Veuve FournyVertus, Côte des Blancs
Producer profile
PL "a well-known estate in Vertus" run by fifth-generation growers brothers Emmanuel and Charles-Henry. "Largely organic" vineyard work. "About a third of the harvest is fermented in secondhand barriques." Most of the estate's vineyards are on the chalky parcels. NV Blanc de Blancs is "excellent" and the Brut Nature version is "selected from older vines that provide depth and body needed for a harmonious non-dosé." The "broad and fragrant" Grand Réserve is a blend of 80% chardonnay and 20% pinot noir. The NV Rosé is from a parcel on red clay suited to pinot noir. "Made by the saignée method, in which wine derives color from maceration on grape skins, it's a concentrated, full-bodied rosé champagne" that "almost feels like a light red wine." The vintage Brut is a "ripe, complex wine, marked by smoky, flinty chalk." The top wine is Clos Faubourg Notre Dame, from a "small and chalky parcel of chardonnay vines planted in 1951". In the center of the village and "surrounded by walls, this site yields ripe, assertive wine, its concentration amplified by low yields, fermentation in barrel, and long lees ageing." TyS 6/10. The estate's focus is primarily on Virtus terroirs. The house style is evolving towards "the riper, more exotic fruit spectrum of Vertus, resembling notes of ripe oranges, while upholding freshness and mineral focus." It's a "small company" with 9 estate hectares and 11 more providing fruit for the production. Average age of the vines is 45-48 years: "vines over 30 years transform the minerality of the chalk into the salty minerality of the wine, which we feel is very important." Wines are unfiltered, malo is selectively blocked, and barrel fermentation is key to the house style to "enhance the salty taste of the minerality" and "vaccinate" the wines against oxidation after disgorgement. The wines "display sensitive oak influence." "Demand for Veuve Fourny has put supply on allocation in every market." ToS 87 "value". "Serious, gastronomic Champagnes made with precision."
PL "a well-known estate in Vertus" run by fifth-generation growers brothers Emmanuel and Charles-Henry. "Largely organic" vineyard work. "About a third of the harvest is fermented in secondhand barriques." Most of the estate's vineyards are on the chalky parcels. NV Blanc de Blancs is "excellent" and the Brut Nature version is "selected from older vines that provide depth and body needed for a harmonious non-dosé." The "broad and fragrant" Grand Réserve is a blend of 80% chardonnay and 20% pinot noir. The NV Rosé is from a parcel on red clay suited to pinot noir. "Made by the saignée method, in which wine derives color from maceration on grape skins, it's a concentrated, full-bodied rosé champagne" that "almost feels like a light red wine." The vintage Brut is a "ripe, complex wine, marked by smoky, flinty chalk." The top wine is Clos Faubourg Notre Dame, from a "small and chalky parcel of chardonnay vines planted in 1951". In the center of the village and "surrounded by walls, this site yields ripe, assertive wine, its concentration amplified by low yields, fermentation in barrel, and long lees ageing." TyS 6/10. The estate's focus is primarily on Virtus terroirs. The house style is evolving towards "the riper, more exotic fruit spectrum of Vertus, resembling notes of ripe oranges, while upholding freshness and mineral focus." It's a "small company" with 9 estate hectares and 11 more providing fruit for the production. Average age of the vines is 45-48 years: "vines over 30 years transform the minerality of the chalk into the salty minerality of the wine, which we feel is very important." Wines are unfiltered, malo is selectively blocked, and barrel fermentation is key to the house style to "enhance the salty taste of the minerality" and "vaccinate" the wines against oxidation after disgorgement. The wines "display sensitive oak influence." "Demand for Veuve Fourny has put supply on allocation in every market." ToS 87 "value". "Serious, gastronomic Champagnes made with precision."
Tasting notes
Grande Réserve. Disgorged in May 2017. Shield-shaped label and shagreen-textured neck foil both in elegant black. First scent is nougat, then waffle, then pan-hot sunflower oil. Vibrant acidity. The balance of sugars and acidity is like in a desiccated sour plum: sweet-tart. Vividly yellow. A little dry and closed the second day. Purchased at Gordon's in autumn 2020 for $48. ⭐⭐
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)