In Champagne there are hundreds of villages that produce the grapes that make up the wines of small producers and large houses. Seventeen of them have a special classification: Grand Cru. They are villages of great prestige and quality, named after the old Échelle des crus, created in 1911 to define the prices and qualities of the grapes. These quality/price concepts being defined by Échelle fell apart in 2003. Many unclassified villas have a unique quality. But the fact is that, regardless of that, the villages classified as Grand Cru are exceptional, and today we are going to talk about one of them: Verzy and, why not, also its 'sister village', Verzenay, connected by an umbilical cord of just over 2 km, represented by the regional road D26. Verzenay receives the same Grand Cru rating.
Invited by the producers Alexandre and his wife Martine (who already lived in Brazil for a year), we left Reims towards Verzy, this small and prestigious village in Montagne de Reims. Upon arriving there, many vineyards of great maisons such as Veuve Clicquot, and of the small producers like the one we had the pleasure of visiting: Penet Chardonnet. The Penet family started producing champagnes in 1930, acquiring in 1940 the mansion that today is still the production headquarters and producer's home. In 1967, from the marriage of Christian Penet with Marie Chardonnet, Maison Penet Chardonnet emerged, adding the Verzenay vines that belonged to her family, totaling 6ha of Grand Cru vineyards of its production.
The house is currently run by the 4th generation of the family, winemaker Alexandre Penet, who today has 15 unique labels that perfectly express the ‘micro terroirs’ of these villages.
The villages of Verzy and Verzenay are very close and feature the majority of Pinot Noir plantations, as well as Maison Penet, with 2/3 of its hectares of this variety. Among its 15 copies, a Single Vineyard Vintage line was made, the Lieux-Dits, with the best of its 'plots' in exceptional years: a separate spectacle that allows you to understand the soil with great purity: none of the champagnes undergoes fermentation malolactic acidity, to preserve the natural and characteristic acidity.
In addition, some entry-level champagnes from the 'Alexandre Penet' line, which mature for at least 3 years (minimum for NV is 12 months on leas) are surprising for their elegance and subtlety, such as the Extra Brut Premier Cru (Pinot and Chardonnay from Verzy and Verzenay, and Meunier Premier Cru) which passes through barrels in the reserve perpetuelle system, which imparts woody aromas to the blend, but with a lot of lightness. The jewels of the house, its prestigious cuvées, are a unique experience. Both tasted are from the 2009 vintage: Coline & Candice (name of the couple's daughters) and Diane Claire. Speaking of my favorite of the 12 we tasted: Coline & Candice 2009: a production of just 3,000 bottles, bottled in May 2010 and with its dégorgement only in 2020. An Extra Brut Single Cru – grapes only from Verzy – 50% of each variety , Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, aged in barrels and with an indescribable flavor. vel! Evolved aromas, elegant body and presence, but without failing to show the lightness of acidity and the purity of the clayey limestone soil and the famous pure and soft 'chalk', characteristic of Montagne de Reims - in other regions it can be firmer. as in the Côte des Blancs.
My dear friends and partners of this Academy project, Carlos and Luiz, also visited this little gem of Montagne de Reims, in 2019 and 2021. And when reviewing this text, they had a divergence regarding the favorite cuvée, showing that these producers manage to convey different styles making the most of the quality of these two villages. They were enchanted by the elegant complexity and purity of the lieu-dits “Croix de l’Aumonier” and “Les Epinnetes”. The care and affection with which we were received cannot be translated by the words of editors or reviewers. We thank the couple.
Anyway, I could talk for hours about this very special experience of entering the house of producers who are so passionate about what they do and who do this job so well! Unmissable! Santé, friends!!
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