Notes from the Archivist

"Stone's Throw"

Our first white is here! And it’s the bubbly kind.

There are few things finer in this world than a great Champagne or well-made sparkling.

“Wine gives one ideas, whereas Champagne gives one strategies” said Roman Payne. This is definitely one to plan conquests with, whether you’re formulating your next move in Catan or simply looking for WOTN against some grower offerings from the motherland, Champagne.

2023 was truly a remarkable vintage, and I say that without hyperbole. The “base wine” for this sparkler comes from a single vineyard so special it deserves to remain veiled. Bring a wine consultant who crafted many esteemed cuvées at Schramsberg for 12 years into the picture, and you end up with some bubbles that rival many a Grand Cru from the motherland.

As we tasted various lots, some were mediocre, others worth a raised-eyebrow, and one earned a definitive, eye-popping “YES” – that was with “no dosage” when we tasted it. After 15 months “en tirage”, this had developed into something beautiful.

We locked it down, and then came the next move: dosage trials.

Mike and I tend to favor a drier style – less dosage, more tension. This wine flat-out rejected anything above Extra Brut, finally finding its voice at 3.5 g/L. As a still winemaker, the dosage trial process was a revelation. It’s not linear, a touch more or less sugar can completely reshape the wine, accentuating the palate or lifting the aromatics in ways that surprise you.

For me, the soul of a great sparkling wine lies in its aromatics and finish. I admire wines that are razor-sharp and racy, as much as those rich in brioche and nuttiness. But when a Champagne has alluring aromatics and a finish that clings like my 6-year-old son at morning drop off, that’s when I’m hooked.

This Blanc de Blanc finds its own balance: not esoteric and lean, nor broad and yeasty. It has just the right weight on the palate while staying brilliantly bright. Aromas of citrus blossom and gently baked apple rise from the glass, with perhaps some jicama or jackfruit mixed in there. That’s accented by wisps of nutmeg spice and river stones, all of which keep my nose lingering too long before I remember to take a sip. If we could bottle this as the next Chanel No., we would. For now, I’ll just remain awestruck between sips, and captivated by a finish that goes into extra-innings.

It’s going to be hard not to squirrel away a few cases for myself. But with only 44 cases bottled, there simply isn’t enough to be selfish.

For those newer to sparkling wines: “Blanc de Blanc” means a white wine made entirely from white grapes, in this case, 100% Chardonnay, the noblest of Champagne varieties. Not to slight Pinot Meunier or Pinot Noir, but I’ve always been captivated by the pure, crystalline expression of Chardonnay in sparkling form. This is, of course, made in the “Méthode champenoise”. It was disgorged on November 10 at approximately 9:30 am (for those who like precision in their wine notes). We know this because it was a fantastic way to start the week, as quality assurance was being done on the bottling line.

We didn’t label this wine “Extra Brut,” though it technically sits in that 0–6 g/L range. The nomenclature can be arbitrary — so we chose to let the wine speak for itself. It lands right in the heart of that spectrum: bright, elegant, and endlessly inviting.

This outperforms many Champagne and sparkling 2-3x the price. And being our smallest production to date, it probably won’t last long. Don’t tempt fate!