Bérêche’s succulent and salty rosé uses the Roman name for the countryside around Reims. The 2019 is a blend of 60% Pinot Noir and 10% Meunier with 25% Chardonnay, topped up with 5% still red. The fruit is sourced from vines planted by the brothers’ maternal grandmother in the 1950s. These three hectares of old vines are deeply rooted in the sandy Les Montées vineyard in Ormes, just west of Reims.

Disgorged by hand with 3 g/L dosage, the palate unpeels with flavours of red berries and Bandol-like blood orange, tobacco and sweet spices complemented by chalky mineral and saline notes. But it’s just as much about the texture, which is pillowy and charming before tapering to an incisive, fine-boned finish. We’ll leave the last word to Jamie Goode, who wrote in 2015 that Bérêche’s wine “is one of the best rosé Champagnes that I’ve had. It’s so beautiful.” Or perhaps to William Kelley: “exquisitely ethereal”. Or Jancis Robinson: “a rosé for the table. Perfume and gorgeousness.” Speaking of the table, Raphaël tells us that his favourite match with this wine, so far, is roast pigeon (à la Racine in Reims).

Bérêche’s succulent and salty rosé uses the Roman name for the countryside around Reims. The 2021 is a blend of 70% Pinot Noir and Meunier with 25% Chardonnay, topped up with 5% still red. The fruit is sourced from vines planted by the brothers’ maternal grandmother in the 1950s. These three hectares of old vines are deeply rooted in the sandy Les Montées vineyard in Ormes, just west of Reims.

Disgorged by hand with 3.5 g/L dosage, the palate unpeels with flavours of red berries and Bandol-like blood orange, tobacco and sweet spices complemented by chalky mineral and saline notes. But it’s just as much about the texture, which is pillowy and charming before tapering to an incisive, fine-boned finish. We’ll leave the last word to Jamie Goode, who wrote in 2015 that Bérêche’s wine “is one of the best rosé Champagnes that I’ve had. It’s so beautiful.” Or perhaps to William Kelley: “exquisitely ethereal”. Or Jancis Robinson: “a rosé for the table. Perfume and gorgeousness.” Speaking of the table, Raphaël tells us that his favourite match with this wine, so far, is roast pigeon (à la Racine in Reims). Some guys have all the luck.

Disgorged in December 2024. First released from the 2o14 vintage, Une Champagne is Bérêche’s homage to Champagne’s long tradition of blending across its sub regions. As Raphaël Bérêche says, “After 20 years of studies, tastings, soil analysis and plot-based vinification, the time had come to offer a vibrant tribute to that which produced the golden age of Champagne in times past.”

Limited to just 850 bottles per release, the 2015 a blend of the cellar’s finest barrels from Beaux Regards, Le Cran, Avize, Cramant, Ambonnay, Mailly, and Aÿ. The blend is roughly half Chardonnay and half Pinot Noir, and the wine is disgorged after 102 months of lees aging. The label pays homage to the old-style labelling in Champagne, where the name of Champagne takes precedence over the producer.

80% Pinot Noir, 20% Chardonnay. Juste Rosé was added to the portfolio in 1999. Rather than creating a flamboyantly bold wine, as might have been expected from the warm south-facing site, Charles Philipponnat opted for a more refined and pale-coloured wine—‘hardly a rosé’, as its name suggests. The wine is based on a similar blend to the Clos des Goisses Blanc, with an addition of Pinot from several Clos des Goisses lieux-dits, including La Dure, Le Collet, Les 28 Verges, Les Petits Cintres and Les Jolivets Noirs. Only 2,000-3,000 bottles are produced each year, and the wine ages for nine years before release. The rosé is now made with 30% saignée to allow control over the wine’s hue and structure, and the winemaking supports a texture that is at once supple and exceptionally graceful.

59% Pinot Noir and 41% Chardonnay. Packaged in a solid oak box. The L.V., or Long Vieillissement, is Philipponnat’s extended-aging project. It is widely accepted that the Clos des Goisses is one of the finest wines in Champagne for aging and needs at least 10 to 15 years to unveil its true majesty. For over two decades, Philipponnat has held back a portion of Clos des Goisses to be released over time. While there have already been some late-disgorged wines released over the years, the L.V. range now formalises a yearly release at the same time as the current vintage. Please note, we are talking about maturation on lees here, with late disgorgement for release. The 1999 L.V. is a blend of 59% Pinot Noir and 41% Chardonnay vinified by Charles Philliponnat himself (in his first year) and aged for a quarter of a century in Philipponnat’s Caveau du Trésor.

