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Thierry Triolet Brut NV
Origin: Côtes de Sezanne, Champagne
Retail $35.95 | Sale $32.35
The Triolets are one of a growing number of families who have begun estate bottling their champagne over the last three decades. They own 11 hectares in and around the village of Bethon and almost all their vineyards are planted to Chardonnay. Thierry Triolet farms in accordance with the principles of sustainability and is certified both as “Level 3” Haute Valeur Environnementale and Viticulture Durable en Champagne. He is committed to having low yields and prunes accordingly. The pressing is done slowly at low pressure in a modern bladder press. Fermentations are then carried out in a variety of tanks. No barrels are used in fermentation or aging.
The Brut NV is a blend including three different vintages, the “assemblage” benefits from mature wines. The Champagne ages for a minimum of two years “sur lie” before disgorgement and is finished with a dosage of 11g/L. This produces a floral yet richly textured house style with a “bel canto” nature.
Chardonnay 65% and Pinot Noir 35%
A.R. Lenoble ‘Intense’ Brut mag16
Origin: Grand Valle de la Marne
Retail $41.95 | Sale $37.75
AR Lenoble is one of the rare producers in Champagne that has been consistently family-owned and entirely independent since the very beginning. Sister-and-brother owners Anne and Antoine Malassagne are the great-grandchildren of Armand-Raphaël Graser. They took over in 1993 from their father and in just over twenty years, they have quietly yet confidently transformed AR Lenoble into one of the jewels of the Champagne region. AR Lenoble was the second House in Champagne to be awarded the “Haute Valeur Environnementale” certification as part of a legal measure implemented under French law in 2007 to encourage sustainable development. AR Lenoble believes very strongly in privileging the characteristic expression of fruit from its own vineyards located in three prime locations in Champagne:CHOUILLY, the northernmost Grand Cru village located on the celebrated Côte des Blancs and home of some of the most magnificent Chardonnay in all of Champagne. BISSEUIL, the Premier Cru village located between Mareuil-sur-Ay and Tours-sur-Marne and home of rich and structured Pinot Noir. DAMERY, the site of AR Lenoble since 1920, located to the immediate east of Cumières. The village is home to some elegant and expressive Pinot Meunier due to soils that are a combination of clay and limestone.
Vintage 2016 forms the base of this non-vintage cuvée. A blend that includes grand cru Chardonnay from Chouilly in the Côte des Blancs, Premier Cru Pinot Noir de Bisseuil and Pinot Meunier de Damery - the wine is taut, textured and very crisp. The bottling is just coming to be ready, bringing out apple freshness and a little maturity.
15% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir, 45% Pinot Meunier
Pierre-Moncuit ‘Moncuit Delos’ Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru NV
Origin: Côte des Blancs
Retail $62.95 | Sale $56.65
Since 1977, Nicole Moncuit has managed the vineyards and made the wine, while her brother Yves has managed the sales. More recently, Nicole’s daughter Valérie has been actively assisting in the cellar.
Mesnil lies smack in the middle of the Côte des Blancs and is its most celebrated village, in no small part because of the vintages of Salon Champagne and the single-vineyard Clos du Mesnil, owned, of course, by Krug. The wines of Mesnil are known above all for steely elegance and minerality, and those from chez Pierre Moncuit—which has some of the oldest vines along the entire Côte—superbly reflect these qualities.
Another unusual bent in the Moncuit way of doing things is that no reserve wine is used in its production. All of its wines are made from a single year, regardless if they are labeled non-vintage or labeled with a vintage. The non-vintage wines spend three years on their lees before disgorgement; the vintage wines spend between six and eight years on their lees. After disgorgement, the former age another three months before release while the latter spend another six months in the house’s cellar before going to market. In order to keep focus on purity and minerality, no wood is used during the élevage. Malolactic fermentation is the norm here. At bottling, the usual dosage for the classic range is normally 6-7 grams of sugar per liter,
The aristocrat from Mesnil, for this is the primary wine produced at the estate’s home vineyards. If the democrat is round, soft, delicious, easy and fine, the aristocrat is lean, long, mineral, racy, and very fine. Production averages 60,000 bottles. (Delos is the maiden name of Nicole and Yves' mother.)
100% Chardonnay