SEPTEMBER 2024

Didier Herbert ‘Cuve 4’ is a deeply intense champagne. A blend of richly perfumed Pinot noir and beautifully bold Chardonnay are bolstered by the addition of 33% reserve solera. Thomas says, ‘Ninety percent of wine is made in the vineyard. The rest is just love and blending.’ He rages against boring champagnes and doing things because it’s always been done this way. He looks to make wines with rich mouthfeel and lush fruit. He achieves this by harvesting as ripe as possible paying, ‘more attention to taste and less to pH.’ The wines coming from his cellar in Rilly-la-Montagne will never be boring and have never disappointed. Only 1,300 bottles produced. TECH SHEET

Marx-Coutelas ‘Rosé’ is creating a benchmark for rose in the region. Not only is the base of this wine all from the spectacular 2019 vintage but it is also from a single vineyard. The red wine used to turn this wine pink has an extra year of barrel age (coming from the 2018 vintage) and ads depth and complexity without weighing down the blend. It is light and boisterous and can pair with raw seafood or a seared steak. There isn’t anywhere we wouldn’t drink this wine. Bryan Marx has created more of our favorite champagnes that we can count and that’s saying something! TECH SHEET