Cuvée perpétuelle, RP22AB, Extra Brut Premier Cru

A Champagne of tension and precision: light-footed, taut and carried by pronounced minerality. Acidity and mousse lead together, creating a vibrant interplay of freshness, salinity and energy, invigorating and without heaviness.

Chamery in the Montagne de Reims, classified Premier Cru. It was here that Grégoire Bonnet founded one of the region's first récoltant-manipulant houses in 1862; today Cyril Bonnet runs the estate. The roughly ten hectares lie across around 50 parcels in Chamery, Vrigny, Coulommes-la-Montagne as well as Verzenay and Verzy, with vines between 35 and 80 years old. Each parcel is vinified separately.

The blend consists of 40 percent Pinot Noir, 30 percent Chardonnay and 30 percent Pinot Meunier. It is based on the 2022 vintage, supplemented with 40 percent reserve wines. 75 percent of the base wines are vinified in steel tank, the remaining quarter in oak barrel. Spontaneous fermentation with wild yeasts, no filtration, sulphur used only in tiny amounts. The dosage is 1.5 g/l.

The nose is powerfully red-fruited: blackcurrant, raspberry and wild strawberry, alongside pear, yellow apple and pomelo. Behind these lie nutty, spiced notes, almond on shortcrust pastry, lightly caramelised. An ethereal note recalls blackcurrant wood and fir branches, while dried herbs of savory, marjoram and sage add spice. Over everything lies a saline-chalky minerality. On the palate, fruit and pastry notes join in slender and elegant, with the impression on the tongue moving towards salt and lemon.

This cuvée spans the arc from aperitif to fish.

After each harvest, part of the perpetual reserve is drawn off and topped up with the new vintage; it is never emptied completely. The oldest component dates from 2004, while the abbreviation RP22 denotes the base vintage.