In 2006, Pascal Marchand, who had forged an international reputation as a brilliant winemaker over more than two decades, launched a new Burgundian micro-negociant business under his own name. A native of Montreal and an adventurer at heart, Pascal began his career in wine working the harvest at Chateau de Chorey-les-Beaune in Burgundy in 1983. He returned the following year and quickly established himself as one of the region’s rising stars after being hired by the Domaine du Comte Armand in Pommard. Little known before then, the Domaine and its Premier Cru monopole vineyard Clos des Epeneaux quickly gained renown and Pascal’s wines became recognized by prominent journalists and aficionados as reference points for Pinot Noir’s modern style. After 15 years at Comte Armand, he took on a new challenge in 1999, working with the Boisset family to launch their showcase estate, the Domaine de la Vougeraie – one of the most ambitious projects the region had seen since World War II. The association with the Boissets also led Pascal to further expand his horizons, consulting on their projects in Beaujolais, Minervois, California, Canada and South America. Since leaving the Boisset group in 2006, Pascal has established himself independently as a winemaker and consultant – in Burgundy at Domaine Jean Fery et Fils; in Sonoma, California at Joseph Phelps’ Freestone Winery; in Niagra, Canada at Tawse Winery; in Australia at Carlei in South Yarra and Heathcote, Prancing Horse in Mornington Peninsula, Turner’s Crossing in Bendigo, and with his own brand Marchand & Burch, which he founded with his friend Jeff Burch in Western Australia. Finally, he continues to work with VC Family Estate in Chile and Argentina, whose collection of brands includes Veranda, a brand Pascal had launched with Boisset in 2002. Today, Pascal’s personal passion and commitment to working with Burgundy’s most distinctive terroirs is realized through his new negociant business, which has grown to encompass 36 appellations of the Cotes de Nuits and a few, mainly for white wines, from the Cotes de Beaune. The production, which has reached 6,000 cases, is now being marketed under a new label: Marchand & Tawse, since Pascal formed a partnership with long-time friend and business associate Moray Tawse. The fruit for these wines is sourced from growers Pascal knows and trusts, and vineyards with a minimum of 35 years of age. All are perfectly maintained. Many are farmed organically, which is not surprising since Pascal has been a leader in the use of organic and biodynamic methods through the years. All of his operations are carried out according to the lunar calendar. The wines are vinified and matured in cellars in the heart of Nuits-St.-Georges, using barrels selected from two specialized artisanal coopers. The wood is selected from the best plots in the forests of Alliers, Cher, Compeigne, Fontainbleau, Jupille and Oise. The staves are seasoned for 4-5 years and the barrels are toasted very lightly and slowly. The wines speak directly of their origins and of the sensitivity Pascal has cultivated throughout his remarkable career.