2020 base with 45% reserve wines from 2013 to 2019. The C + C Blanc de Blancs is blended from nine parcels across north and south-facing hillsides in Cramant and Chouilly, including Les Robarts and Le Mont-Aigu. The oldest vines date back to 1951. The average depth of the soils of these parcels is marginally deeper than Oiry, with silty clay overlaying the chalk. In Suenen’s plots on Cramant’s eastern slope—Les Robarts, Les Basses Croix, Les Fourches du Nord, Les Vignes de Mardu—the soils measure one metre before the roots meet the chalk. In Chouilly, it’s closer to 60 cm.

The blend is split between Cramant (70%) and Chouilly (30%). Although tempted to bottle each village separately, Suenen has found the two villages work even better as a blend. The textural finesse of Cramant marries perfectly with Chouilly's more layered personality. Again, the wine aged on lees for nine months in enamelled tank (50%) and used Burgundy oak barrels and demi-muid. It then aged for 30 months in bottle with no fining, filtration or cold stabilisation. It was disgorged in June 2023 with a dosage of 4 g/L. The extra depth of the soils, along with a good dose of southern exposure, makes for a creamier, more cushioned texture than the Oiry above. And yet, the wine retains all the overflowing energy and head-scratching precision that has become this grower’s calling card. 

Suenen crafts just a single 600-litre demi-muid of this cuvée. It originates from a parcel of particularly low-yielding vines planted in Chouilly’s renowned Le Mont-Aigu terroir, near the Cramant border on the Butte de Saran. Now more than 45 years of age, these old vines suffer from fanleaf virus, resulting in tiny leaves, roots and bunches. Coupled with skeletal soils (just 35 cm of topsoil over pure chalk), this results in a deep yet compact expression of Chouilly that is unlike any other. Expect flesh and concentrated ripeness yet also chiselled structure and intense, saline minerality.

Suenen’s 2015 fermented naturally and aged for nine months in a single 600-litre Stockinger barrel. It then spent more than five years in bottle before disgorgement in July 2022. Following a dosage trial (the standard practice here), it was topped with 4 g/L.

Suenen crafts just a single 600-litre demi-muid of this cuvée. It originates from a parcel of particularly low-yielding vines planted in Chouilly’s renowned Le Mont-Aigu terroir near the Cramant border on the Butte de Saran. Now more than 45 years of age, these old vines suffer from fanleaf virus, resulting in tiny leaves, roots and bunches. Coupled with skeletal soils (just 35 cm of topsoil over pure chalk), this results in a deep yet compact expression of Chouilly that is unlike any other. Expect flesh and concentrated ripeness with chiselled structure and intense, saline minerality.

Suenen’s 2017 fermented naturally and aged for nine months in a single 600-litre Stockinger barrel. It then spent more than five years in bottle before disgorgement in June 2023. Following a dosage trial (the standard practice here), it was topped with 5 g/L. Rippling with texture, complexity and great length, the aromas offer shades of red stone fruits, pain d'épices notes, and dabs of iodine. The intensity on the palate matches the intensity of the perfume; this is a linear, rocky, complex wine with everything buzzing in harmony. Only 860 bottles made.

Champagne nerds might recognise this lieu-dit as one of the sources of Pascal Agrapart’s renowned Avizoise cuvée. Suenen’s vines lie just across the border in the Cramant section of this vineyard at the top of a small hill. Originally planted in 1952—with further plantings in 1978, 1984 and 2005—the average age of Suenen’s vines is now almost 40 years. The planting contains a large portion of mass-selection vines.

The 2017 was aged in a single Rousseau foudre for nine months before bottling. As with all the single-site wines, this spent a minimum of five years on lees before disgorgement (with 3 g/L in this case) in June 2023. Suenen describes this terroir—30 cm of silty clay over degraded upper Campanian chalk—as combining the tension and salinity of Oiry with the concentration of Chouilly. It is often the most textural of Suenen’s four lieu-dit releases and arguably the most complex. This is diamond-cut Cramant with feathery texture and essence of sweet white fruits, yellow citrus and flowers melding perfectly with the intense energy from the chalky soils.

By the time Suenen took the keys at his family domaine, it had acquired vines throughout the Marne. Early in the piece, Aurélien judged that it would be impossible for him to work the entire domaine as meticulously as he wanted. So, with one exception, he sold the northern plots in the Vallée de la Marne and Montagne de Reims. That he kept hold of La Grande Vigne speaks volumes about the quality of this site. La Grande Vigne is a 0.21-hectare plot of ungrafted Meunier in a stunning terroir in Montigny-sur-Vesle (part of the Massif de Saint-Thierry).

