This trip was about a year ago, focus on growers and smaller NMs; I’ve since tried producers that I missed out, favourites being G Selosse, Laval, Agrapart, Prevost, Pierre Paillard.
Overall, I’m veering towards high acid, oxidative, organic, terroir-focused styles.
Côte des Blancs: Larmandier-Bernier, Pierre Gimonnet, Diebolt-Vallois
Montagne de Reims: Roger Coulon, Nicolas Maillart
Vallée de la Marne : Henri Giraud, Philipponnat
Others: Leclerc Briant, Alfred Gratien, Boizel
Highlights below, rest on Cellar Tracker
CHAMPAGNE 2025: TASTING AT LARMANDIER-BERNIER - Vertus, Côte des Blancs (26/08/2025)
Côte des Blancs and RM only; midway between oxidative and reductive; 90pc Chard; fermented and malolactic in big oak casks then blended in steel with cold stabilisation and liqueur de tirage in steel tank after two days; 5-10Y on lees, with 40pc of a vintage held back as reserve wine kept in steel tanks; 11 months large oak elevage; dosage kept low at 3g/l;
Hosted by Sophie L-B at this modern Nordic estate; these wines were probably one of or the best on this trip. Enough leanness to be terroir expressive combined with enough generosity. Uniquely the entire range of cuvees is of a high standard. My tasting partner Tim thought Vertus was his best, for me Levant.
- NV Larmandier-Bernier Champagne Premier Cru Rosé de Saignée Extra Brut - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru
Rose de saignee: 90pc PN, 10pc Pinot gris, Feb 24; long cranberry nose, some fruit skin; 2g/l; yeasty; toffee; acids wrap the mouth smoothly, not blocky; very quaffable; (91 pts.) - NV Larmandier-Bernier Champagne Latitude - France, Champagne
Latitude: various vineyards of same on the latitude, chalk is very deep on the ground as at edge of cote des blanc; south of vertus; sept 2022; barbeque ember, mushroomy; pineapple nose; grapefruit and somewhat sweet on body; undetectable acid; (92 pts.) - NV Larmandier-Bernier Longitude - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru
Longitude: various villages along cote de blanc proper; earthy, vanilla, vegetal; soy-milk, oily nose; April 2021; higher and grippier acidity, fruit skin tannin; quite thin in texture; (91 pts.) - 2017 Larmandier-Bernier Champagne Premier Cru Terre de Vertus - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru
Terre de vertus 2017: sept 23, single vineyard on the slope, south-east; non-dosage as grapes very naturally ripe; salinity is particular; very misty saturated thick nose, milky vanilla; sweet-salty, caramel on the palette; zero dosage; earthy finish; 5y lees; thick and textuous; acids barely bothering; 17 was very cold, 13pc; (95 pts.) - 2015 Larmandier-Bernier Champagne Grand Cru Vieille Vigne du Levant Extra Brut - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru
Ville vigne du Levant, cramant 2015; clay heavy, sept 24 disgorged; 12.5pc; similar to PG Cramant, thick milky strawberries on nose; more gaseous and flinty on the mouth; cocoa on the finish; richer and riper fruit; overall crystalline and not overpowering; (96 pts.)
CHAMPAGNE 2025: TASTING AT ROGER COULON - Vrigny, Montagne de Reims (27/08/2025)
I wish this estate was more well-known in the UK seeing most of it’s imports go to Scandinavia and the Low Countries. RM with vineyards in Montagne de Reims and Côte des Blancs, primarily Meunier, Pinot and Chardonnay. 90k bottles a year; following the Larmandier-Bernier style of picking late and ripe; vinified 1/3 in tank, rest in large oak; natural malo with 11m elevage 70pc in large oak 30pc in steel, the blended in steel; 3-10y on lees; always of a Brut Nature/Extra Brut style; barrels last 5-15Y with annual purchases; 1/3 of Meunier production goes into a PR collected since 1995;
The 14’ Millesime with 50pc france de pied Meunier is probably the best Meunier-based champagne I’ve had. Overall the house is very much the Larmandier-Bernier of the North: wide aromatics, minerally, earthy, rich, ripe and effortless: Meunier throughout the vertical is generous and tropically primary.
