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Disgorged June 2022. (Formerly known as Expérience). The price here obviously reflects: firstly, the demand for a cuvée that is utterly unique in the world of Champagne; and secondly, the rarity (there is next-to-none to go around). Finally, we should not forget that this is a wine style that is extremely difficult to make.
Some background for those new to this wine. In 2002 Agrapart sought and (remarkably) received permission from the local authorities to begin experimenting with a small quantity of wine that he wanted to produce without any sugar additions; no chaptalisation and no additions for the second fermentation and final dosage (liqueur de tirage and liqueur d’expédition). Not using sugar and yeast for the liqueur de tirage (to prompt the second fermentation in the bottle) is actually against the AOC laws, which is why Agrapart needed to request permission. So how does Agrapart achieve the bottle fermentation? Instead of sugar, he uses must (grape juice), from the same vineyards that produce the wine, thus enabling him to produce a Champagne that is solely the product of estate-grown grapes.
The current release is an equal blend from sources that also contributed to the Avizoise and Minéral cuvées (Les Robarts in Avize and Les Bionnes in Cramant), ‘dosed’ with around 20% of the juice of 2017 from these same vineyards to drive the secondary fermentation in the bottle. No sugar or yeast additions were used for either fermentation, and the wine was not fined or filtered. Regardless of the methodology, this is simply a strikingly beautiful Champagne.