Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/253609
february 2014 / the tasting panel / 39 The Man behind the Magic I f you popped the cork on a bottle of Cristal this New Year's in the United States, you have Gregory Balogh to thank. As the President and Chief Executive Oficer for Maisons Marques & Domaines, he is the man responsible for importing and marketing a portfolio that includes the likes of Roederer, Château Pichon Lalande, Pétrus and a selection of estates of Jean- Pierre Moueix. He is also responsible for making sure that these wines—at the highest end of the premium market—are shipped and stored safely, distributed responsibly and represented well in the U.S. market. Additionally, Balogh helps to ensure that the com- panies that make the wine can keep making wine, while improving the quality and keeping everyone in the supply chain happy—from a vineyard worker in Barolo to a sommelier in San Francisco. But Balogh's most important title is not on his card. "I'm the vision keeper," says Balogh with a big smile that hints at how much he enjoys his job—a rare thing, perhaps, for a man who has been with the same company for two decades. When he was irst hired, as the Vice President of Sales and Marketing in 1994, MMD was a small company with a big vision—the vision of its founder, Jean-Claude Rouzaud, Chairman of the Champagne Louis Roederer Group, who, says Balogh, "was concerned with how his product was distributed and perceived in the U.S." A real concern for family-owned winegrowers half a world away from those who sell, serve and drink their life's work. Under Balogh's direction, the company has grown to include 40 brands in six countries and three con- tinents—all of which "it what we are trying to do," says Balogh. "They own land and they are gentleman farmers and they have an international brand." A multi-generational history of winemaking (most of the MMD brands are over 100 years old—or, like Christian Moueix's Dominus in Napa, were founded by individu- als who might well have wine in their blood) and an obsession with quality are two of the most important things Balogh looks for when bringing a new winery into his fold. "They bring with them that savoir-faire, they bring with them humbleness—again, they are looking at what the fruit and the land will give them and they put their magic on it." As the protector of this magic, Balogh works intimately with each one of his producers to increase quality and proitability: from pruning vines—trading in his well-tailored suit for boots and "going out in the vineyard with the team" is the part of the business he likes most—to shipping wine (always in refriger- ated containers). "Making a good wine isn't good enough anymore," says Balogh. "But this is where we come in." Most consumers don't know the name Maisons Marques & Domaines, but for the irst two tiers, MMD is similar to a Relais & Châteaux designation. "It's the trust a buyer at a restaurant or retailer has in our port- folio," says Balogh. "They know it is properly imported and properly stored. They know our product rotates. It relieves them of any worries they could have." For all of his accomplishments and experiences, Balogh doesn't spend a lot of time looking back. Instead, he is thinking of the next 30 years. And he is excited. "The quality of wine is improving, there is a better notion of terroir; we have a lot of top talent joining the industry;" and, says Balogh, "consumers are more curious and willing to experiment than ever before." And just what is a man who deals with some of the best wine in the world drinking these days? "My favorite wine is the wine I choose with the meal I am about to prepare," says Balogh, humbly. "But," he says smiling, "it always starts with a glass of Champagne." Probably, that Champagne is Roederer. GREGORY BALOGH KEEPS THE WORLD'S MOST FAMOUS WINES FLOWING by Courtney Humiston / photo by Christine Tomlinson