Régis Poissinet

Seven hectares between Cuchery and Mareuil-le-Port

The seven hectares of Champagne Régis Poissinet lie across 35 parcels around Cuchery, Baslieux, Leuvrigny, Troissy and Mareuil-le-Port, on the threshold between the Vallée de la Marne and the Montagne de Reims. The soils consist of calcareous clay, alluvial deposits and calcareous marl, and the vines average 33 years old. Each of the 35 parcels is vinified on its own, and only afterward does Régis Poissinet decide which reserve wine goes into which cuvée. Terre d'Irizée, for instance, brings together 87 percent Meunier and 13 percent Chardonnay, along with 45 percent reserve wines from earlier harvests.

Biodynamic since 2011

Since 2011 the family has farmed its vineyards biodynamically. Régis Poissinet began the conversion after taking over the estate, starting with herbicides, then the remaining synthetic products; no insecticides are used. Fertilization comes from the estate's own compost made from plant and animal residues. Between the rows, grasses and wildflowers grow as a living mulch, bees work the parcels, and the soil's microorganisms mediate between the roots and the terroir. His son Maxime now works alongside him in the vineyard.

Meunier and the oak barrel

Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier are the three grape varieties of Champagne, and at Régis Poissinet it is Meunier that carries the cuvées. The Cuvée Irizée Meunier is made entirely from this variety, its base wine aged one hundred percent in oak, and Régis Poissinet rotates the bottles by hand. After years on the lees, brioche, white pepper and candied citrus appear in the glass, carried by an acidity that gives the wine lasting staying power.

In L'Émergente, several vintages come together, 77 percent Meunier and 23 percent Chardonnay, of which 11 percent are reserve wines, aged in oak barrels and tanks. The Terre de Rosé combines 70 percent Meunier with 30 percent Chardonnay, whose base wines likewise come entirely from oak.

Dosage between 1.7 and 3.5 grams

All the wines carry a dosage between 1.7 and 3.5 grams of sugar per liter, a narrow range that demands flawless base wines. The Cuvée Irizée Chardonnay shows what a Blanc de Blancs from the Vallée de la Marne gains in definition under these constraints: chalk, green apple and lemon zest over an almost saline minerality. The champagnes of Régis Poissinet carry a vibrating energy and a linearity that merges with the creamy note of the lees.