Winemaker Notes
The solidity, length and complexity are incomparable, and the wine soars above its category.
Professional Ratings
-
Wine & Spirits
A 75-25 blend of pinot noir and chardonnay, like almost all of Billiot’s wines, this does not undergo malolactic conversion, creating a powerfully structured, muscular wine. The fine bubbles add to the briskness of its mouthwatering red fruit, its fruit-skin depth making the finish rich. Pour it with hamachi kama (grilled yellowtail collar).
-
Jeb Dunnuck
Coming from Ambonnay, the NV Champagne Grand Cru Reserve Brut is composed of 75% Pinot Noir and the rest Chardonnay, crafted around the 2022 vintage with the addition of 30% reserve wine from 2019 and 2020. Pouring a straw color with a copper tinge, the NV Champagne Grand Cru Reserve Brut is approachable and inviting, with fresh notes of orange citrus, bread dough, and hay. Medium-bodied, it’s refreshing and charming on the palate, with a lightly frothy mousse and a clean, chalky-textured finish.
-
Wine Spectator
Flavors of white raspberry, grapefruit pith, dried white cherry and almond are set in a tangy frame of firm acidity as they ride the lively mousse. Salty, with hints of licorice and pastry dough that enrich the finish. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
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.’