TGIF! After our adventures in champagne on January and February, we now bring you the March episode. We thought February, with Chinese New Year would be a bumper crop. But we were wrong. In March, we drank even more. Here are the highlights.
Horological Lifestyles: Its now time for the March champagnes we drank
Let’s Talk Glassware
So what is the best glass to serve champagne? Let’s look at the options. First is the coupe. This is typically seen in a champagne towers in many weddings. The coupe is a shallow, wide bowl shaped glass with a stem. The romantic story is that the coupe’ gets its shape’s bowl shape is inspired by the breasts of Marie Antoinette or Madame de Pompadour. But this is a fable. It was invented in the 17th century by the English, who had then developed a taste for champagne, earlier than even the French. In those days, champagne was different to what we know today. The wine was much sweeter, and had little aroma. For example, a typical 19th century champagne had a dosage of 100 to 200g per liter. By today’s standards, this is very sweet. As a comparison a standard Coca-Cola has 106g/l. The move towards a dry style began in 1846, introduced by Perrier-Jouët and Pommery with lower-sugar styles to satisfy British tastes. The coupe’s fault as a container for champagne is that the wide brim allowed the bubbles to escape very fast, and does not allow a bouquet to form. It also allows the wine to warm fast with its wide brim. Today, this is certainly not a recommended glass to serve champagne.
Next, to showcase the bubbles, the flute was invented. This is a slender, conical bowl which allowed the bubbles to be admired. It gained popularity after the Second World War, and by 1980s and 90s, the flute became the standard. Its design minimises the surface area of the wine, reducing the rate at which the CO2 escapes. The flute is common these days, but in the connoisseur circles, it is not the proper vessel to enjoy champagne. Olivier Krug famously said, “Drinking Krug from a flute is like going to a concert with earplugs.” Max Riedel chips in that “The flute’s design focuses on aesthetics rather than enhancing the wine experience.”
So we arrive at a modification of the flute, called the tulip, shown above right. Here the bowl is wider, and it tapers at the top. This allows the bubbles to be observed, but the taper concentrates the aromas to present the bouquet. Here is how we get a better sense of the nose of the champagne. Most champagnes served at reputable establishments are in tulips. But a growing trend among the cognoscenti is shifting away from the flute and tulip. I will drink from both these glasses, preferring the tulip to the flute, but will avoid both if possible.
So what glasses do I recommend to drink your champagne from? My best recommendation is a white wine glass. Champagne is a white wine. With bubbles. And the shape of the white wine glass is perfect to focus the aromas, presenting it at the opening. The glass should also be as thin as possible, the thickness of the bowl should taper to a soft, thin edge and be without a lip. A glass designed for white burgundy is excellent. And for my own at-home usage, I use the Gabriel-glas StandArt Universal wine glass. I have the machine blown glass, but they also offer a hand blown glass identified as Gold. These are finer, and thinner, but also costs twice as much. They have the exact same shape and dimensions, and I have tried both. The nose and palate of the wine served seems to be identical to me, with the Gold only being lighter and finer in appearance and hand feel. I show examples of both the StandArt machine as well as the Gold in the pictures below, as well as one example of the Zalto White Burgundy glass and a Zalto tulip in use.
So off to the first bottle of champagne.
Billecart-Salmon Le Réserve
Billecart-Salmon is a medium-sized, family-owned Champagne house known for elegance and high quality rather than high volume. The maison carries the NM designation, and is often described as a “cult” favorite by connoisseurs, it retains a smaller-house feel compared to major brands while producing around 2 million bottles annually.
The wine is a blend of 28% Meunier, 29% Chardonnay and 43% Pinot Noir. The maison favours the Montagne de Reims for its selection of Pinot Noir, Vallée de la Marne for Meunier and Côte des Blancs, Vitryat and Sézannais for Chardonnay. Not only is the grapes a blend, the cuvée is also a blend of different years. In this bottle, 29% is from the 2020 harvest, and the rest is from reserve wines with 15 vintages dating back to 2006. Dosage is 3g/l, and the disgorgement was late 2024.
