In the vast (and sometimes unpleasant) world of “famous” alcoholic beverage logos, few have surprised me as much as Emma Watson’s gin. Renais, a family family subsidized by the actress-turned-activist and her brother Alex Watson, is very, very good.
Inspired by the people, production and provenance of Chablis (where their father, Chris Watson, has been investing in wine for over three decades), Emma and Alex’s gin has brought something unique to Gin-Boomeng. walk.
Something distinctive. Complex. Luxurious, uniform. A gin fostered through (and extraction) the winemaking process.
“None of this would have been imaginable without my father,” Alex tells me as he sips a Renais whiskey at the illustrious Hotel de Crillon in Paris, where the months-old logo has already secured a residence. “His love of wine was shared with his friends and family when he bought the first winery [in 1992]. We just stick to the same hobby in a different way.
Domaine Watson, which exists in Renais, includes a handful of small vineyards in Chablis and Irancy that Chris has amassed over the past three decades.
Renais, keeping the family circle, makes her gin from grape skins from the Domaine Watson, recovered from the winemaking process, before enriching them with pressed grand cru grapes and a variety of herbaceous plants. The result is not just a testament to the fans. of two generations of the Watson family for all things Chablis, but also for the family itself.
“I jumped on it like crazy,” Chris laughs. The making of wine, of course, gin. To do this we had to be convincing.
Alex spent years at Diageo before leaving to free Renais.
Renais, you see, anything Alex had dreamed of for years.
Born on the outskirts of Paris, Alex and Emma had made many trips to their father’s estate in their youth, not only to spend time with their family, but also to get “free work” in the vineyards. “I have to be honest, it costs everyone more than it costs them,” Alex admits.
With little hope of becoming a full-fledged winemaker, Alex applied his skills to the world of marketing, first for asset control organization ETM and then for Diageo as customer marketing director at Trade.
“I learned a lot temporarily at Diageo and it made me realize there was an opportunity to do something different,” he says. “Ems and I are very passionate about Chablis, about the traditions, about the unique characteristics of the land, and I knew that this byproduct [unused grape skins] would be the best way to capture the essence of the terroir in an unforeseen way.
“But yeah, it took my dad a while,” he laughs.
Renais will pay tribute to the Watson family’s love for Chablis
Over the past ten years, Chris has not only remodeled what was first a small winery into award-winning wine production, but in 2002 he was also awarded the prestigious Silver Medal for the most productive independent winemaker of the moment in Chablis. and was named one of the “pillars” of Chablis, thus becoming the region’s ambassador to the United Kingdom.
Although Renais categorically is not a wine or a product of Chablis (as a wine region), the threat of blurring the lines meant that Chris was looking to see a full business and production plan before sharing his wealth.
“Of course I agreed,” Chris whispers, smiling into a glass of Chablis 1er Cru Homme Mort Domaine Yvon.
The genius is also reflected in the product. The soils and limestone of Kimmeridgian, in ancient marine fossils, confer a unique minerality to Chablis wines (which set them apart from other Chardonnays), and the Watsons have gone to great lengths to ensure that this is captured in their gin.
Distilled in small batches for reasons, the alcohol is macerated in Kimmeridgian stone before being distilled with botanicals such as linden flowers, cubeba berries, and acacia honey.
The result? A Chablisian-style mineral dinner, packed with citrus, white grapes, herbs, flowers and juniper. A product any Watson Chablis lover would be proud of.
Emma Watson spent many years in the circle of relatives in the Chablis vineyards.
“For me, Renais is a family project. The Chablis region not only evokes valuable memories from my formative years, but I also relish the opportunity to create anything with my brother Alex,” Emma explains.
While it would have been easy for her to secure sales as the sole face of the brand, Emma stepped up at Renais. Although he is a shareholder in the company and oversees most of the company’s artistic direction, Alex Watson is at the forefront, shining in what others might describe as his sister’s shadow.
“Ems is. . . ” he stops, trying to find the right word. She is simply the best. I had so much confidence in myself and in this idea, that it’s not so easy to achieve.
The concept of producing gin in this way is truly the antithesis of ease. Grape skins used through Renais only need to have a two-week period each year during the harvest season, leaving much of the magic of Renais on the Earth calendar.
Emma and Alex Watson in Chablis
Of course, the complex production processes also ensure its reputation as a premium product. One that costs £45 ($54) per bottle of comfy Art Deco-inspired drink.
“It’s a luxury gin,” says Alex, “and not many people make it. You can count our competition on one hand, but I think we’re the ones doing it best. . . »
A wry smile passes as we move on to ordered quantities of Renais (a delight I’d object to when it comes to gin, but one that leaves me more than pleasantly surprised).
“No, we’re doing our best. ” And everyone, while drinking gin at the table, agrees.
Renais does not make alcohol for “celebrities”, but a delicious little family heirloom.
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