- NV Roger Coulon Champagne Premier Cru Heri-Hodie - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru
Henri Hodie: 10pc 2021 base wine, 90pc PR; 100pc Pinot meunier, little oak; fermented plum, peach, fungal, fruity, stony-Riesling like; hint of vanilla; 3g/l; light-body; 23’ July; viscous on throat; blanc de noir; body is more generous than other Meunier but is outdone by aromatics; (89 pts.) - NV Roger Coulon Champagne Premier Cru L’Hommée - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru
L’homme: 60pc Chardonnay 40pc PN; barrel fermented and matured; milky mist/vanilla nose, too dominant; more power and riper in red fruit, liqueur-like; very oxidated; acids not detectable; slight pinot tannin on throat; 23’ Nov; (89 pts.) - NV Roger Coulon Champagne Premier Cru Continuum Brut Nature Les Champs Chevalier - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru
Roast honey-glaze, embers, peaches, woody nose, Brut nature, zero dosage; 13y lees; 65pc Chardonnay, 35pc Meunier; spiky acids but weak body; some throat heat; using 50y old barrel so not that heavy in vanilla and toast; 04/2024; lacks depth in body; 2011 base with perpetual reserve of Meunier; (87 pts.) - 2014 Roger Coulon Champagne Blanc de Noirs Millesime - France, Champagne
2014, blanc de noir; no malo, steel only; 50 pinot from Vrigny 50 Meunier (Goux); 60y old and ungrafted; franc de pied; truffle, stony, milky mist nose, great complexity; 8-9y on lees; power on the front palette and back;; Meunier shines here with pineapple and tropical fruit palette; strawberry skin finish on throat complemented with Meunier viscosity; 2g/l dosage; (96 pts.)
CHAMPAGNE 2025: TASTING AT PIERRE GIMONNET - Cuis, Côte des Blancs (25/08/2025)
Introduced to this estate by Wapping Wines. Perhaps I should have thought of whether visiting this estate right after Henri Giraud would affect my tasting, but the wines didn’t amaze. Lean and acidic though, the chalkiness and minerality was very evident and indeed PG can contrast each village well. The tasting room at room temperature perhaps affected too. The Chouilly here remains a benchmark for me.
Entirely Côte des Blancs and 1er Cru or Grand Cru; RM firmly on the reductive style; almost entirely Chard; 100pc steel fermentation and elevage with malolactic; cold stabilisation and filtration in clay; 2-3y lees minimum, 5y for Special Club; 1/2 of 300k bottles production is from Cuis; reserve wines are stored in bottle not tank nor oak;
- 2016 Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Champagne Special Club Grands Terroirs de Chardonnay - France, Champagne
Special Club 16’: Wide gingery apple nose, stony; metallic; concentrated; cinnamon spice, no trace of oak; creamy and thick; Extra Brut; 3g/l; mix of Grand Cru and 1er Cru; most acidic of the vertical; (87 pts.) - 2018 Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Champagne Premier Cru Special Club Cuis - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru
Cuis 1er Cru 18’: unacidic nose, rather creamy and airy, brioche, flinty; more textuous; some hints strawberry, apple ginger on nose; mousse thicker; easy-going; 3g/l (90 pts.) - 2017 Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Champagne Grand Cru Special Club Chouilly - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru
Chouilly grand cru 17’: chalkiest sub-soil; strawberry milk cream candy nose, ripe red fruit; most acidic palette, and evidently minerally/limestone gaseous; 3-3.5g/l; my favourite of the vertical; (92 pts.) - 2017 Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Champagne Grand Cru Special Club Cramant - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru
Cramant grand cru 17’: next to Chouilly; nose is longest and creamy perhaps vanilla, fruity but less vs Chouilly on the nose, saline, others say caramel; mineral but not calcium, probably flint stone; best balance and integration; 3-3.5g/l (91 pts.) - 2017 Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Champagne Grand Cru Special Club Oger - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru
Oger Grand Cru 17’: Very earthy, peatty nose; 4.5g/l; distinctly more sugary; smoky on body; balance is off given the sugar fights with the heat; (88 pts.)
CHAMPAGNE 2025: TASTING AT HENRI GIRAUD - Aÿ, Vallée de la Marne (25/08/2025)
Vallée de la Marne vineyards only but still NM; firmly on the oxidative style with 75pc PN and 25pc Chard production 100pc fermented and elevated in oak and some ceramic; 4 years lees with malolactic typically made Brut; geolocated 8-10y old Argonne oak used with 5y patents on each barrel; Argonne oak has poor minerals and clay, therefore not porous and very dense; a form of “oak terroir” is practiced: each barrel comes from one section of a trunk of a region in the forest; Chardonnay grown on lowland with more chalk, Pinot on the highland; only maker which stores a perpetual reserve for each cuvee, in vats under cellar;
Very Modern art courtyard with a nice air-conditioned glassy tasting room with an elevator to an observation deck overlooking Aÿ. Charred old barrel wood used to line buildings. The wines were explosively aromatic, rich and potent, but not yet overdone. A great but challenging start to overcome.
