Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Blanc de Blancs Brut 1er Cru, Champagne, France [375ml HALF BOTTLE]

Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Blanc de Blancs Brut 1er Cru, Champagne, France [375ml HALF BOTTLE]

Farming: Organic

Winemaker: Didier Gimonnet

Cépages: 100% Chardonnay   

Assemblage: 70% 2016 base, with reserves from 2010-2015

Vineyard/Village:  Cuis, 1er Cru  village in the Côte de Blancs

Malo: yes   

Elevage: Stainless steel; reserve wine in magnums under 1.5 atmospheres of pressure for 1-6 years   

En Tirage Aging: 48 months +

Didier Gimonnet is the second generation of growers to direct this superb estate, with 28 hectares of holdings in grand and premier cru villages, predominantly in the Côte de Blancs. The winery is in the premier cru village of Cuis where Didier’s family has been growing grapes since 1750. Pierre Gimonnet, Dider’s Grandfather, started bottling estate champagnes in 1935. In addition to the 13.5 hectares in  Cuis, Gimonnet owns 11 hectares of chardonnay vines in the grand cru villages of Cramant and Chouilly, plus another hectare in Oger and two in Vertus. Gimonnet also owns half a hectare of pinot noir, split between the grand cru of Aÿ and 1er cru of Mareuil-sur-Aÿ.

The high percentage of old vines at this estate sets it apart in a  region suffering from a plethora of very young vineyards. Seventy percent of Gimonnet’s holdings are over 30 years old, of which some forty percent are over 40 years old, with 100+-year-old vines in the lieux-dits of Le Fond du Bateau, planted in 1911, and Buisson planted in  1913, both in the Grand Cru village of Cramant. 

“Cramant,” says Gimonnet, is “very expressive and round;” Chouilly is  similar in style but slightly less concentrated; Cuis is much more  “neutral, acid, fresh, aerial:” this north-facing village is the coolest  in the Côte des Blancs. These are sappy, crunchy, refreshing chFarampachampagnesgnes  of acupuncturally tonic qualities with lingering, salty purity.