Laherte FrèresChavot-Courcourt, Côteaux Sud d'Épernay
Producer profile
PL this biodynamic producer farms 45 different parcels in the village of Chavot-Courcourt alone and presses each of them separately because of the "fine-grained distinctions of terroir". Other grapes come from 10 nearby villages with family-owned vineyards totaling 11 hectares. Laherte family has been growing vines here since 1889. "Our wines show more influence of clay than those in the Côte des Blancs do, yet they're chalkier than those of the Vallée de la Marne". Les 7 is a blend of all seven authorized champagne grape varieties: pinot noir, meunier, chardonnay, arbanne, petit meslier, pinot gris, and pinot blanc, from a single vineyard and is made as a perpetual cuvee dating back to 2005. "Racy, lively" with a "fierce acidity of arbanne and petit meslier" and "rich body and complex minerality derived from the parcel's thick layer of clay, limestone, and sedimentary soil above the chalky bedrock". Another single-vineyard cuvée called Les Beaudiers is made entirely from meunier from vines as old as 1950s, it is a "pungent and deeply colored saignée rosé", a "concentrated and meaty champagne." Les Vignes d'Autrefois is also pure meunier from 50-75 year-old vines. "Laherte makes a wide range of wines, all of which are worth seeking out". TyS "a large portfolio of cuvées that preserve the detail of its terroirs in wines of taut, linear persistence, and at times assertive structure". Chavot vins clairs have "distinctive saltiness, glassy chalk minerality and north-facing freshness". Laherte "adopted an ecological approach", half-biodynamic, half-organic with plowing by horse and natural pesticides and herbicides. More than 80% of parcels are fermented in oak that varies from Alsace foudres to Montrachet and red Burgundy barrels. ToS 85, "the wines are largely vinified in oak barrels and vats, giving them an earthy note and additional richness of texture. Partial or no malo enhances the brightness and succulence of the fruit."
PL this biodynamic producer farms 45 different parcels in the village of Chavot-Courcourt alone and presses each of them separately because of the "fine-grained distinctions of terroir". Other grapes come from 10 nearby villages with family-owned vineyards totaling 11 hectares. Laherte family has been growing vines here since 1889. "Our wines show more influence of clay than those in the Côte des Blancs do, yet they're chalkier than those of the Vallée de la Marne". Les 7 is a blend of all seven authorized champagne grape varieties: pinot noir, meunier, chardonnay, arbanne, petit meslier, pinot gris, and pinot blanc, from a single vineyard and is made as a perpetual cuvee dating back to 2005. "Racy, lively" with a "fierce acidity of arbanne and petit meslier" and "rich body and complex minerality derived from the parcel's thick layer of clay, limestone, and sedimentary soil above the chalky bedrock". Another single-vineyard cuvée called Les Beaudiers is made entirely from meunier from vines as old as 1950s, it is a "pungent and deeply colored saignée rosé", a "concentrated and meaty champagne." Les Vignes d'Autrefois is also pure meunier from 50-75 year-old vines. "Laherte makes a wide range of wines, all of which are worth seeking out". TyS "a large portfolio of cuvées that preserve the detail of its terroirs in wines of taut, linear persistence, and at times assertive structure". Chavot vins clairs have "distinctive saltiness, glassy chalk minerality and north-facing freshness". Laherte "adopted an ecological approach", half-biodynamic, half-organic with plowing by horse and natural pesticides and herbicides. More than 80% of parcels are fermented in oak that varies from Alsace foudres to Montrachet and red Burgundy barrels. ToS 85, "the wines are largely vinified in oak barrels and vats, giving them an earthy note and additional richness of texture. Partial or no malo enhances the brightness and succulence of the fruit."
Tasting notes
Ultradition Brut. Base 2014 with 40% from perpetual cuvée started in 2004. 60% pinot meunier, 30% chardonnay, 10% pinot noir. Fermented in oak barrels, 6-8g dosage. Vigorous cork with a pretty plaque de muselet in fashionable beige. Wine is bright yellow like a ripe Bartlett pear and has a sweet aspect. Purchased with Wolf & Tailor takeout in summer 2020 for $52. ⭐
All photos and tasting notes are by @gaiwanstyle
Producer profiles and wine details are from books by Peter Liem (PL), Tyson Stelzer (TyS), and Tom Stevenson (ToS)
Producer profiles and wine details are from books by Peter Liem (PL), Tyson Stelzer (TyS), and Tom Stevenson (ToS)