BLACK CHALK
2020 Inversion
Grapes | Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir |
Colour | White |
Origin | United Kingdom, English Sparkling Wine |
ABV | 12.5% |
Full bottle 1,623 g. 83% Pinot Noir, 17% Pinot Meunier from clones 777 (the majority), 386, 521, 817, hand-picked from the Upper Level vineyard of their Hampshire estate. Each clone is picked and vinified separately. Clone 777, winemaker Zoe Driver tells me (with her eyes shining), is amazing: powerful, robust, very expressive. No fining, no malo. 97% stainless steel, 3% old French oak (just one barrel). Dosage 6.3 g/l, TA 7.8 g/l, pH 2.9, total added sulphites 59 mg/l. Bottle number one of 1,939 bottles produced. In striking contrast to its Blanc de Blancs stablemate, this Black Chalk Blanc de Noirs is first of all a story of texture, and baritone pitch. It has the deep-gravel voice of a storyteller by the fireside. The tempo is slower, more measured, more thoughtful. It's the adagio to the Paragon's allegro. The soft husk of roasted chestnuts, hazelnut and Sichuan pepper precedes the fruit, and the fruit is red, it's cherry, it's blood-orange pith, it's fresh strawberries tossed with black olives. It's chiaroscuro underpinned by a purr of bitterness and the bubbles are fine and so silky you could wear them to bed. Drinking range: 2024 - 2034 Rating: 17.5 Tamlyn Currin - www.JancisRobinson.com (May 2024)
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*Case price discount: Mix any 12 bottles of wine (or 9 litre equivalent) or 6 bottles of Champagne, Spirits, Sweet Wine or Fortified (4.5 litres) to get the discounted 'case price' for each bottle.
Surprisingly pale for a Blanc de Noirs, the wine opens with fresh white currants, lemon, and pale-yellow Reine Claude plum. These notions almost have a sherbet-like quality, bright and very fresh. It is on the palate that the structure of Pinot Noir comes through, with a richer, textural backdrop, reminiscent of the tender, velvety surface of a fresh oyster mushroom. The yeasty backdrop is most subtle, very elegant, and pervaded by ripe-lemon freshness. Nothing here leans on autolysis or obvious oak, in an exceptionally pure and delicate Pinot Noir that comes with a straight but graceful backbone. Blanc de Noirs, but certainly not as we normally know it. Rating: 94 Anne Krebiehl MW, Vinous.com (Aug 2024)
Their 'Blanc de Noirs', but not to emulate Champagne! 26 months on lees, and based around the 777 Pinot Noir clone - one that Jacob and Zoe are slightly obsessed with. 'The best base wine I've ever tasted' says Zoe. Quite a serious but charming, approachable nose. Red fruit, cherry pie and rose, lavender and blood orange. So evidently Pinot Noir. This is the epitome of a 'vinous' sparkling wine - and one to be savoured and, though charming now, will continue to evolve into something very special if you can resist its charms. L&S (Sep 2024)
Alcohol 12.5% Total Acidity 7.8g/l Dosage 6.3g/l
Vineyard Upper levels Clones 777, 386, 521, 817
83% Pinot Noir 17% Pinot Meunier
Vintage Report Spring began early, with March and April not only seeing above-average temperatures but also unusually high sunshine hours. The vines rocketed out of dormancy and saw bud burst more than two weeks earlier than usual. The favourable climate continued, and we had our earliest ever picking, starting on September 29th, with the harvest complete by October 10th – this is approximately 5 days earlier than the harvest usually begins! The favourable growing season meant an early harvest and optimal ripeness in the grapes.
Tasting Notes Our newly released Inversion 2020 is a rare gem, with only 1,939 bottles crafted. This Blanc de Noir style wine is a symphony of elegance and power, showcasing a blend of 97% stainless steel-aged wine and 3% aged in 5-year-old Burgundian barrels. We use some of our favourite Pinot Noir clones to craft Inversion — 777, 386, 521, 817 — all rooted in Upper Levels soil which contributes to its complexity and depth. Notably, the Pinot Noir 777 clone dominates the blend, constituting 67% and lending its robust, powerful character to the wine. To elevate its aromatic power, we’ve employed specialist yeast strain “Spark”, chosen for its remarkable finesse. With no Malolactic fermentation and no fining, our approach to winemaking is one of minimal intervention, allowing us to showcase what great Pinot’s can do in this part of the UK. Powerful and expressive on the palate and jam packed with red fruit; Inversion has a definite grown up edge but it’s acidic back bone (the hallmark for all our wines) really cleanses the palate. A truly special wine.Winemaker's notes (Sep 2024)
Black Chalk
Black Chalk is the passion project of Jacob Leadley. Started in 2015, who started making wines in this beautiful corner of the Test Valley in Hampshire when he was still making wine at Hattingley. The first wines were released in 2018, and in 2020 his assistant at Hattingley, Zoe Driver, joined him and they've never looked back
Here, they are making some of the most exciting wines in England, in a meticulous and charmingly nerdy fashion. Across the 4 vineyards they own, they are working with 34 clones of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Précoce, and Pinot Gris, each with their own profile. However, most important of all is the solid chalk found beneath the shallow soils here. Many fishermen will recognise the Test Valley, famed for its chalk streams, but this great hunk of chalk beneath the vineyards is key to the purity and precision found in these wines.
We are incredibly excited to be working with these elegant, unique wines, made by a small but incredibly passionate team.
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