NV  

Varietal notes: 90% Chardonnay 10% Pinot Noir -- Organic: Practicing -- Vineyard: 100% of the fruit comes from estate-owned parcels located in each of the seven villages in the Côte des Blancs: Avize, Oger, Oiry, Cramant, Avenay Val d'Or, Bergères les Vertus, and Mardeuil. (70% Grand Cru, 30% Premier Cru) -- Orientation: Multiple parcels, varied exposure -- Soil: predominately limestone and clay -- Viticulture: Practicing organic; use of high quality organic composte for the soils and vines; all fruit is hand-harvested. -- Following 100% malolactic fermentation, one-quarter of the wine is aged in older (more neutral) 600L casks, the remainder is aged in stainless steel tanks. Dosage is 7 grams/liter. SO2 is 50 mg/l. -- Aging: Sur lie for 24-36 months. -- Production: 4,200 cases/year -- Notes: In selecting the best grapes of all seven villages, Pascal Agrapart has succeeded in demonstrating the fundamental character of Cótes des Blancs in one cuvée...with a 10% splash of Pinot Noir.

NV  Henri Dosnon Brut Rose

90% Pinot Noir - 10gr RS -- From chalky soils 30mi north of Chablis

NV  Brut Blanc de Blancs Cuvée Vendémiaire

Brut Blanc de Blancs Cuvée Vendémiaire -- Charles Doyard is a 12th generation winegrower -- Family viticulture dates to 1677! -- Estate bottling dates back to 1927 -- Practicing Organic. No pesticides or chemicals since 1992 -- 45 year old vines on average -- 50% of his production is sold to two Negociants - keeping only the finest fruit -- Each parcel is vinified separately. 50% aged on the fine lies in older barrels, no battonage -- Minimum of 48 months aging on the lies -- "Sophisticated and elegantly harmonious, Doyard’s wines number among the finest in the Côte des Blancs, demonstrating a remarkable personality and individuality. While they feel in keeping with the sensibilities of contemporary natural viticulture in their vitality and vinosity, there is nothing about them that is severe or aggressive - they do not lose sight of balance in their quest for expression." Peter Liem -- Charles Doyard started working full-time with his father Yannick in 2006, who himself began making wine in 1979. Today he farms old vine sites in the finest terroir of the Côtes des Blancs: Vertus, Oger, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Avize and Cramant. A traditionalist at heart, much of the Doyard philosophy reaches into the past for inspiration. The wines are bottled at lower pressure (4-5 atmospheres, instead of the 6 atmospheres that is the norm today) and all have incredibly long lees aging, giving the wines an extraordinary level of depth and finesse. -- The other nod to the past is the non-interventionist approach the family has always used. "We want to let our old vines and nature express themselves and intervene as little as possible." says Doyard. Since 2007, zero new wood is used (3-5 years old), there is no filtration, very low doses of SO2, and he has stopped using cold-stabilization - preferring instead to simply leave the wines in the coldest portion of his cellar to allow them to precipitate naturally. -- The combination of long lees aging, incredible terroir, organic viticulture, and fair prices, make it clear why Doyard has achieved cult status. This is the kind of Grower Champagne that brings you to your knees, with its ability to maintain such weightless intensity. These are pure, mineral driven, fiercely elegant Champagnes.

NV  Brut

Not surprisingly, sleek, comely and digitally fruity, yet it shows its fruit on a high white wire, like some iridescent filament snaking through darkness. Sitting in the glass it starts to smell like those little pink cookies ("Biscuits de Reims") you see everywhere in the region. I’m always torn between feeling this is a smart wine that also wants to show you how sexy it is, or a sexy wine that wants you to know how smart it is. Yet of course, smart is sexy. I heard that from Noam Chomsky. Disg. 7/2016, we have 50% CH from Mareuil, vintage 2014 - then 43.5% PN from Mareuil, vintage 2012-13 - then 6.5% still PN from Mareuil vinified in neutral cask, vintage 2013. - Terry Theise

NV  "Cuvee Prestige"

The Duc de Romet Brut is a Blanc de Noirs of Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. It’s 75% Meunier and 25% Pinot Noir. The vineyards are entirely from the village of Vandières which is along the Marne River, a few villages west of Cumières. Vandières has the same rating as Merfy, where Chartogne-Taillet is located, but the parcels here are situated in a south-eastern facing amphitheater around the village, much like Oger, which allows the grapes to become very ripe. The Duc de Romet is a delightfully balanced Blanc de Noirs made from purchased grapes from small growers in the village. This is a ND (Négociant-Distributeur), which means this is a blend from the different growers in the Vallée de la Marne who do not produce their own Champagne. The grapes are sent to the local co-op where they are fermented; one of our producers does the final blend.

NV  

100% Chardonnay. A little black dress in a bottle, a very classy Champagne. The fine mousse shows its good breeding & the beautiful gold packaging makes a gorgeous presentation on the holiday sideboard or in a Champagne bucket.

2002  Chardonnay

This series is intended to express the work of a man on his soil. The role of the winemaker is limited and every effort is made to respect and preserve the integrity of the level of expression of the vintage. Vinification in small oak barrels, no malolactic fermentation, no cold stabilisation, no filtration but a lot of passion.

2006  

Champagne Saint Chamant was established in 1930 by Pierre and Hélène Coquillette. Their son, Christian, took over the estate in 1950. Located in Épernay, the house's unsigned, unassuming exterior in no way hints at its labyrinthine cellar, built in the early 19th century, which is a mile long - and lined with hundreds of thousands of carefully aging Champagne bottles. Charmingly mustached and quite dapper, octogenarian Christian specializes primarily in Blanc de Blancs with more than 28 acres of Chardonnay vineyards in Grand Cru Chouilly. The house also makes a small amount of rosé, from 92% Chardonnay and 8% Pinot Meunier from Épernay. Christian is a firm believer in extended lees aging, and he disgorges only once the wines have been ordered. All Saint Chamant Champagnes are of a distinctive style and sophisticated quality, reflecting well the elegance and refinement of their maker. They display a heady, old-time richness and vinosity with extremely fine bubbles.

2008  Coeur de Cuvee

"Laurent says the wine is "delicate" but steadily gaining in power. Where it will go is into a potentially stunning salty-sweet complexity, yet it will stay light-footed.Early days, and I (sincerely) don’t like to hype, but contrasted with the magnificent 2007 there’s just more depth here, especially in the mid-range, the part that goes truffley and woodsy with time. Laurent could have made an explosive wine; 2008 allows it. Instead, bless him, he’s made a gorgeous one." - Terry Thiese

2010  

"No surprise: This is gorgeous. Will there be a better 2010? And will Laurent always make the best wine in normal or "difficult" vintages? Not his best wines, mind you - the best in all Champagne? This is another in a noble chain of manic vintages (2001, 2007) as separate from the rich sedate vintages (2006, 2009). It’s electric, quivering, goose-fleshed, shimmery yet hedonic yet weightless yet as energetic as a kitten jumping after a laser." - Terry Theise