Jean Huttard
Hélène & Antoine Huttard
About
Owners & winemakers: Hélène & Antoine Huttard
Vineyards: 8ha across numerous small parcels, all estate-owned
Vineyard management: Certified organic with some biodynamic practices
Soils: Mainly clay-limestone, plus some plots with sandy clay-loam over limestone-marl subsoil, and some with ferruginous subsoil
Grapes grown: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Muscat, Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Sylvaner
Annual production: 40-50,000 bottles
Quick facts:
- Brother and sister Antoine and Hélène have run the family winery as a team since 2016.
- Jean Huttard was one of five producers to launch the “Crémant d’Alsace” appellation in 1974.
Maison Jean Huttard has been owned by the same family since the mid-nineteenth century. Jean Baptiste was the first to start making and selling wine in 1960, and his grandson Jean Jacques professionalized the operation in the 1940s. He became one of the five producers to launch the “Crémant d’Alsace” appellation in 1974. His son Jean Claude took over in the 1980s along with his wife Martine, and now it’s their children Hélène and Antoine who run the property. Antoine is focused on the vines and winemaking, while Hélène is in charge of sales and marketing.
The family has always prioritized thoughtful farming–Jean Jacques was growing grass between the vines in the 1950s, a practice that was revolutionary at the time. Since the 1980s, reduced yields (30-60 hL/ha) have been a cornerstone of their philosophy. Hélène and Antoine built off of these traditions when they began the conversion to certified organic farming in 2018. Harvest has always been exclusively by hand, and careful sorting takes place in the vineyard. White wine grapes are pressed as whole clusters in a pneumatic press and transferred to the cellar by gravity, then aged on the lees until bottling. Red wine grapes are destemmed, then fermented and aged in both stainless steel tanks and barrels. Sparkling wine is made via the traditional method, and Antoine has updated the family technique to use no added sulfur and no dosage.
