Importer Anima Vinum, located in the Moema neighborhood in São Paulo, and which brings incredible labels from small Champagne producers, held the second edition of the Champagne Festival on 11/26! They brought 3 producers from different regions to Brazil, and we had the opportunity to chat with them and taste some of their amazing labels, in a lively party with good music, oysters and lots of bubbles! So of course we prepared a story to tell you the details... Good reading!
Champagne Thierry Massin – Starting in 1977, they have 12ha in Côte des Bar, Ville Sur Arce (limestone clay soil, the same as Chablis) managed by the two founding brothers, and their sons Thibault and Violaine (whom I had the pleasure of meeting) and talk about this terroir and about its champagnes made with excellence). They have the HVE seal of environmental commitment, and make all the production work as sustainable as possible (there are many challenges in this conversion) and are not yet certified in this aspect, but the sustainability commitment of this family winery is enormous. One of the techniques used is the early pruning of the vines, which avoids the need to intervene with pesticides. We tasted 3 examples (all with malolactic fermentation): To start with, Brut Sélection - 100% Pinot Noir (dominant grape in the region and in the plantation of these producers - 70% of their 12ha). Champagne that brings the elegance of Pinot Noir, with excellent persistence and interesting and balanced acidity.
The second label was a contrast that surprised me: Brut Mélodie – 100% Chardonnay (only 15% from its plantation). I think it was my favorite... it brought a lot of creaminess, complexity, which blew me away! I paired it with a fried aperitif with raw salmon, providing a wonderful composition in the mouth (acidity of the champagne with frying... be sure to try it! Salmon, classic. To finish off the tasting of this producer, Brut Prestige, a blend of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay – Mineral + complex = wonderful balance and very well made! Closing with a gold key.
This producer, in addition to using the 3 main varieties of Champagne (Pinot Noir, Meunier and Chardonnay), plants all the permitted varieties (Arbane, Petit Meslier, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris). Champagne Jeaunaux-Robin, since 1971 in a region little known to many, between Côte des Blancs and Côte de Sézanne: Vallée du Petit Morin. Terroir limestone clay with presence in parts of this terroir of a sedimentary rock called Flint, which dictates some characteristics of the region. With slopes facing south (they receive more sun) and a territory that is very favorable for Chardonnay and Meunier grapes, the couple Cyril and Clémence (who I had the honor of meeting and talking to) carry out a work in this Domaine that really surprised me. We tasted two labels with low dosage (which I particularly like), without malolactic fermentation and with partial passage through the barrel. For starters, a Brut Nature Fil de Brume, 80% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Noir with limestone clay soil with large flint rocks and 40-year-old vines. Production of just 2,000 bottles of a blend from the 2015 and 2016 vintages and with 25% of the base wine passing through barrels over 10 years old, and staying in the cellar for over 3 years. A surprising champagne, with acidity characteristic of the region in perfect balance, citrus and fresh!
The second label from this producer was an Extra Brut Éclat de Meuliere, 60% Meunier, 30% Pinot Noir and 10% Chardonnay – perhaps my favorite of the night! The passage of 25% in old barrels and the characteristics of Meunier brought notes such as vanilla, which I really like, in addition to the creaminess in the mouth and acidity at the ideal point. Dosage of 5.5g/L, 2016 and 2017 harvests (majority) of 45-year-old vines. Champagne R. Pouillon et Fils: Founded in 1947, with 7ha of vines, this producer develops sustainable cultivation, and in 2021 obtained the organic certificate. It is innovative and uses techniques such as the planting of wheat, barley, corn and sugar beet in the rows between its vines: the so-called regenerative agriculture (producing by recovering the soil), and it counts on the help of its Tango horse in the cultivation (Click here to know more about how these Champagne horses play such an important role). Both the bottles and the papers on the labels are recycled, and he uses native yeasts to ferment the base wine of his champagnes. We tasted 4 labels from this producer who is located in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, in the Grande Vallée de la Marne, with plots in this region, in addition to plots in nearby regions such as Ay, Epernay and Mutigny, totaling 40. In addition to champagnes, they also produce still white and red wines (Coteaux Champenois Blanc and Rouge). The first label was the Extra Brut Reserve, 65% Pinot Noir, 20% Meunier and 15% Chardonnay, aged in barrels and 25% of wines from its perpetual reserve (there is also an article about this). This blend is composed of 5 different terroirs (in all of them Pinot Noir is the dominant variety) and a dosage of 5g/L. A starter wine that already shows the style of the producer: elegant, intense and attracts attention.
The second label was another Extra Brut, this time a Blanc de Blancs: Les Terres Froids – 100% Chardonnay from a plot in the Premier Cru de Tauxières terroir in Montagne de Reims which is across the Bouzy (a region famous for Pinot Noir and its still red wines – Bouzy Rouge). This “other side” are hills facing north where Chardonnay expresses itself very well in the region’s calcareous clay soil, producing this creamy and silky blanc de blancs made with 20% reserve wines with passage through barrels and the rest of the base wines. of the 2016 harvest.
The third label was my great tasting curiosity, after having studied about the Solera system in Champagne, which is often also called Réserve Perpetuelle. Extra Brut Solera – 50% Chardonnay 50% Pinot Noir produced in barrel (a single one) with 18 different vintages, from 1997 to 2014 from the Premier Cru village that is the headquarters of this producer: Mareuil-sur-Aÿ. Of course, I was completely blown away! “The antithesis of vintage that offers a timeless vision of this terroir” as the producer himself says! To close the tasting, 1er Cru Brut Rosé de Maceration – 100% Pinot Noir also from Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, is produced with a short maceration of the skin, which gives us an indescribable, lively, intense color. Harvests 2016 (20%) and 2017 (80%) and dosage of 7g/L is a unique experience in all senses: visual, smell and taste. Elegant and with body, but without weighing it down or taking away the delicacy of a beautiful rosé champagne.
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