Bertrand de Villaine

Coming Up

Formation in Wine Commerce, agronomy, and place-based farming gives this profile its working frame. Bertrand de Villaine studied at the Master's in Wine Commerce in Dijon, Linfield College (1995), and the National Superior Agronomic School of Montpellier, a sequence that connects Burgundy, Oregon, and formal agronomic training without separating vineyard work from the commercial realities of wine. Estate responsibility in Burgundy is measured by continuity as much as authority. Since 2022, Bertrand de Villaine has served as co-manager / co-director of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, a role defined by daily decisions in vines and cellar, and by the need to work inside a tradition whose value depends on precision rather than display.

Where They Are Now

Sustainable viticulture at Domaine de la Romanée-Conti is part of the production method, not an accessory to it. Bertrand de Villaine’s work includes an emphasis on biodynamic practices and environmental stewardship to preserve Vosne-Romanée terroir, where parcel identity, seasonal pressure, and long-term soil care remain central to the estate’s craft. Grand Cru production at Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, including Romanée-Conti, depends on holding tradition and adjustment in the same hand. The work is not repetition for its own sake, nor innovation as branding. Bertrand de Villaine has put the operating principle plainly: "Every vintage we are changing and adapting. Every vintage is a new story." In this register, adaptation is not a slogan; it is the annual discipline of reading weather, vine, soil, and cellar response. The Oregon line remains active through Composition, a Willamette Valley project with Katrina Rank producing single-vineyard, sustainably farmed Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Composition’s first vintage was produced from the Willamette Valley and released in a few U.S. markets in 2018. The project keeps the emphasis on farming, site expression, and restraint, carrying the same basic questions—how a vineyard is grown, how clearly it speaks, and how little the wine needs to be forced—into another geography. Across Vosne-Romanée and the Willamette Valley, the common discipline is site work under changing conditions. Bertrand de Villaine’s practice is best read through that consistency: attention to land, respect for inherited methods, and the practical willingness to adjust when a vintage asks for it.

In Their Words “We’ve never thought of ourselves as champions. What motivates us is not glory, it’s being out there in the vines.” “Every vintage we are changing and adapting. Every vintage is a new story.”

Honors

Bertrand de Villaine has received Le Figaro Vin France’s 50 best winemakers ranking, #7, with Perrine Fenal (2023). Recognition here is attached to winegrowing peers rather than publicity language. Bertrand's honors include France’s 50 best winemakers ranking, #7, with Perrine Fenal (2023).