The champagne presents as straw yellow with persistent mousse. The bubbles are fine and plentiful, giving the impression of a luxurious wine. On the nose, it shows white stone fruits, with a slightly pungent undertone which bring up the floral notes. On the palate, it shows apple, pear, citrus over a creamy, brioche flavours with a prominent saline note. The finish is very long and refreshing.
Étienne Calsac Les Revenants
This is an interesting “new” champagne house. Étienne Calsac is one of the young new winemakers to emerge from Champagne. The vineyard has produced grapes for generations, but usually sold them to the big houses. He dreamt of his own domaine, and in 2010, he began work on a 3 hectare organic estate to focus on mineral-driven, low-intervention Blanc de Blancs. This estate spread across 6 parcels in the Côte de Sézanne, Grauves, and Bisseuil. He found success quickly, and six years later, he started a micro-parcel on his own. He chose to replant old grape varieties such as Arbane and Petit Meslier on some plots. These varieties are approved for use in champagne, but somewhat long-forgotten, and hence not common. This was a very small production of about 1000 bottles, and the wine is aged in a single 600 liter barrel for 7 months. It then stays on the lees for 2 years. He named the wine “Les Revenants”, meaning “those who come back”, and chose a family photo of his mother as a young child proudly walking back from a harvest surrounded by her family.
This champagne is interesting because the grapes used are primarily composed of largely forgotten grapes. The blend is 50% Pinot Blanc, 45% Petit Meslier, and 5% Arbane from the Côte de Sézanne. Dosage is extra brut at just 2g/l, and the bottle was disgorged in February 2024. The grapes are probably from the 2021 harvest, and is sur lie for at least 24 months.
The wine has the typical pale lemon hue of champagnes, and the nose is very aromatic, with powerful bright citrus and white flowers. On the palate, a crisp, mineral-driven profile is highlighted, with flavours of citrus zest, orchard fruits, white flowers, and chalky salinity. The acid is high, and this provides a strong structure for this very powerful champagne, in the style which I personally love.
Dhondt-Grellet Cramant Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs
Dhondt-Grellet is one of the interesting new growers. This is an RM designated house, and is established by Eric Dhondt and Edith Grellet. The estate is currently run by their son, Adrien. The approach that Adrien takes to champagne is what some have described as Burgundian. Precise, terroir driven expressions.
This bottle is a Grand Cru Blanc de Blanc made from grapes of the village of Cramant, from old vines of more than 55 years. The cepage comprise of 70% 2021 harvest with 30% from reserve wine in the solare as old as 1986. Disgorgement was May 2024, and dosage is 2.5g/l, but stated as Brut Nature.
The colour in the glass is bright golden lemon. On the nose, lemon, yellow apple, butter with hints of smoke. On the palate, it is vibrant and powerful with strong acidity. But very creamy and velvety texture with the usual brioche and toast notes. Savoury, mineral driven finish. A style which I really like.
Note that Cramant is a Grand Cru village in the Vallée de la Marne, and not to be confused with Crémant, which is a sparkling wine made in Burgundy (primarily) using the méthode traditionnelle.
Egly-Ouriet Les Vinges de Bisseuil Premier Cru
Egly-Ouriet is a legendary producer based in the Montagne de Reims. Along Anselme Sellose, Francis Egly, who took over the family estate in 1982, is considered the pioneers of the grower movemnet. The domaine is known for powerful, terrior driven wines with finesse and many industry insiders say has the ability to be cellared.
This Les Vignes de Bisseuil is a non vintage based on the 2019 base harvest with reserves wines from 2018 and 2017. Disgorgement is October 2024 with 1g/l dosage. The cepage is 70% Chardonnay with 15% Pinot Noir and 15% Meunier, all vinified in oak. It presents as a beautiful golden pale lemon, with aromas of citrus, bread and pear. On the palate, it is full bodied, with vigour and oomph showing up the chalky profile of the soils in Biesseuil. The finish is very long as is usual with Egly-Ouriets, and like their Grand Cru bottlings (not this, as it is a Premier Cru), it will reward patience for those willing to forgo instant gratification and lay the bottles in the cellar.