This small parcel of 50-year-old vines combines deep sandy, silty soils of the Thanetian era—similar to those in Merfy and Gueux—with a flat, north-western exposure. This terroir revels in Meunier’s spicy side. Raised in a single 600-litre demi muid for 10 months, the 2017 spent 68 months on less until disgorgement, with 3 g/L dosage in June 2023. It’s tightly wound, as you would expect of a young Suenen wine, while the aromas and flavours blend spicy, dark mineral edginess with the warmth of toasted sourdough and some sweet floral notes. This gorgeous wine starts with beautiful precision and explodes on the chiselled, umami-like finish.

The most northern of Suenen’s Oiry parcels, La Cocluette is also home to the domaine’s oldest vines (planted in 1925), a site where the ancient roots bury deep into the dense Campanian chalk (the younger plantings from this site go into the Oiry Blanc de Blancs). Vines of this age are as rare as hens’ teeth in Champagne, and they gift tiny yields of concentrated berries. The land here is largely flat with a somewhat northern exposure.

Here the base wine fermented naturally and aged for nine months in one 700-litre concrete egg and one 600-litre Stockinger barrel (the same that is used each year). It then aged sur lies for 60 months in bottle until disgorgement in July 2022, when it was dosed with 3 g/L.

Suenen explains that the wines from this vineyard express themselves with great finesse. “The energy brought by this calcium-rich terroir makes the mouthfeel richer through a silky bubble. With time, the finish lengthens on a salivating mineral vibrancy.” Put another way, this is a more intense and complex expression of this region’s naked-chalk terroir than the NV Oiry. The 2016 harvest produced less than 2,000 bottles.

Within the cold, west-facing, Kimmeridgian limestone-rich lieu-dit of Biaunes, there is a small plot of Chardonnay that Gautherot planted wild—that is, without preparing the soils and among native vegetation (a totally crazy idea). The Côte des Bar is overwhelmingly planted to Pinot Noir, but in 2000, Gautherot chose Chardonnay. He used mass-selection cuttings from Anselme Selosse’s vines (in Avize) and Vincent Dauvissat’s Valmur Grand Cru vineyard. This plot has become the base of what Antonio Galloni calls “one of the most beautiful and distinctive wines in Champagne”. As of 2020, the cuvée also includes fruit from the Fonnet vineyard as well as Vouette itself, which was previously planted to Pinot Noir before replanting to Chardonnay several years ago. 

Indigenous yeasts ferment the wine in used 500- and 600-litre barrels, with a small portion fermented and raised in Georgian amphora (see Textures). As with Fidèle, this wine spends roughly 15 to 18 months in bottle on lees before being disgorged by hand with zero dosage. For the record, the Biaunes vines yield only 15 to 20 hl/ha each year, which is key to the depth and mineral intensity on offer. Were it not for bubbles, you could be drinking a great Grand Cru Chablis.

Within the cold, west-facing, Kimmeridgian limestone-rich lieu-dit of Biaunes, there is a small plot of Chardonnay that Gautherot planted wild—that is, without preparing the soils and among native vegetation (a totally crazy idea). The Côte des Bar is overwhelmingly planted to Pinot Noir, but in 2000, Gautherot chose Chardonnay. He used mass-selection cuttings from Anselme Selosse’s vines (in Avize) and Vincent Dauvissat’s Valmur Grand Cru vineyard. This plot has become the base of what Antonio Galloni calls “one of the most beautiful and distinctive wines in Champagne”. As of 2020, the cuvée also includes fruit from the Fonnet vineyard as well as Vouette itself, which was previously planted to Pinot Noir before replanting to Chardonnay several years ago.

Indigenous yeasts ferment the wine in used 500- and 600-litre barrels, with a small portion fermented and raised in Georgian amphora (see Textures). As with Fidèle, this wine spends roughly 15 to 18 months in bottle on lees before being disgorged by hand with zero dosage. For the record, the Biaunes vines yield only 15 to 20 hl/ha each year, which is key to the depth and mineral intensity on offer. Were it not for bubbles, you could be drinking a great Grand Cru Chablis.

The most northern of Suenen’s Oiry parcels, La Cocluette is also home to the domaine’s oldest vines (planted in 1925), a site where the ancient roots bury deep into the dense Campanian chalk (the younger plantings from this site go into the Oiry Blanc de Blancs). Vines of this age are as rare as hens’ teeth in Champagne, giving tiny yields of concentrated berries. The land here is largely flat with a somewhat northern exposure.

The base wine fermented naturally and aged for nine months in one 700-litre concrete egg and one 600-litre Stockinger barrel (the same one is used each year). It then aged sur lies for 60 months in bottle until disgorgement in June 2023, when it was dosed with 3 g/L.

