Winemaker Notes
Pale gold in color, highlighted with flecks of silver, followed by fine and elegant bubbles, creating a delicate cord. On the nose, the primary aromas are floral notes of honeysuckle and orange blossom, associated with the freshness of apple, peach wine, pear and nectarines. On the secondary aromas, there is greater complexity and richness with toasted almonds, butter biscuits expressing the maturation of this wine. Once on your palate, it is characterized by a greater complexity. Intertwined acacia honey aromas with apricot jam, candied mango and hazelnut. The finish expresses a great minerality with a remarkable length.
Blend: 80% Chardonnay, 20% Pinot Noir
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
With crystalline purity and more tension than any other wine in this year’s lineup, Vilmart’s 2016 Coeur de Cuvée has put up a stellar performance. Disgorged in September 2022 with a dosage of seven grams per liter, it hails from 60-year-old vines in the lieu-dit Les Blanches Voies—the same five-hectare vineyard that provides their Blanc de Blancs. Matured in 228-liter barrels, mostly from Damy, it wafts from the glass with a deep bouquet of lemon zest, white flowers and green apple. Taut and incisive, with impressive mid-palate amplitude, racy acidity and ample chalky structuring extract, it culminates with a long, saline finish. Rating: 95+
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Wine Spectator
Notes of honeysuckle and lime blossoms, blood orange peel, anise and cardamom are a fragrant overtone heralding this fresh Champagne, which shows good tension and drive. The refined, chalky mousse is lacy in texture, buoying finely meshed flavors of ripe apricot and quince paste, raw almond, vanilla wafer and candied ginger. Ends with a long, mouthwatering finish. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
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Vinous
The 2016 Brut Coeur de Cuvée is an elegant, sensual Champagne. In other words, classic Vilmart. Crushed flowers, mint, chalk, slate, dried herbs and citrus peel are all beautifully delineated. Brisk acids wrap it all together in style. The 2016 needs a few years to be at its most expressive, as it is pretty reserved today. Even so, all the elements are impeccably put together. The barrels used here are one to three years old. Dosage is 7 grams per liter. Disgorged: September, 2022.
Rating: 94+
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.’