Domaine Les Monts Fournois

Champagne, France

Montagne Verzy Grand Cru — 2014

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  • Introduction

    • WINERY Born in Champagne in a grower’s family, Juliette Alips rapidly found her passion. With the mentorship of her close cousins, Raphaël and Vincent Bérêche, she discovered and learned all the ins and outs of producing champagne, from farming, to vinification, tasting and blending. Now, with the help of her two cousins, she is starting this new adventure with Domaine Les Monts Fournois. Located in the north part of the Montagne de Reims, in the sub-area called La Grande Montagne, the Premier Cru Les Monts Fournois will be the focus of the domaine.

      WINE Le Domaine les Monts Fournois is presenting here this cuvée after a rigorous and precise search for the best terroirs of Premier and Grand Crus in Champagne. With these wines we would like to highlight the real expression of a terroir, a varietal and a vintage. These Crus have been sélectionnés by Juliette Alips and her cousins Raphaël & Vincent Bérêche.

  • Vineyard Profile

    • The Verzy Grand Cru is located on the slope of the Montagne de Reims, Southeast of the town of Reims. Most of the vineyards are on north-facing slopes and are planted mainly to Pinot Noir. Verzy was promoted from Premier Cru to Grand Cru in 1985 alongside Chouilly, Oiry, Oger, and Le Mesnil sur Oger.

    • Appellation: Montagne de Reims
    • Location: Champagne
    • Cultivation: Sustainable
    • Soil: Chalk and clay
    • Exposure: East-facing
  • Vintage Report

    • 2014 was a tricky, yet successful vintage. Spring was warm and dry with budburst and flowering happening in great conditions. Summer proved to be quite cool and wet causing concern for potential rot. Steady breezes helped to mitigate any rot threats and conditions became more dry again in the second half of August. Harvest occured in September, as warm dry conditions helped the grapes finish ripening. The wines are balanced with fruit alcohol and acid.

  • Vinification

    • After Juliette and her cousins select the cuvée by blind tasting with a broker, the family will purchase the entire lot of Champagne from the producer. Juliette will then proceed with a series of disgorgement and liqueur de tirage trials in the cellar using Rectified Concentrated Must (RCM) for its homogenous and neutral flavors, in order to highlight the terroir. Once the dosage has been made, the samples will return to the cellar for 6 months before being released to the market.

    • Malolactic: 100%
    • Aging: 10 years on the lees
    • Bottled: May 7, 2015
    • Disgorged: November 2024 - “Fruit day”
  • Technical Information

    • Varietal Composition: 50% Pinot Noir; 50% Chardonnay
    • Alcohol: 12.5%
    • TA: 4.55 g/L
    • RS: 2.3 g/L
  • Tasting Notes

    • Smooth, creamy, and golden, the nose of this 2014 vintage is full-bodied. Its rich fruitiness reveals full maturity. The fine, discreet effervescence transports us to a realm of elegance and refinement. Notes of flint mark the origin of this historic Verzy terroir. The long finish, both saline and chalky, confirms the exceptional terroir and quality of this Verzy 2014.