Suenen explains that the wines from this vineyard express themselves with great finesse. “The energy brought by this calcium-rich terroir makes the mouthfeel richer through a silky bubble. With time, the finish lengthens on a salivating mineral vibrancy.” Put another way, this is a more intense and complex expression of this region’s naked-chalk terroir than the NV Oiry. The 2017 harvest produced less than 2,000 bottles.

True to its vintage, this is loaded with racy white stone fruit flecked by traces of smoke and iodine. It’s underscored by a piercing core of chalky minerality, turning more linear and pointed on the long, lemon oil and kaffir lime-scented finish. It’s in a class of its own and a fine successor to the brilliant 2016.

Within the cold, west-facing, Kimmeridgian limestone-rich lieu-dit of Biaunes, there is a small plot of Chardonnay that Gautherot planted wild—that is, without preparing the soils and among native vegetation (a totally crazy idea). The Côte des Bar is overwhelmingly planted to Pinot Noir, but in 2000, Gautherot chose Chardonnay. He used mass-selection cuttings from Anselme Selosse’s vines (in Avize) and Vincent Dauvissat’s Valmur Grand Cru vineyard. This plot has become the base of what Antonio Galloni calls “one of the most beautiful and distinctive wines in Champagne.” As of 2020, the cuvée also includes fruit from the Fonnet vineyard as well as Vouette itself, which was previously planted to Pinot Noir before replanting to Chardonnay several years ago.

Indigenous yeasts ferment the wine in used 500- and 600-litre barrels, with a small portion fermented and raised in Georgian amphorae crafted by the last Georgian family specialising in the round, bulb-like shape. As with Fidèle, this wine spends roughly 15 to 18 months in bottle on lees before disgorgement by hand with zero dosage. For the record, the Biaunes vines yield only 15 to 20 hl/ha each year, which is key to the depth and mineral intensity on offer.

Within the cold, west-facing, Kimmeridgian limestone-rich lieu-dit of Biaunes, there is a small plot of Chardonnay that Gautherot planted wild—that is, without preparing the soils and among native vegetation (a totally crazy idea). The Côte des Bar is overwhelmingly planted to Pinot Noir, but in 2000, Gautherot chose Chardonnay. He used mass-selection cuttings from Anselme Selosse’s vines (in Avize) and Vincent Dauvissat’s Valmur Grand Cru vineyard. This plot has become the base of what Antonio Galloni calls “one of the most beautiful and distinctive wines in Champagne.” As of 2020, the cuvée also includes fruit from the Fonnet vineyard as well as Vouette itself, which was previously planted to Pinot Noir before replanting to Chardonnay several years ago.

Indigenous yeasts ferment the wine in used 500- and 600-litre barrels, with a small portion fermented and raised in Georgian amphorae crafted by the last Georgian family specialising in the round, bulb-like shape. As with Fidèle, this wine spends roughly 15 to 18 months in bottle on lees before disgorgement by hand with zero dosage. For the record, the Biaunes vines yield only 15 to 20 hl/ha each year, which is key to the depth and mineral intensity on offer.

Fidèle is 100% Pinot Noir grown on Kimmeridgian limestone soils. This includes roughly 5% reserve wine from a perpetual blend started in 2001 and stored in two large old foudres. The Fonnet vineyard, located in a small, enclosed valley, forms the heart of this cuvée. Sorbée provides much of the balance, topped off by Châtel—a rocky, limestone-rich vineyard with 20-plus-year-old Pinot Noir vines. Overall, the vines average 30 years of age. After pressing in a traditional vertical Coquard press, Fidèle is vinified—without added yeast or chaptalisation—in used Burgundy barrels for 10 months (these came from Domaine Arnaud Ente in Meursault). The wine then spends 15 to 20 months on lees in bottle after secondary fermentation and is disgorged with zero dosage. Gautherot describes this as “a dangerous wine”—the bottle disappears so quickly—and this description could not be more apt. Dry, savoury and super mineral! 

Fidèle is 100% Pinot Noir grown on Kimmeridgian limestone soils. This includes roughly 5% reserve wine from a perpetual blend started in 2001 and stored in two large old foudres. The Fonnet vineyard, located in a small, enclosed valley, forms the heart of this cuvée. Sorbée provides much of the balance, topped off by Châtel—a rocky, limestone-rich vineyard with 20-plus-year-old Pinot Noir vines. Overall, the vines average 30 years of age. After pressing in a traditional vertical Coquard press, Fidèle is vinified—without added yeast or chaptalisation—in used Burgundy barrels for 10 months (these came from Domaine Arnaud Ente in Meursault). The wine then spends 15 to 20 months on lees in bottle after secondary fermentation and is disgorged with zero dosage. Gautherot describes this as “a dangerous wine”—the bottle disappears so quickly—and this description could not be more apt. Dry, savoury and super mineral!