The “market” of chefs de cave lights up: Cyril Brun passes from Charles Heidsieck to Ferrari

The international “market” of chefs de cave lights up, with Italian sparkling wine brands capable of securing true top players, demonstrating how much the quality and competitive level of the productions of the two classic method reference territories - Franciacorta and Trentodoc - has approached, with great strides, that of Champagne. After the “coup” scored by Bellavista, which, in April 2022, formalized the arrival in Franciacorta of the super consultant Richard Geoffroy, a historic ex-chef de cave of the legend of Champagne, Dom Perignon, strongly desired by the patron Vittorio Moretti and by CEO Massimo Tuzzi, it’s Ferrari’s turn now, a symbol of the Trentodoc, led by the Lunelli family, which has chosen Cyril Brun, Charles Heidsieck’s chef de cave until the end of April, to take on the very rich legacy of Ruben Larentis.
Rumors were already abundantly in the air in March in Champagne, where it was known that a well-known chef de cave of a large Maison would soon leave France to join the technical management of a major Italian company. They were far more than indiscretions, given that Cyril Brun had just handed over the keys to the cellars of the Charles Heidsieck maison to Elise Losfelt at the end of March. Chosen as chef de cave by Charles Heidsieck in February 2015 after working alongside Dominique Demarville in the Veuve-Clicquot wine team, he has been named “Sparkling Winemaker of the Year” by the “International Wine Challenge” in London twice - in 2022 and in 2019, and in eight years has brought the Reims Maison back into vogue, most notably by reviving the iconic Champagne Charlie cuvée.
Actually, Cyril Brun’s departure from Charles Heidsieck had already been announced on January 11, 2023, and no successor had been announced yet. A bit similar to the case of Ruben Larentis, who took on the role of oenologist in 1986 alongside Mauro Lunelli, with whom he directed the production for many years, and who retired on June 1st after giving birth to 2/3 of the Trento company’s entire production from its inception (in 1902) to today. Ferrari has never talked about his successor, unlike the transition organized over years of coaching in Dom Pérignon between Richard Geoffroy and Vincent Chaperon.
Following Cyril Brun’s passing of the baton to the Charles Heidsieck Maison, there were 2 months of gossip, including the opportunity to lead the Maison Jacquesson, which was acquired in January by François Pinault’s Kering group. Ruben Larentis left a professional legacy in Ferrari that is not easy to collect, five times “Producer of the Year” and awarded the “Lifetime Achievement Award” by the jury of the “Champagne & Sparkling Wine World Championships” in 2019.