Mariotti will join Clicquot from 26 August to work alongside his former colleague Demarville, for what Clicquot describes as a “transitional period, before being appointed cellar master and wine director from 1 January 2020”.
This move is made possible following the news that Demarville will leave Clicquot at the year-end after 13 years as chef de cave, something he confirmed in mid-May.
Demarville has been lined up to take over at Laurent-Perrier from current head winemaker Michel Fauconnet, 67, as he prepares to retire after working at Laurent-Perrier since 1983.
While Demarville was recruited for Clicquot by the previous cellar master Jacques Peters, he has now had a hand in recruiting Mariotti for the brand. Demarville and Mariotti worked in tandem at G.H. Mumm for three years with Mariotti becoming head winemaker when Demarville left to take up the same role at Clicquot in 2006.
Between them Demarville and Mariotti oversaw many changes to the G.H. Mumm brand, considerably improving the quality which had lapsed after years of neglect in the latter period of Seagram’s ownership, which gave greater priority to sister brand Perrier-Jouët, a decline that continued under Allied-Domecq.
Mariotti, 48, has worked in Champagne for the past 25 years with positions at Moët & Chandon, Nicolas Feuillatte, G.H. Mumm and now Veuve Clicquot, four of the five largest brands in the region.
Mariotti’s successor as chef de cave has still not been announced nine months after he parted company with G.H.Mumm. Assistant head winemaker Magalie Maréchal is working in conjunction with Ludovic Dervin, who comes to Champagne from Mumm’s Napa operation, and they are managing operations between them for the moment.
