2009 Dhondt-Grellet "Les Pensées" Blanc de Blancs Premier Cru, Extra Brut, Champagne, France

ABOUT THIS WINE

Dhondt-Grellet Les Pensées is a Blanc de Blancs Champagne. The plot is located in the Premier Cru of Cuis , the historic terroir of the Dhondt family. The chalky soils provide a consistent water supply and a pronounced minerality. The altitude and moderate exposure give the Chardonnays a natural tension, floral freshness, and aromatic precision that characterize the great wines of Cuis.

The grapes are harvested at perfect ripeness, and only the first pressing is used. Adrien Dhondt's winemaking, "in the Burgundian style," combines precision with respect for the fruit. There is no chaptalization , and malolactic fermentation is fully completed to bring volume and complexity. An Extra Brut Champagne, dosage of 1 g/l, aged in oak barrels with malolactic fermentation.

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER

Champagne Dhondt-Grellet was established in 1986 in the village of Flavigny, just outside Avize, when Éric Dhondt and Édith Grellet chose to begin estate bottling their own wines. The Dhondt family, originally Belgian farmers, had acquired vineyards in the Sézannais in the 1960s, while the Grellet family is rooted in Cuis and Cramant. Starting with just two hectares, the domaine has since expanded to roughly three times its original size.

A new chapter began in 2012, when Adrien took over winemaking at the age of 22. Today, he works alongside his sister Alice in continuing to shape the domaine’s direction, refining its focus on Chardonnay grown across the Côte des Blancs.

Since the beginning, the family has maintained a perpetual reserve, forming a quiet but essential part of the domaine’s identity. Each year, a portion is drawn off for tirage and replenished with wine from the new vintage before being returned to barrel on its lees. The reserve is moved back to tank ahead of harvest, and the cycle repeats—ensuring continuity while keeping the barrels in constant use.

Recent vintages mark an important step in the domaine’s evolution. The 2021 harvest, in particular, forms the backbone of several key cuvées, often supported by reserve wines to balance the vintage’s natural tension. Wines such as Roc Solaire reflect a shift toward more structured, textural expressions, where élevage and fruit maturity play an increasingly central role alongside freshness.