Winemaker Notes
A subtle and lightly dosed blend of Champagne's three grape varieties - a return to basics.
Blend: 60% Pinot Meunier, 30% Chardonnay, 10% Pinot Noir
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The NV Champagne Ultradition Extra Brut is based on the 2022 vintage with 50% reserve wine, and the blend is 60% Meunier, 30% Chardonnay, and the rest Pinot Noir. Disgorged in September 2024, with 4 grams per liter dosage, it pours a pale straw/silver color. It’s beautiful and fruity upfront, with loads of fresh black raspberries and red fruit, accompanied by a salty freshness reminiscent of cherries and salted chocolate. Refreshing, clean, and medium-bodied, it has fantastic value. What a fabulous entry wine in the range for this year; it combines intellectual thought with ease of enjoyment and is a true value wine.
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James Suckling
Lovely orange and raspberry fruit on the nose, with some candied citrus and brioche. Very bright, fruity and full of joy, with lively acidity and fine bubbles. 60% meunier, 30% chardonnay and 10% pinot noir. Based on 2022, with 50% reserve wine.
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Vinous
The NV Extra Brut Ultradition is a very pretty, gracious wine consisting of a blend of 60% Pinot Meunier, 30% Chardonnay and 10% Pinot Noir from eight vineyard sources. Perfumed floral and spice notes give the Ultradition lovely brightness to match its mid-weight, notably vinous personality. Orchard fruit, chamomile, dried herbs, mint and crushed rocks are all wonderfully expressive, if a bit light. This is an especially nuanced edition. Dosage is 4.5 grams pe liter.
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.’