Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesThe NV Brut Blanc de Blancs Conversation Grand Cru is a terrific introduction to the range. It is a wine of tremendous breadth and real character, all of which comes through pretty much upon opening. This release is based on 2014, with a 20% 2013 reserve wines from vineyards in Mesnil, Oger and Avize. Chardonnay flavors are kicked up a few notches in this decidedly vinous, powerful Blanc de Blancs. Dosage is 5 grams per liter. Disgorged: October 16, 2019.
The nose of the NV Champagne Grand Cru Conversation Brut lifts with a stylistically sweet perfume that translates through the entire range. It offers notes of sweet pastry, ripe peach, and honeydew melon, and the palate is medium-bodied and has ripe juicy fruit as well as a kiss of sweetness, with green apple candy, key lime, and white flowers. Approachable now, it would make a wonderful aperitif or an after dinner reset, given there is a hint of that generosity from the dosage. Drink over the next 8-10 years. Best after 2022.
A rich, mouth-filling Blanc de Blancs for cool-climate, still-chardonnay fans! Serious creaminess and a discreet mousse. Not incredibly subtle, showing intense red-apple and peach-skin character, but the power and structure at the finish are impressive. Drink now.
Well-spiced and creamy, this is a balanced version, with candied pink grapefruit peel, pickled ginger and ground cardamom imparting a zesty edge to juicy pear and almond paste flavors.
Disgorged in April 2018, the current release of Vergnon's NV Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Conversation continues to exhibit a charming nose of toasted coconut, green apples and ripe lemons. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, with racy acids, a youthfully frothy mousse and a pure, chalky finish. Expressive and open, it's drinking well today.
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.’
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.