Les Terres Mêlées Brut Nature 2022

A Champagne carried by pure energy: lively acidity, mineral tension and a texture that turns almost creamy after its fresh opening. Nothing is corrected, neither through dosage nor fining nor filtration.

The grapes come from the two parcels «Les Mees» and «Val ligé» in the terroir of Neuville-sur-Seine, on the limestone-rich slopes above the Seine in the Côte des Bar. Raphaël Piconnet grew up in the lieu-dit Bichery, where his grandfather Charles already tended the vines. Since he and his wife Hannah took over the family estate in 2015, the vineyards have been farmed organically. The name Les Terres Mêlées refers to the mingled soils that come together here.

Single-varietal Pinot Noir, pressed as a blanc de noirs; the 2022 vintage is not declared on the label. The base wine fermented half in barrel and half in stainless steel and aged in Burgundian pièces. Every bottle rests on its lees for at least 24 months. It was disgorged in February 2025 with 0 grams of dosage, making it a Brut Nature with no sweetening whatsoever.

The nose brings together ripe apples and pears, citrus and stone fruit with freshly baked croissant and white nougat. The palate opens fresh, driven by acidity and perlage, then settles without losing any of its mineral tension. Delicately spicy and citrus notes, ripe stone fruit, a touch of red berries and praline with salt crystals in the long finish.

Hannah and Raphaël Piconnet farm eight hectares in Neuville-sur-Seine and Gyé-sur-Seine, ferment spontaneously with wild yeasts and age in used oak barrels. Every Champagne from the house is bottled as Brut Nature. Production stays small, between 5,000 and 15,000 bottles a year. 12.5% vol.