Champagne Vilmart & Cie Brut 1er Cru "Grand Cellier" NV

Alcohol: 12.5%

Grape(s): 70% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir

Localization: Champagne, France

Tasting Notes: Rich and luscious, with aromas of orange blossom, mint, herbs and spice, this wine has fullness and great depth of flavor. This is a favorite food wine for it's rich and giving.

Notes: Truly a luxury Champagne. It is made from free-run juice only and is a barrel-fermented wine.

The Domain: Vilmart has been estate-bottling wine in the village of Rilly-la-Montagne since 1890. Its current proprietor, Laurent Champs, is the fifth generation of his family to make wine here.

Champs is a member of Ampelos, an organisation that certifies and promotes sustainable viticulture, and he has used no herbicides or chemical fertilisers since taking over the estate in 1989. He ferments and ages all of his wine in oak: large foudres of up to 5,500 litres for the entry-level wines, and 225- litre barriques or 600-litre casks for his top wines, the vintage-dated Coeur de Cuvée and Grand Cellier d’Or. Combined with their ripe fruit, this gives Vilmart’s Champagnes a creamy depth and complexity, although they also retain a brisk focus and poise, thanks to their avoidance of malolactic fermentation. They tend to be very closed in their youth, needing several years after release to fully reveal their character and aroma.