Pehu Simonet Face Nord Grand Cru Brut 2006
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Produced only from Grand Cru vineyards on the north side of the Montagne de Reims (with some Chardonnay from the Côte des Blancs), this wine is beautifully balanced. It is rich and creamy, with just a zing of mineral acidity to give extra freshness. It is just now ready to drink, still fresh although with touches of toast at the end.
David Pehu, the fourth generation to lead this estate produces wines that are quite different from Lallement’s in every way except basic essential flavor. Verzenay is, after all, Verzenay. But David’s wines are rather more glossy and fleshy, and correspondingly less sleek and filigreed. He has 7.5 hectares of which 6 are Grand Cru. The balance is Chardonnay in premier cru Villers-Marmery, but Pehu wants to bottle only Grand Cru Champagne and so this Chardonnay is sold off. His vineyards are a remarkably ecumenical group: Verzy, Verzenay, Mailly, Sillery and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger!
The terrain of Verzy is made up of belemnite chalk and two varieties of micraster chalk, made up of a variety of Cretaceous echinoids. Verzy’s parcels form an extension of the famous vineyards at Verzenay on the northern slopes of Montagne de Reims. The best exposed slopes are those at an altitude from 150 to 200 meters (492 to 565 ft.). Oddly enough, Verzy was formerly a chardonnay village. It is today famous for its peppery, virile Pinot wines. With those of Verzenay, the pinot noir grapes here form the base for the finest Champagne vintages. A stony and gunpowder edge can be detected in the aftertaste, just as at Verzenay.
David Pehu is the fourth generation of his family to produce estate-bottled champagnes, and in his house you can see old Veuve Pehu labels from the early 20th century. His grandfather sold champagne under the Antonin Pehu label, and in the early 1970s his parents created Pehu-Simonet, with the introduction of vines from his mother’s side of the family. Pehu has been involved in the winemaking here since 1988, apart from a year in the army in 1989 and 1990, and he has been solely responsible for the cellar since 1995.
Of Pehu-Simonet’s 7.5 hectares of vines, six are in grand cru villages, and these are the ones used for making estate-bottled champagnes. In addition to 3.5 hectares of vines in Verzenay, Pehu has holdings in Verzy, Sillery, Mailly and Bouzy in the Montagne de Reims, as well as 65 ares of chardonnay in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, in the Côte des Blancs. The rest of the estate’s harvest is sold to the négoce, including the fruit from a parcel of old vines in Villers-Marmery that Pehu says produces exceptional wine. "It’s a pity it’s premier cru,” he says. “If I could call it grand cru, I’d happily use it."
Vinification is either in tank or in barrel, depending on the particular wine. Pehu, who studied oenology in Burgundy, has been using barrels since 1988, and while most of his barrels are purchased second-hand from Burgundy, he’s experimenting more and more with local oak from Verzy, coopered by the Tonnellerie de Champagne in nearby Cauroy-les-Hermonville. Pehu strictly avoids the malolactic for all of his wines, including the red wines used for making rosé, as he believes that blocking the malo better preserves the finesse and expression of fruit in the long run.”
Representing the topmost expression of a Champagne house, a vintage Champagne is one made from the produce of a single, superior harvest year. Vintage Champagnes account for a mere 5% of total Champagne production and are produced about three times in a decade. Champagne is typically made as a blend of multiple years in order to preserve the house style; these will have non-vintage, or simply, NV on the label. The term, "vintage," as it applies to all wine, simply means a single harvest year.
Associated with luxury, celebration, and romance, the region, Champagne, is home to the world’s most prized sparkling wine. In order to bear the label, ‘Champagne’, a sparkling wine must originate from this northeastern region of France—called Champagne—and adhere to strict quality standards. Made up of the three towns Reims, Épernay, and Aÿ, it was here that the traditional method of sparkling wine production was both invented and perfected, birthing a winemaking technique as well as a flavor profile that is now emulated worldwide.
Well-drained, limestone and chalky soil defines much of the region, which lend a mineral component to its wines. Champagne’s cold, continental climate promotes ample acidity in its grapes but weather differences from year to year can create significant variation between vintages. While vintage Champagnes are produced in exceptional years, non-vintage cuvées are produced annually from a blend of several years in order to produce Champagnes that maintain a consistent house style.
With nearly negligible exceptions, . These can be blended together or bottled as individual varietal Champagnes, depending on the final style of wine desired. Chardonnay, the only white variety, contributes freshness, elegance, lively acidity and notes of citrus, orchard fruit and white flowers. Pinot Noir and its relative Pinot Meunier, provide the backbone to many blends, adding structure, body and supple red fruit flavors. Wines with a large proportion of Pinot Meunier will be ready to drink earlier, while Pinot Noir contributes to longevity. Whether it is white or rosé, most Champagne is made from a blend of red and white grapes—and uniquely, rosé is often produce by blending together red and white wine. A Champagne made exclusively from Chardonnay will be labeled as ‘blanc de blancs,’ while ones comprised of only red grapes are called ‘blanc de noirs.’