NV Egly-Ouriet Grand Cru

WINEMAKER: Francis Egly
REGION: Champagne, FR
VARIETAL: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay
VITICULTURE: Organic/Biodynamic

Yet another striking release of this wine, this is, as always, made exclusively from Grand Cru vines predominantly in Ambonnay, but also Bouzy and Verzenay. Again, as always, it’s 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay from low-yielding, perfectly tended vines and from grapes that have been harvested fully ripe. The old cliché—Egly starts harvesting when everyone else has finished—still holds true. Natural fermentation was with wild yeasts only and the first period of maturation (before going to bottle) lasted almost one year, with the wine remaining on its fine lees for the whole time. Over 50% of the wine was fermented and aged in oak casks. The wine clarifies slowly and naturally—as was once typical across the region—and as such there was no fining nor filtration. The dosage was at two grams per litre, so extra-brut territory.

Although this has just landed (and is therefore still tightly wound), it already offers waves of golden Pinot fruit and a dry, extract-rich, tonic close that’s nutty and saline. Super long, it’s a terrific food wine and will gain more and more depth over the next three-twelve months.

Francis Egly is a vigneron growing and crafting wines that offer remarkable intensity as well as transparency of site, from vines that are positively ancient by Champagne standards. Like all great French growers, the Egly philosophy can be defined by one word: terroir. Very low yields, old vines, only great sites, perfectly ripe fruit, extended lees aging (the Brut NV can spend up to 48 months on lees) very low or no dosage and no fining and/or filtration are all decisions taken because Egly believes that they allow his terroir to speak most clearly. These practices are identical to the finest growers in Burgundy and the polar opposite of conventional Champagne production.