This was the bottle I opened in the “How to open a champagne bottle” video from the previous episode.
André Heucq Histories HII.X
This is from the grower André Heucq, a family owned maison in the Vallée de la Marne. This is a now a fourth generation family owned grower.
This bottle is a Blanc de Blancs, a rather unusual grape for the house, known mainly for Meunier. But this bottle is brilliant. The harvest is made from Chardonnay from the vineyard of Cuisles from vines aging about 40 years. The harvest is from 2012 with only 1000 bottles produced. Oaked for 1 year and then on the lies for 8 years. the dosage is stated as Brut Nature.
The deep golden hue immediately strikes as the champagne is poured into the glass. Shown above, the glass we used was the Zalto handblown White Burgundy glass. The bubbles are small and discreet, but persistant. Notes of jasmine, caramel and butter from the malolactic fermentation on thelees bring complexity of honey, cedar. Long mineral finish driven by citrus.
Jérôme Blin La Varoce Extra-brut
Jérôme Blin is a family owned estate located in Vincelles in the Marne with a tradition dating back to 1671. This bottle is an extra brut based on a blend of 80% Meunier, 20% Chardonnay. Vinification is traditional, in stainless steel vats. The fermentation is done naturally, without filtration, without fining, using native yeasts. The base wine is from the 2020 vintage, bottled in 2022 and aged sur lees for 30 months. Disgorgement is in December 2025.
The wine offers a tinge of orange hue over the classical pale lemon of champagnes. The bubbles are small, light, but persistent. First nose is orange and custard, with a second nose of fresher notes of green apples. The palate has a touch of honey, and a lovely tension between the acid and softness of the candied nuts. Finish is long leaving the mouth with orange and perhaps ginger.
Antoine Bouvet Les Monts de la Valée Rosé
Antoine Bouvet is an interesting grower. His grandfather, Guy Bouvet founded the house in 1970. Antoine’s parents were not in the wine business, and he eventually inherited the vineyard from his grandfather. The image of an older man holding the hand of a young boy symbolises the special relationship between him and his grandfather. The entire plot is only 5 hectares across three villages — Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, Bisseuil, and Avenay-Val-d’Or. Out of this, only 1 hectare is used for his own production and the rest is sold to Bollinger. The plot is located in the eastern end of the Valée de la Marne, he produces wine which is very terrior focused and has a strong minerality. All the vines are organic.
Our bottle is from the 2020-2021 vintage. This rosé is made by assemblage, made by blending red wine with white. The other method is the Saignée rosé which produces a bold, deep-pink wine produced by “bleeding off” a portion of juice from red wine fermentation, usually after 2–48 hours. Unlike blended rosé, saignée creates more structured, intense wines with rich red fruit flavors, often acting as both a quality product and a way to concentrate red wine production.
For this bottle, the red wine is Pinot Noir from the 2020 harvest making up 16% of the blend. The rest is a 75% Pinot Noir and 25% Chardonnay from the 2021 harvest as the white wine component. The terroir is from Bisseuil, Mareuil-sur-Aÿ and Avenay Val d’Or. This Mont de la Vallée Rosé is Extra Brut, but the dosage is 0g. Disgorgement was in February 2024.
On the nose, as suggested by the pink hue in the glass (we drank from tulips), the aromas of red fruits are present – strawberries blended with citrus and of course brioche. On the palate, it is rich, powerful with strong acids balanced with blood orange, peach and perhaps a touch of ginger. Finish is long with a rather prominent salinity.
Chartonge-Tailler Sainte Anne
Chartonge-Tailler is a highly regarded Grower Champagne from Merfy, near Reims, led by Alexandre Chartogne. The house style is known for minerality, precision balanced with a creamy texture which reflects the sandy and chalk of the village.