- NV Henri Giraud Champagne Grand Cru Brut MV20 Aÿ - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru
MV20, Ay grand cru, brut; 2020’ base year; 30pc reserve; new oak + 1y oak, 80pc pinot; long gingery almond liqueur nose, whisky; 5g/l; very autolytical, faint strawberries, faint vanilla oak; acidic but the pinot hides the dryness; nearly no bubbles; unctuous texture; (93 pts.) - NV Henri Giraud Champagne Esprit Nature - France, Champagne
Espirit MV22; 80pc Pinot, 5 g/l; 5-10y oak; less concentrated, less power, shorter gingery nose; less autolytical notes or vanilla; earthy funk on nose; (87 pts.) - NV Henri Giraud Champagne PR20-90 - France, Champagne
PR 20/90; 100pc perpetual reserve of years between 1990-2020; 80pc Pinot; 5g/l; short spice nose, perhaps paprika; some of the marzipan; fruittiest body but less autolytical and more minerally (rubber, stone) in comparison to the Fut de Chene, lacks power and length of finish; (91 pts.) - NV Henri Giraud Ratafia de Champagne Solera - France, Champagne, Ratafia de Champagne
Ratafia: Pinot and Chardonnay; smell of brandy, and but less sugary than sauterne; Irish whisky; aperitif; (82 pts.)
CHAMPAGNE 2025: TASTING AT PHILIPPONNAT - Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, Vallée de la Marne (28/08/2025)
Clos de Goisses is located entirely in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ 1er Cru, a chalk ridge and highland next to the Marne. NM, with grapes purchased for all but Clos de Goisses; Pinot Noir is dominant with some Chardonnay, Meunier; Clos de Goisses does not go through malolactic; whereas regular cuvees are fermented in steel, Clos de Goisses and vintages are vinified in small barrels; 3-11y on lees, longer for L.V; all vintages are 4.5g/l, extra-brut; Clos de Goisses also spends 2y on riddling racks;
This tasting was the best in terms of both the tour and the wines. The tour involved scaling the 45 degrees Clos de Goisses and adjacent lieu-dixs, a cellar tour and the Clos de Goisses vat room. The highly informative guide, Theo was very kind to offer the last two flights despite them not being on the ticket, courtesy of Italian critics tasting the day before. Indeed, Philipponnat is a favourite of Gianni Agnelli.
- NV Philipponnat Champagne Brut Reserve Perpétuelle - France, Champagne
PR Base 2021; 66pc noir, 32pc Chard, 2pc Meunier 2025 Jan disgorged; 8g/l dosage; 4y lees; citrussy, lightly minerally, not sweet at all despite high dosage, acids still fresh and spiky; grapefruit body; good for entry; primary mainly; (87 pts.) - NV Philipponnat Champagne Réserve Perpetuelle Non Dosé - France, Champagne
PR exactly the same as above; zero dosage; faint nose, mainly bready earthiness; acids wrap around the mouth and throat is more burnt; good acids but better body on the last; (86 pts.) - 2018 Philipponnat Champagne Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut - France, Champagne
2018 Blanc de blanc; Chardonnay from Montaigne de Reims, cooked Chardonnay; march 2025; 4.5 g/l; misty nose though faint with some milk, citrus, stoniness, fruit candy; sweet, faint fruit but lacks balance as acids are not at forefront so tastes sweet; (87 pts.) - 2019 Philipponnat Champagne Blanc de Noirs Extra-Brut - France, Champagne
2019 blanc de noir; pinot noir, 4.5g/l; march 2025; flinty, charcoal-y nose, apricots, nice nose; sweet, and acids barely detectable; body is not particularly fruity in flavour; strawberry skin tannin; (88 pts.) - 2014 Philipponnat Champagne Extra Brut Clos des Goisses - France, Champagne
2014 clos de Goisses; Disgorged march 2023; 4.5g/l; 71pc pinot, 29pc chard; vegetal, savoury mushroomy aroma, quite funky; liqueur-y and thick, decadent; good pinot tannin, sweet and strawberry body; lemony on the end; delicate and finesse; (94 pts.) - 2014 Philipponnat Champagne Juste Rosé Clos des Goisses - France, Champagne
2014 Rose; 1400 bottles, 84pc Pinot 16pc Chard; march 2024 disgorged; spice, masala chai on the nose and wide; sweet strawberry liqueur body; spice lingers on the palette, bit of vanilla on the back; very quaffable; 4.5g/l; 30pc from saignee rest assemblage; (95 pts.) - 2004 Philipponnat Champagne Grand Cru Cuvée 1522 Extra-Brut Long Vieillissement - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru
1522 LV 2004: Grand Cru, extra brut; Pinot small oak fermentation and ageing; march 2024; 4.5g/l; caramel, custard cream vanilla, long and generous nose; viscous lemony liquor on body; 70pc Ay Pinot, 30pc Chard Les Mesnil; while the nose is welcoming I find it too overwhelming and one-dimentional; (92 pts.) - 2000 Philipponnat Champagne Brut L.V. Clos des Goisses - France, Champagne
LV Clos de Goisses 2000; march 2025 disgorged, 4.5g/l; sweet honey, truffly, earthy, stony, most complex nose, smells like old Meursalt; body is too sweet, cordial-like however and fruity, lacking tertiary beauty of the nose; uncorked overnight; 65-35 pinot chard; tastes from the estate; (95 pts.)
