Champagne Brut EXCLUSIV Fleury Organic

Pinot Noir

It has reached the very top: Spätburgunder, now ranked among the noble grapes. Known in France as Pinot Noir , the vine is now one of the most important red varieties in cooler winegrowing regions. The name 'Pinot' may derive from the French word for a pine cone, 'pin', which could be explained by the shape of its compact bunch. Pinot Noir's career began under the name 'Klevner' as early as 884, when Charles the Fat brought the vine to Lake Constance. It was planted in the Rheingau in the 13th century and probably in the Palatinate in the 16th. Some 200 years later, the variety is said to have been brought from Burgundy to the Ahr. Today, around 11,800 hectares in Germany are planted with Pinot Noir, representing 10% of the total vineyard area. Pinot Noir honours its status as a noble grape through its demands for care, climate and soil. It thrives best in so-called Riesling sites, where growing conditions are ideal. The full-bodied wines are usually made dry, sometimes with a little residual sweetness, but always with the lovely scent of red fruits such as strawberries, cherries, blackberries and currants. Pinot Noir is often given its finishing touches in oak, adding vanilla and cinnamon aromas to the berry notes.

Harmonious, with racy acidity and fine bubbles!

Fleury

Tradition with a twist: very few growers make Champagne from their own grapes, mainly Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. In this region steeped in tradition, it is principally the established ‘great houses’ that turn their own and purchased grapes into branded Champagnes. The great advantage is that consumers can rely on a famous producer to supply a very sound product of highly consistent quality. The disadvantage is that the wines lose some of their individuality. The big brands essentially produce mass-market wine to a high standard. They own only around 15 % of the vineyard area, so they buy grapes from more than 15,000(!) smaller estates.

Champagne Fleury has bottled under its own name since 1929. Only very recently, however, has it managed to market almost the entire harvest from its 13 ha itself. Seeing these fine grapes disappear into the ‘big pot’ was particularly painful after the switch to biodynamic cultivation in 1989. For Jean-Pierre Fleury, this was an added incentive: he is not only a gifted creator of sparkling wines but also a talented promoter of his own work. Gault&Millau's choice of him as Winegrower of the Year (1993) gave him a real boost. Since then, his wines have been tasted with the seriousness they deserve and repeatedly outperformed far more expensive prestige Champagnes in competitions.

A good Champagne is an extraordinarily complex interplay of very different elements. As so often, a good wine begins in the vineyard, and the organic grower has an initial advantage with richly concentrated grapes. In the relatively southerly Aube, where Fleury is based, Pinot Noir grapes in particular are regarded as excellent. They are therefore much sought after to round out blends in the more northerly heart of Champagne. It is no coincidence that Fleury first attracted attention with a rosé Champagne. The Chardonnay, by contrast, is rather lean, yet very refined and elegant. You can enjoy it on its own in Fleury's ‘Blanc de Blancs’ vintage Champagne. I like invigorating, refreshing Champagne. Many seemingly rich ‘great’ Champagnes are primarily oxidised. That may taste good, but to me it feels ponderous. Jean-Pierre Fleury's wines, right ‘down’ to the 90 Pinot Noir, are sparkling, lively, fragrant and stimulating. They simply lift the spirits, add that touch of a ‘special moment’ to a lovely occasion and take us out of everyday life for a moment... And what more could one want from a good glass?