Romain Henin
Le Gamin du Terroir — zero-sulfite Grand Cru champagne from Ay
The Producer
Romain Henin comes from a multi-generational winegrowing family in Ay — Grand Cru, Champagne. He obtained his winemaking diploma in 2011, worked at Henri Giraud, and by 2016 had leased his first vines to forge his own path.
His mentor was Sébastien Mouzon, another natural champagne producer from Ay, who guided him into organic and biodynamic viticulture from the start.
The Turning Point
In the summer of 2018, Romain traveled to Greece with childhood friend Jason Ligas and natural wine icon Patrick Bouju to work the harvest on the island of Samos. Working alongside winemakers who used zero sulfites reinforced his conviction entirely. He returned to Champagne and committed to producing wines with no inputs and no sulfites whatsoever.
The Vineyards
Today he farms seven and a half hectares across Grand Cru and Premier Cru terroirs — Ay, Chouilly, Mareuil-sur-Ay, Dizy — with over a hundred fruit trees planted per hectare as part of an ambitious agroforestry program. Everything is Demeter-certified biodynamic. He won the "secateur d'or" (golden pruning shears) and first prize in the "En terre ton slip" soil-health competition.
The Wines
All wines are brut nature, zero dosage, zero sulfites, no fining, no filtration. Production is tiny — two to six thousand bottles per cuvée.
- Le Gamin du Terroir — His signature. Vintage champagne from organic/biodynamic plots. ~2,500 bottles.
- Entre les Gouttes — Named for the extremely rainy 2021 harvest. Only ~2,000 bottles.
- L'Odyssée Pétillante — Chardonnay, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir blend from Ay Grand Cru.
- Blanc Comme Neige — Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru from Chouilly. Available in magnum and jeroboam.
- L'Appel de la Forêt — Extra Brut.
Details
- Grapes: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier
- Vineyard: 7.5 hectares across Ay (GC), Chouilly (GC), Mareuil-sur-Ay (PC), Dizy (PC)
- Farming: Demeter biodynamic. Agroforestry (100+ fruit trees/hectare). Lunar calendar.
- Winemaking: Indigenous yeast, zero sulfites, zero dosage, gravity-fed, no fining or filtration.
- US Importer: Thatcher's Wine
- Instagram: @romain_henin_vigneron