As Head Winemaker at Chandon, Pauline Lhote is responsible for every part of the winemaking process from grape to glass. To say that Pauline is passionate about bubbles is an understatement as she grew up in the Champagne region of France. At just 14 years old, she told her parents she wanted to be a winemaker, and specifically that she wanted to make sparkling wine.



She has been hailed as a female leader in the industry by the likes of Glamour, Marie Claire, and Nylon, as well as a “Rising Star“ by The Drinks Business and acknowledged in Wine Enthusiast’s 2017 40 Under 40, Create & Cultivate’s 2019 100 List and Wine Spectator’s 2021 “Behind the Bubbly: Four Female Leaders in California Sparkling Wine.” Most recently, Pauline was also awarded the prestigious medal of the Order of the Agricultural Merit by the French Republic for her winemaking accomplishments and promoting the French savoir faire. 

As Associate Winemaker at Chandon, Quynh-Lan is responsible for managing the wine cellar and coordinating daily winemaking operations. 

From an early age, Quynh-Lan was immersed in the food and wine industry as her mom owned a Vietnamese restaurant in Paris, France. As her interests continued to evolve, Quynh-Lan moved to Dijon, France where she studied Food Sciences Engineering and Winemaking.

Quynh-Lan later experienced harvests across Bordeaux, Champagne and New Zealand as an intern before returning to France. She then spent a year and a half in Provence as a Project Manager in a research center surrounding Rosé wines. In 2016, Quynh-Lan joined Chandon as part of the LVMH’s Early Career Winemakers program and spent one year working across Australia, followed by two more years in California and Argentina, respectively. After the program ended, Quynh-Lan returned to Chandon California for her current role.