change an important concern for wine in Romania?
For me, yes. Since 2012, practically every year, I have had a serious and significant weather event. It has always been cold in winter in Romania. What is new is that there is no longer a layer of snow to protect the vines. We have very cold winters and it no longer snows much.
What is the future for Catleya?
Until last year, I worked for Cherban and I worked for Catleya at the same time. Since last year I have finished renovating the Catleya winery and I have resigned from my job with Cherban. I am now 100% focused on making wine and introducing it in Romania and in other countries. Having native varieties is an important asset. I would also really like to develop wine tourism in the region. There is not enough infrastructure yet, but I would really like to develop this aspect. To contact Laurent:
Do you have a book about wine to recommend to me?
It is indirectly a book, but it is more a tool for making progress. It is called Le Nez du Vin, with the aromas and the descriptive cards. I use it a lot and I use it with my daughters. I advise anyone passionate about wine to invest in it.
I also recommend, of course, diving back into In Search of Lost Time.
Do you have a favourite tasting?
Not a recent one, but I want to say a word about Frédéric Vauthier’s Château Lucas. I had the chance to open a 2009 bottle that was still nice and fresh, that could age well. It took me back to my young student years.
Do you have someone to recommend to me for my next interviews?
Yes, I had a visit from Jean-Baptiste Ancelot, who has launched into a project to tour the world’s vineyards. He created Wine Explorers.
Wine in Romania now holds no secrets for you. We are delighted to have taught you the ins and outs of this wine region, still often overlooked but where you can find real gems: like Laurent’s wine. That said, we can bring you much more. Good news, you can join the club for free and learn about wine.
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