Brut Réserve Premier cru | Bernard Pitois

DENOMINATION: AOC Champagne
TYPE: sparkling
GRAPE VARIETY: pinot nero 60%, chardonnay 40%
REGION OF ORIGIN: France, Champagne
AGEING POTENTIAL: 3 years
SERVING TEMPERATURE: 8-10° C
GLASS: glass for Champagne
ALCOHOL: 12% vol.
SIZE: 75 cl

 

THE WINE

TECHNICAL SPECIFICS

FRESHNESS: ◼︎◼︎◼︎◼︎◻︎
BODY: ◼︎◼︎◼︎◼︎◼︎
SAPIDITY: ◼︎◼︎◼︎◼︎◻︎
SOFTNESS: ◼︎◼︎◼︎◼︎◻︎

NOTES BY OUR SOMMELIERS

👁 characterized by a deep golden yellow colour, with a lively and fine effervescence;

👃🏻 the nose reveals an open and expressive bouquet, with notes of flowers and dried fruit. Once aired, hints of cocoa, thyme and lemon emerge;

👄 the palate is vivacious and silky, the bubble is delicate. The aromatic expression extends from tangerine to dried fruit (banana, apricot) via violets. The fresh finish gives the wine good balance and persistence;

 

FOOD PAIRINGS

The Brut Réserve Premier Cru is an elegant and refined wine. It prefers dishes with a fattiness and unctuousness. Ideal with oysters and other elegant French dishes.

 
WINE-MAKING AND REFINEMENT

A blend of pinot noir and chardonnay grown a few kilometres from Epernay.
The grapes are harvested strictly by hand with careful selection.
After transportation to the vineyard and a soft crushing and destemming, the first traditional fermentation takes place, followed by the second fermentation according to the dictates of the Champenoise method.
This is followed by refinement on the lees for 48 months and then the addition of the liqueur de tirage before marketing..

 

YOU WILL LOVE IT FOR...

its elegance and balance.

 

ORIGIN

TERROIR

This is Champagne: a wine and a region, a history and a global myth; hundreds of millions of bottles produced each year. Located in the hills of the departments of Seine et Marne, Aisne, Marne Aube and Haute Marne, the vineyards of Champagne are at 49.5° north latitude, an extreme condition for viticulture.
The climate is oceanic with continental influences and the average annual temperature is just over 10° C, rising to 16° C between July and January.
The sun exposure is concentrated between July and August, the most important months for the slow ripening of the grapes, which brings a lively acidity to the wine, giving it intense, fragrant and fruity aromas. There is moderate rainfall, well distributed over the months. The soil is generally clayey and sandy, on a subsoil rich in gypsum: this is a decisive element for vine cultivation, because it acts as a perfect thermal and water regulator and does not allow excess humidity to form. 

This is the craie, the famous Champagne chalk: a crumbly, floury rock composed of fossilized marine micro-organisms, dating from the Upper Cretaceous period (i.e. almost 100 million years ago). The grapes are treated with care and expertise, with manual harvesting and subsequent soft pressing.
The pressing yield is regulated: a maximum of 2550 litres of juice can be obtained from 4000 kg of grapes. This, after an initial clarification, is sent to fermentation (separated according to the different grape varieties), which takes place between November and January. Depending on the choice of the maison, the wine may then undergo malolactic fermentation, followed by the blending of different base wines to create the cuvée, a perfect fusion of the characters of different grapes, terroirs and vintages.
The grape varieties cultivated are: chardonnay, pinot noir, pinot meunier and arbane.

WINERY

In 1878, Champagne was born into the Bénard-Pitois family. Since then, a constant desire has been passed down from generation to generation: to work the land, to manage the vineyard with respect, patience and rigour. The third generation of winegrowers in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ (a few kilometres from Epernay), Michelle and Laurent Bénard-Louis have been carrying on the tradition and managing the family estate since 1991.
Since then, many extensions and renovations combining tradition and modernity have been carried out on the estate. Michelle and Laurent are passionate about their ancestral and multifaceted profession, and use their know-how and talent to produce Champagne wines of excellent quality, appreciated in France and abroad.
The vineyard covers 9.5 hectares, classified as Grand Cru or Premier Cru, and extends over the hills of 6 villages in the Grande Vallée de la Marne and the Côte des Blancs: Avenay Val d'Or, Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, Mutigny, Bergères-lès-Vertus, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger et Oger. Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay flourish on the calcareous soil so specific to the region. The vineyard is managed in a "reasoned" manner to respect the environment and the expression of the grapes. With an average age of 25 years, the grapes express the best potential of our plots and varieties.