The Sainte Anne is their entry level offering, and is a cuvée is a blend of several harvest years. Its composition is often 50% wines from the year preceding its bottling, and 50% older wines, in reserve for 2 to 5 years. This bottle it is from a harvest mostly from 2021. The wine was bottled in 2022 and disgorged in 2024, spending almost 2 years on the lees. The compositon is Chardonnay and Pinot Noir with Meunier. Dosage was 2.5g/l making it an Extra-brut.
The typical pale yellow description for champagnes apply to Sainte Anne. The mousse is very fine, often described as refined and pillowy but is persistent. On the nose, we get the rather intense aromas of green apple, white peach, white flowers with the usual brioche and toast notes from lees aging. On the palate confirms the powerful minerality and chalk on the solid base of pears and lemon. Finish is long.
Honourable Mentions
I also had some more bottles, but which, after being used to the growers champagnes. These otherwise excellent bottles have become, for want of a better word and at the risk of sounding like a snob, rather bland. These are excellent champagnes from excellent houses, but they are more mass appeal, and are blended for easy drinking.
First, I present the Ruinart Blanc de Blancs. This used to be a favourite of mine, but in recent years, my tastebuds are seeking more adventure than this safe choice. We opened this bottle in a really nice restaurant, but while it is very nice and drinkable, I seek more.
As I attended the Louis Vuitton Watch Prize event in Paris recently (Ruinart Blanc de Blanc were the served as the house is owned by LVMH), I also had the opportunity to add the the champagnes served on the Singapore Airlines. In the Business Class Lounge in Singapore and on board the aircraft I was served Piper-Heiedeick. In the lounge it was the Essentiel, which is their entry level. It is a blend of the three main grape varieties in a typical champagne: 44% Pinot Noir, 34% Meunier, and 22% Chardonnay. The blend is very well balanced, with a dosage of about 5g/l. The champagne was bright and invigorating. Very nice in citrus and perhaps fresh almond. I think an excellent choice before going on a trip. On board, SQ serves the Piper-Heidseick Millesiemé 2018. This is a blend of 47% Pinot Noir, 50% Chardonnay and 3% Meunier. This is a more prestigious champagne than the one served in the lounge, but perhaps it is the altitude, I felt the was less interesting than the more basic Essentiel. In the air, there was little nose – SQ served it in their stemless tulip, but the low cabin pressure was not conducive for the aromas to present itself. The palate was well balanced, with no particular strong feature. Finish on both was medium at best.
But both were more interesting than the Cattier Brut Icône served at the Star Alliance lounge in Paris. This was a blend of 50% Pinot Meunier, 30% Pinot Noir, 20% Chardonnay. I found it to be a bit more pedestrian than I liked. The bubbles were regular, and the nose was light with aromas of pear, cherry. The palate had grapefruit, lemon with a touch of ginger. And finally, there was the Omega, branded Pommery at a recent Omega event. This is the basic Pommery champagne, a large house making with more than 2 million bottles a year. The bottle is probably their Brut Silver. It is difficult to ascertain because it carries labelling for Omega. This is an entry level champagne, and not particularly noteworthy.
Concluding thoughts
From this series, perhaps it has become clear that my preference is shifting away from the large houses. These big maisons tend to make champagnes which are easy to drink as they need to serve the masses. My tastes now prefer a more structured, mineral and terroir-driven grower champagnes. I have a preference for sharp acidity with good intensity. Aroma can be secondary, but of course, the usual citrus, white stone fruits, white flowers with brioche are a must. A creamy texture in the mouth with good mousse is also important as well as a long, satisfying finish. With these preferences, I have gravitated from the regular champagnes from big houses. Save for a few. Salon, Krug and Dom Perignon are still interesting. But my quest is not in finding great $1000 bottles, but to discover superb bottles under $200. Ruinart has fallen out of favour, but interestingly some Piper-Heidseick and even Verve Clicqout Yellow Label, their most entry level, can still hold an interest. My taste is still evolving. Where is it headed to? What are your tastes like for champagne?
