Cuvée perpétuelle, RP22AB, Non Dosé Premier Cru

Bone-dry, saline and taut: a zero-dosage champagne that unites the freshness of the base vintage with the depth of an ongoing reserve. Cyril Bonnet has reshaped the house since 2013, favouring spontaneous fermentation with wild yeasts, no filtration, and only minimal amounts of sulphur.

The grapes come from 35 parcels in Chamery, Vrigny and Coulommes-la-Montagne, Premier Cru sites in the Petite Montagne, in the western part of the Montagne de Reims. The vines average 35 years of age. In Chamery, Cyril Bonnet's grandparents dug the cellars themselves, with shovel and pickaxe through the sandy soil.

40 percent Pinot Noir, 30 percent each of Chardonnay and Meunier from the 2022 base vintage, blended with 40 percent reserve wines from previous harvests, continuously topped up using the solera method. The first fermentation takes place 75 percent in stainless steel tank and 25 percent in oak barrel, with malolactic fermentation used as a deliberate stylistic choice. The wine remains unfiltered, receives 22 mg of sulphur before bottling and no dosage: here, Non Dosé means zero grams.

Medium straw yellow, fine and steady perlage. The nose moves between warm pastry, restrained fruit and salted baked notes, overlaid with highly refined oxidative nuances. On the palate, billowy mousse, bone-dry and saline, the ripe acidity runs taut throughout, and the finish stays long and mouth-watering.

This champagne works from aperitif through to fish. Its true place is at the table, where it only really begins to show its depth after the first glass.

The Cuvée perpétuelle is not a vintage cuvée. After each harvest, a portion is drawn off and replaced with the new vintage, the barrel never fully emptied; the oldest component dates back to 2004. The code RP22 denotes the base vintage. Each parcel is vinified separately.