Vilmart & Cie | Grand Cellier Premier Cru (Magnum) – NV

Detailed Description

Youthful straw colour with a vivid mousseux. Youthful nose, some gently toasted notes, crushed nuts, brioche, citrus, lime and lemongrass. Pure and vinous style with good purity and precision, a gentle creaminess, bright acidity and layers of fresh stone fruit with some autolytic complexity, and a long and lingering finish.

Reviews:

• Wine Spectator: A mouthwatering Champagne that shows seamless integration of the plush and creamy mousse, rapierlike acidity and expressive range of peach, chopped nut, ripe green apple, star anise and honeysuckle aromas and flavors that persist on the long finish.

• Jeb Dunnuck: Made from 70% Chardonnay and the remainder Pinot Noir, the NV Champagne Grand Cellier Brut was raised for 10 months in large foudre before spending 30 months sur latte. The nose is rounded and soft, with a delicate perfume of vanilla pastry, Anjou pear, and white flowers. The palate is rounded but dry, with citrus zest that lifts through the modest finish.

Producer Information

Champagne Vilmart is a Champagne house situated in the small village of Rilly la Montagne in the heart of the Montagne de Reims. It was founded in 1890 by Desiré Vilmart and has passed down the family since. Vilmart produces wines from 11 hectares (27 acres) of vineyards in and around the village, with about 60-percent planted to Chardonnay and 40-percent to Pinot Noir. It is a so-called “grower” Champagne house, which means it only makes wines from vineyard plots that it owns, rather than buying in grapes, which is common for the larger houses. Vilmart’s standard cuvée is Chardonnay-dominant, with Pinot Noir contributing around 30-percent. On top of this, the house produces a range of other wines, including the flagship Grand Cellier d’Or vintage wine, also Chardonnay-dominant, made from the oldest plots of vines. The base wine is aged for 10 months in 228-liter oak barrels before the secondary fermentation. There are numerous other wines including the Rubis rosé.