What’s a Grand Cru?
The top wine producing areas of France classify their vineyard areas according to the quality of wine they have historically produced, the nature of their soils, their aspects and more. These classifications are always the subject of lively debate but they tend to stand the test of time, and so it is in Champagne.
The capital of the Champagne region is Epernay, which lies about 60km north-east of Paris. Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, to give the area its full name, lies about 13km south of Epernay in the heart of the Côte de Blancs. This is Chardonnay country, and the style is Blanc de Blancs: wines made from Chardonnay alone rather than from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.
Mesnil-sur-Oger is one of the great crus in this grand cru area, and produces two of the most famous and exclusive champagnes:
- The House of Salon makes a tiny 50,000 bottles a year from over 40-year-old vines. Only one wine is made: Salon S Cuvée Blanc de Blancs, and it’s a vintage champagne (made from single years rather than a blend of years). That means Salon only produces the S Cuvée in good years. In the 100 years of itrs existence, the house has released just 37 vintages under the Salon label. The cost of a single bottle is A$800 or more.
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19023286
- The House of Krug makes a wine called Clos de Mesnil from an ancient walled 17th century vineyard, the most exalted Chardonnay sparkling plot on earth which makes the most expensive wine at around A$1500 a bottle. The house is part of LVMH – Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the French luxury goods conglomerate.
Best Champagne under $100?
We pride ourselves on finding great wines for $25 or less, but we all have special occasions to celebrate that force us to dig a little deeper. The good news is that you can get a taste of the fabled Le Mesnil area for less than $100 a bottle, because our friends at Winedirect are now importing 3 wines from a cooperative of over 500 growers in Mesnil-sur-Oger established in 1937. There are some 19,000 growers in Champagne; most sell their grapes to the big houses – Moët, Veuve Cliquot, Mumm, but over a quarter of the growers make their own champagne.
The other good news is that the $83 Le Mesnil Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs NV is a knock-out. They say that most champagne houses stand and fall by their non-vintage wines, the bulk of their output. These wines are carefully blended to achieve a ‘house style.’ There’s a lot if flavour and complexity on offer for a Blanc de Blancs, ranging from warm bread and cool chalk to nuts and minerals. It’s crisp yet creamy and shows perfect balance. Utterly seductive.
For me, the $99 Le Mesnil Sublime Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs 2007 had a very slight edge in finesse and vibrant life. In fact, it’s surprisingly fresh and youthful for a 2007, and shows more quality than the vintage has been given credit for. Lovely style, and my wine mates emptied the bottle in record time.
Le Mesnil Prestige Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs 2005 comes with a $120 price tag, and raises the ante in terms of body, rich flavour and creamy texture. It’s a champagne you can enjoy with rich foods like chicken or pork in a cream and mushroom sauce, or even with a good brie that isn’t too ripe. I prefer to drink champagne on its own, therefore I prefer the 2007 and the NV – that’s just me.
These wines are a fascinating change from the huge yet finely crafted blends served up by the big houses.
Source: the Wine Folly
Kim
