Les Fontaines Rosé Brut Nature 2021 1500ml Magnum

Here, Brut Nature means exactly that: no dosage, no sugar added after disgorgement. What remains is a rosé of slender build and clean edges, pleasantly light at 11.5% vol. The magnum format gives this wine the time and calm it needs.

The vines grow in Neuville-sur-Seine and Gyé-sur-Seine, on the chalky slopes above the meandering Seine in the Côte des Bar. Raphaël Piconnet grew up on the Bichery lieu-dit, where his grandfather Charles already tended the vineyards. After years learning his craft in Burgundy, Alsace and the Jura, he returned in 2013; in 2015 he took over the family estate together with his wife Hannah and immediately converted it to organic farming. Eight hectares, with each parcel vinified as its own wine.

100% Pinot Noir. Fermented with wild yeasts and aged in used oak barrels, bottled unfined, unfiltered and with minimal sulphur. Each bottle rests at least 24 months on the lees before release with no dosage.

Dry and taut, carried by a fine perlage. Raspberry and wild strawberry meet lemon zest, over a chalky, saline core; the time on lees contributes a touch of brioche. The finish stays lean and citrusy.

Red fruit and taut acidity pair well with pan-seared salmon and tuna tartare, as well as charcuterie with air-dried ham, vegetable tempura, duck breast, mushroom dishes or a piece of aged Comté. Serve well chilled, at around 10 degrees.

All Champagnes from de Bichery are bottled as Brut Nature. Volumes are tiny: de Bichery is among the smallest producers in the region.