Making great wine is all about attention to detail – this is the core belief of Didier Gimonnet. His goal is to make wines of clarity, precision and freshness.

Quality first. Didier Gimonnet prizes his old vineyards which naturally deliver low yields – around half of the regional average.

The Gimonnet vineyards are located in the Côte de Blancs where 100% Chardonnay Champagnes reach their greatest expression. He owns plots in the Grand Cru Villages of Cuis, Cramant, Oger and Chouilly – each of them adding their unique character to the blends.

Freshness and precision are fundamental to the Gimonnet style. As the reserve wines might lose freshness in tank, he keeps them on fine lees in magnums under crown seals. This huge amount of additional work is certainly worth it – which is apparent when you taste the wines.

The result of this uncompromising attention to detail are Champagnes that precisely express the mineral tension of Côte de Blancs Chardonnay.

Champagne Pierre Péters is based in the prestigious Grand Cru village of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger in the Côte de Blancs. The domaine owns around 60 plots not only in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, but in the other 3 most famous Grand Cru Villages of the Côte de Blancs: Oger, Cramant & Avize. This allows for the creation of Chardonnay based Champagnes that express the chalky minerality and intensity of these great terroirs.

Louis Roederer is very unique among the Grandes Marques of Champagne. Not only is it still family-owned and managed but it owns 240 hectares of vineyards in prime locations supplying 70% of its grape needs. Vintage wines are made completely from estate fruit. If this wasn’t amazing enough, 134 hectares of the domaine vineyards are now certified organic and virtually all are farmed so. 100 hectares are farmed biodynamically and the 2012 vintage of the flagship cuvée ‘Cristal’ was the first to be produced from 100% biodynamically grown fruit.

The house style tips slightly towards Pinot Noir, but in an extremely precise, controlled way. Cristal is usually a 60/40 blend of Pinot Noir & Chardonnay. Malolactic fermentation is blocked to retain acidity and freshness. Fruit grown on chalk soils are key to the Roederer style as these soils give wines with clarity, precision and minerality. To that effect, the house owns 80 hectares in top sites in the Côte de Blancs.

Winemaker Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon has 450 tanks at his disposal to allow for precise block-by-block vinification. This level of attention to detail is unique among the great houses and results in wines of tremendous precision, clarity and elegance.