For one hundred and fifty years, the Charpentiers have been cultivating their vineyards in the Champagne region on the south hillsides of the Marne valley. Léonidas Charpentier ran a farm at Saulchery, a village near to Charly sur Marne. His business flourished very well, because his most important customers were the coach drivers who rowed their boats with the help of horses along the river La Marne to bring their goods to Paris. This is the reason why the carriage became the house logo. The coach is driving through the gate of Time, from the past into the future, from tradition to modernity.
Starting in 1920, the first Charpentier wines were a white and a red wine (a still wine at that time) called “fromenteau,” a wine made with Pinot Meunier, appreciated for its freshness and its fruitfulness.
In 1974, Jean Marc married Claudine, a winegrower’s daughter at Charly-Sur-Marne, a Champagne house for five generations as well.
The union of the vineyards of the two families established without doubt an extraordinary asset. The four parcels, Les Chauffours, Les Chaillots, Les Tuileries, and Les Gains are very favorably placed in the middle of their hillsides.
In 2003, Jean-Marc became the fifth generation to head this family business, after studying general agriculture, and later on viticulture and oenology. (He was joined by his sister Marie-Pierre in 2018.) In 2009, Jean-Marc decided to run his vineyards with “reasonable viticulture,” which he defined as in accordance with the environment. This is more generally referred to as biodynamics. He was one of the first in the Champagne region to do so.
This “reasonable viticulture” includes limited intervention, using natural defenses of the vines, and growing grass and other ground cover between the vines. 100% of the 23 hectares [57 acres] of Charpentier’s vineyards are run under this method.
Charpentier Champagne Tradition Brut
This Champagne is a pale gold color with a straw-yellow shimmer. It is composed of 70% Pinot Meunier, 25% Chardonnay, 5% Pinot Noir, of which 15% are reserve wines. The first fermentation was in thermoregulated vats, followed by malolactic fermentation and blending with the reserve wines. Two different harvests were blended and aged for 36 months.
The fine and lively bubbles contribute to it’s charm. The nose is elegant and complex, with fruity aromas of mandarin, fresh apple and quince jelly, with hints of raspberry and hawthorn, and limestone minerality, opening out to toasted almonds, saffron, and ripe pineapple. It ends in a long finish with ethereal flavors of mandarin and cassis.
My thanks to Glass of Bubbly for the basis of this post. The original can be found here.
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