2008 Jacquesson Aÿ Vauzelle Terme

Jacquesson

France / Champagne / Jacquesson

100% Pinot Noir from the Vauzelle Terme lieu-dit in Aÿ. The parcel lies on the mid-slope facing due south. It features alluvial calcareous top soil over blocks of Campanian chalk. Planted to Pinot Noir in 1980, with 2,500 vines over 0.3 hectares . Cordon de Royat pruning. Grapes picked on 25th September 2008 with 7.2g/L acidity. Bottled on 19th May 2009. Disgorged in April 2018. No dosage.
2008 was a year characteristic of our northern clime: spring was cool and rainy, summer dry and windy, as was September. Proof that Champagne can produce a great vintage despite a cool growing season!

August, 2019

Nick Stock

jamessuckling.com

97 points

Super fine, fresh, lightly toasted bread, stone and chalk with lemon blossom and toasted almonds. The palate has such finesse and precision and delivers a super fine, lemon thread of flavor with fine-etched acidity, delivering length and detail. So elegant. Drink or hold.

August, 2019

William Kelley

Wine Advocate

96+ points

From a 30-are parcel of Pinot Noir vines planted in 1980 comes the newly released 2008 Extra Brut Grand Cru Aÿ Vauzelle Terme, a wine that was disgorged in April 2018 without dosage. Unfurling in the glass with aromas of wild berries, cassis, minty red apples and wet stones, it's full-bodied, ample and mouthfilling, with broad shoulders but a tight-knit, introspective and even somewhat austere core, concluding with an immensely long, sapid finish. The potential here is considerable, but this is the most reserved of these three lieu-dit bottlings and will demand a little patience.

July, 2019

Antonio Galloni

Vinous Media

96 points

The 2008 Extra-Brut Aÿ Vauzelle Terme emerges from a tiny parcel measuring just 0.30 hectares planted by Jean-Hervé Chiquet in 1980. Resonant and silky, with striking layers of nuance, the Vauzelle Terme captures a striking balance between power and translucency that is absolutely compelling. Soaring Pinot aromatics and saline overtones build into the expansive, captivating Pinot. Interestingly, when Chiquet planted this parcel, volume production was the number one objective, so the vineyard is now necessarily farmed with greater attention to managing yields. No dosage. Disgorged: April 2018.

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About Jacquesson

Jacquesson has an impressive history. It was founded in 1798 in Châlons by Memmie Jacquesson, son of a wine trader. The house rapidly rose to fame, aided by the fact that Napoleon was a fan. However, everything that we today value about Jacquesson began in 1974 when Côte des Blancs winegrower Jean Chiquet acquired the brand and vineyards and moved the domicile of the house to Dizy. His sons Jean-Hervé and Laurent Chiquet are the present custodians of the Jacquesson trading house, which manages to cover almost 90% of its grape requirement from its own vineyards. These are located in the Grands Crus Aÿ, Avize and Oiry, and in the Premiers Crus Hautvillers, Dizy and Mareuil-sur-Aÿ. Additional grapes are only bought from growers who follow exactly the same methods as the Chiquets. The fruit is pressed by Jacquesson itself in its four presses, three of which are located in Dizy and one in Avize.


About

Laurent and Jean-Hervé Chiquet see themselves primarily as winegrowers who cultivate the land and do everything with the aim of obtaining the best possible grapes. And from there, the brothers have been ready to break with convention in order to deliver the best possible wine every time - hence the decision to introduce the 7-series non-vintage wines instead of the traditional house NV. In his 2018 article entitled Champagne’s Top Five Movers & Shakers, Tyson Stelzer summed up the approach pretty well: "It’s been 40 years since Jean-Hervé and Laurent Chiquet’s family purchased Jacquesson, 30 years since the brothers took control, 20 years since they turned champagne’s non-vintage concept on it head with their controversial ‘700 series’ cuvée, and ten years since they pulled their most cunning stunt of all by slashing production to ramp up quality. And ramp up it has."