Grapes: Pinot Noir
Region: Cote des Bars, Champagne, France
Viticulture: Organic
Soils: Kimmeridgian
Vinification: 1st press juice only is used
Aging: 16 months on the lees in stainless steel tanks, then bottled for 2nd fermentation, aged 16 months in bottle
Fining or Filtering: Disgorged
Sulfur: Minimal
Notes from the Importer: Cédric Bouchard had a rapid rise to Champagne stardom. Having only started his own label in 2000 after a stint as a sommelier in Paris, he quickly earned a reputation as one of Champagne’s most talented young wine producers, and was awarded the title of Champagne’s finest winemaker for the year 2008 by the Gault Millau. Bouchard began with only 1.37 hectares of vines in the village of Celles-sur-Ource in the Côte des Bar, Champagne's southern enclave of kimmeridgian-centric terroirs. His approach in the vineyards seeks to maximize quality at every step. Additionally, he farms organically, dramatically restricts yields (among the lowest in Champagne), and places extra emphasis on picking at the optimum moment.
Though pensive and reserved in nature, Bouchard embraces a revolutionary philosophy: single-vineyard, single-variety (Pinot Noir, Chardonnay or Pinot Blanc), single-vintage, zero-dosage Champagnes. Rather than blending different vineyards and vintages to make a single cuvée, as is the long-standing norm in Champagne, Bouchard prefers to make a wine that is representative of the vintage and place of origin. He seeks to create individual wines of great character every year from his single vineyard bottlings. Each wine is made only from juice from the first pressing, fermented only with indigenous yeast, and handled meticulously in the cellar to guarantee the finest wines possible. He believes in a long, slow and cool second fermentation which creates smaller, finer bubbles, and helps to enhance the vinosity of the underlying wine. The wines -- all incredibly limited -- are produced with no dosage and with the goal of allowing the unique terroir of each wine to take center stage.
