LARMANDIER-BERNIER
Rosé de Saignée Extra Brut Vertus NV
| Grapes | Pinot Noir |
| Colour | Rosé |
| Origin | France, Champagne |
| Other | Certified Organic, Bio-dynamic |
| Village | Vertus |
| ABV | 12.5% |
This is a genuine 'rosé de saignée' made only from Pinot Noir. Grapes are destemmed and left to macerate for about two days before the juice is bled off for fermentation. The wine is matured on the lees over winter, and after being aged in the cellars is given only a very discreet 'dosage' (3 grams of sugar). Full bodied, elegant and very pure flavours. L&S (Jan 2007)
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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.
Vertus single vineyard, co-planted to 85% pinot noir and 15% pinot gris; old vines harvested ripe at low yields; grapes are selected on a sorting table, partially destemmed and cold macerated for 2–3 days for colour without tannin before wild fermentation in tanks or concrete eggs; 100% 2018 vintage, though not labelled as a vintage since it is only aged 2 years on lees; disgorged January 2021; cork
This rosé is a paradox of the highest order, a salute to the genius of its maker and the depth of old-vine sources. How a 100% Côte des Blancs rosé from an elegant east-facing Vertus site can land midway between a graceful champagne rosé and an expressive red cherry pinot noir is truly astounding. Pierre Larmandier set out to make ‘a rosé, not a white champagne with colour’, marrying the power of pinot noir with the elegance of the village and, goodness, has he done it! ‘We are different,’ he says. ‘We don’t make pinot with just red fruit,’ referring to 10% (by vine count) of pinot gris, co-planted among his pinot noir in 2003. ‘Pinot gris brings more complexity and more florals than fruit,’ he reveals.
As characterful and alluring as ever, this is a rosé that presents all the juicy, fragrant flamboyance of pinot noir and enlivens it with the floral and tropical exuberance of pinot gris. A medium crimson hue with a salmon tint, introducing a bouquet abounding in poached red cherries, musk incense, wild strawberries, fresh raspberries and fragrant red apples. The palate adds rose petal fragrance and cracked pink pepper to its evocative associations. There’s a juicy, enticing, ripe vintage 2018 immediacy to the palate that is masterfully and intricately toned not so much by ripe, perfectly intertwined acidity, but by the graceful poise of wonderfully massaged, super fine tannin/phenolic interplay that meshes perfectly with the saline chalk minerality of Vertus to compelling effect. Wild fermentation and lees age unite to bring a silky, creamy allure to a long finish of wonderfully perfumed lift. The pure and generous 2018 season is perfectly aligned to saignée rosé, translated in exacting detail by Larmandier, making for one of the greats in the fabled lineage of this beloved grower.
Tasted 2023 Rating: 94 Tyson Stelzer - The Champagne Guide
90% pinot noir, 10% pinot gris, coplanted old vines; partially destemmed and macerated for four days (usually three); 100% base vintage, though not labelled as a vintage since it is only aged 2 years on lees; wild fermented in stainless-steel vats and two concrete eggs; no oak until 2022; 2g/L dosage
This rosé is a paradox of the highest order, a salute to the genius of its maker and the depth of old-vine sources. How a 100% Côte des Blancs rosé from an elegant east-facing Vertus site can land midway between a graceful champagne rosé and an expressive red cherry pinot noir is truly astounding. Pierre Larmandier set out to make ‘a rosé, not a white champagne with colour’, marrying the power of pinot noir with the elegance of the village and, goodness, has he done it! ‘We are different,’ he says. ‘We don’t make pinot with just red fruit,’ referring to 10% (by vine count) of pinot gris, co-planted among his pinot noir in 2003. ‘Pinot gris brings more complexity and more florals than fruit,’ he reveals.
A full crimson hue anticipates a particularly ripe Rosé de Saignée. This is an exotic and flamboyant style in which the pinot gris builds lift and tropical dimension. Tangy cranberry, redcurrant and persimmon characters contrast cracked pink pepper, even notes of potpourri and dried flowers. Firm fine tannins scaffold a style that will appreciate protein.
Tasted 2023 Rating: 92 Tyson Stelzer - The Champagne Guide
Certified organic and biodynamic. Fruit from Vertus. A very dark colour – almost red. Roses and rose-hip fragrance. This is exactly like the love child of Chiaretto and vermouth. Bitter orange, sour cherry, maraschino, blood orange and cinnamon. Nothing delicate about this spirited, audacious wine. Thrilling. Drinking range: 2024 - 2030 Rating: 17.5 Tamlyn Currin - www.JancisRobinson.com (May 2024)
Champagne Larmandier-Bernier
Pierre and Sophie Larmandier and their sons Arthur and now Georges too (joined September 2021) are determined to make wines as true as possible to their origins in their different vineyards. These are split into around fifty separate parcels spread across the Côte des Blancs in the grand cru villages of Cramant, Chouilly, Oger and Avize, and the premier cru of Vertus.
All but three of the parcels (representing 0.5 hectares) are farmed using non-officially certified biodynamic methods. Wines are made only from their own 15 hectares of vines, which are on average 33 years old. All of their Champagnes are the purest expressions of Chardonnay.
Working only with natural yeasts the influence of 'terroir' is all important to the style of his wines, so much so that he uses a minimum 'dosage' (if at all) so as not to mask the wines natural characteristics.
Pierre has recently changed the 'Tradition' cuvée, re-launching it as 'Latitude', and it is now also a Blanc de Blancs, with its origins in the vineyards south of Vertus. The old 'Blanc de Blancs cuvée, which is known henceforth as 'Longitude', comes exclusively from vineyards on the Cote de Blancs itself and is classified Premier Cru'.
The Pinot Noir is now reserved exclusively for Pierre's distinctive dark rosé and for the Vertus Rouge Coteaux Champenois.
Awarded the Robert Parker Green emblem in July 2021.
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