Winemaker Notes
Les Jardins du Mesnil grow on pure chalk stone, the clean and vibrant terroir heart of the best grand cru Champagnes from Mesnil sur Oger. There is no better mirror to this historic terror than this non-dosage wine, redolent of crushed oyster shells and heady, summer-ripe citrus.
Professional Ratings
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Tasting Panel
A stunning full-bodied Champagne made with 100% Chardonnay from the Les Musettes and Les Hauts d'Aillerand lieux-dits. After a rush of ripe apple and pear comes black truffle and slivered almond, followed by chalky minerality and ginger notes on the finish.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: Champagne André Robert Blanc de Blancs is fresh and crisp on the palate, with an energized aftertaste. TASTING NOTES: This wine excels with aromas and flavors of mineral notes, citrus peel, and green apple. Enjoy it with a lightly-seasoned Ahi tuna poke. (Tasted: September 12, 2022, San Francisco, CA)
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Jeb Dunnuck
The NV Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Les Jardins Du Mesnil Extra Brut offers more depth and richness, with a higher proportion (30%) of reserve wine added to the blend to complement the 2017 vintage. It lifts from the glass with brioche, almond, and tropical aromas of green pineapple. Full-bodied and rounded, with vanillin and custardy oak spice, it displays sweet fruit through the mid-palate, with its mineral edge holding it all together.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The NV Extra-Brut Les Jardins du Mesnil is based on the 2016 vintage, complemented by reserve wines from 2015, and it was disgorged in May 2021 with four grams per liter dosage. Revealing notions of crisp green apple, citrus oil, wet stones and fresh bread, it's medium to full-bodied, pillowy and incisive, with a pretty mousse and a bright spine of acidity.
A term typically reserved for Champagne and Sparkling Wines, non-vintage or simply “NV” on a label indicates a blend of finished wines from different vintages (years of harvest). To make non-vintage Champagne, typically the current year’s harvest (in other words, the current vintage) forms the base of the blend. Finished wines from previous years, called “vins de reserve” are blended in at approximately 10-50% of the total volume in order to achieve the flavor, complexity, body and acidity for the desired house style. A tiny proportion of Champagnes are made from a single vintage.
There are also some very large production still wines that may not claim one particular vintage. This would be at the discretion of the winemaker’s goals for character of the final wine.
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.’