Champagne Pierre Baillette Coeur de Craie Verzenay Extra Brut (2018)
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Tasting notes
This Blanc de Noirs comes from a 0.28-hectare Grand Cru plot of Pinot Noir in Verzenay, Le Pertois (the vineyard was in fact a gift from her ex-husband, Alexandre Chartogne of Chartogne-Taillet). Pure Pinot Noir, the base wine spent 10 months in 500-litre oak. As with the Coeur de Craie Trois-Puits, the wine is labelled as non-vintage but is in fact from 2018. After around three years on the lees, the wine was disgorged in June 2022. This was a real highlight of our tasting – a gastronomic, powerful wine that deserves both time and food to be savoured. It is much more than an apéritif with a steely firmness and mineral backbone that lends the wine austerity, yet more delicate fruit adds flesh, with the bite of greengage and crunchy peach, as well as honeysuckle and shortbread. It’s balanced and broad – a wine that will benefit greatly from further ageing and time in the glass. The dosage is particularly low here, with 1.5g/l.
Critic scores
Average Score
Anne Krebiehl MW, Vinous
Richard Juhlin
More reviews and scores
Cœur de Craie Verzenay is a 100% Pinot Noir with a love story behind it. The grapes grow on the plot "Le Pertois" which Périne received as a wedding gift from her husband Alexandre Chartogne. It's a unique vineyard on the hillside below the Verzenay lighthouse, apparently with 100-year-old ungrafted vines that escaped the the wine louse. Grape must from the first pressing of the fully ripe Pinot-Noir grapes has undergone spontaneous fermentation and aged in 500-liter oak barrels before bottling. A very different richness and power than the 2016. There's even a dash of sesame oil here that Alex Chartogne probably helps with. Broad-brushed Pinot with a steely and powdery minerality beneath the surface. Best after 2030.
The NV (2018) Extra Brut Coeur de Craie de Verzenay Grand Cru is a pure Pinot Noir harvested in the Le Pertois parcel in Verzenay, fermented in 500-liter barrels. Cream, lemon, shortbread and Mirabelle shine expansively on the nose. The palate continues these aromas and shows lovely depth, frothy mousse and highlight creaminess. It offers textured, echoing depth. This has real traction, just the mousse could be finer. Dosage is 3.5gr/L. Disgorged: December, 2022.
About the producer
Now in the hands of Périne Baillette, this small property in the Montagne de Reims is making some of the most exciting grower Champagne today. Farmed organically and focusing on single-site wines, these are vinous, mineral terroir-driven Champagnes that offer exceptional value.
Product details
12.5%
Blanc De Noirs
Grand Cru