NV Marc Hébrart Blanc de Blancs 1er Cru Brut, Champagne, France

ABOUT THIS WINE

Marc Hebrart's Sélection Brut is a cuvée from 50+ year-old vines of 100% chardonnay. This cuvée is 88% from Mareuil-sur-Ay 1er Cru, 12% Oiry Grand Cru and Chouilly Grand Cru. 60% of the blend comes from 2020, 20% from 2019, and 20% in 2018. This wine is rich and textured thanks to malolactic fermentation, possessing aromas and flavors of apricot, peach and raspberry mixed with notes of toasted almonds, spice and white flowers. The wine was fermented in aged in stainless steel with 36 months on the lees. After second fermentation, the wine received a dosage of 6g/L. Hebrart's Sélection Brut offers an ultra-fine, creamy mousse, weighty mid-palate, mouthwatering acidity and a tremendously lengthy finish.

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER

Jean-Paul Hébrart took over Marc Hébrart from his father in 1997. His father had been producing estate bottled wines since 1964 and joined the Club Trésors in 1985 Jean-Paul has slowly developed the estate in the last 20 years to one of the very finest grower estates in the Marne. The basis for these outstanding wines are the privileged holdings in Aÿ, including the newly purchased plots in Le Léon, Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, and Dizy in the Grande Vallée as well as Avize, Oiry and Chouilly in the Côte and recently acquired vineyards in Louvois in the Montagne. Jean-Paul harvests, presses and vinifies each of his over 85 plots separately, blending sites to make harmonious wines which reflect the personality of the grower as well as the terroir. A majority of the wines are fermented in steel, though old used barrels have become a part of his program for Rive Gauche-Rive Droite and his new wine, Clos de Léon, both of which are fermented and aged in neutral barrique.

The Hébrart wines are truly of both place and person, the kind, welcoming and generous qualities that Jean-Paul Hébrart exudes can be seen in all of his Champagnes. And while he could easily rest on his laurels at this point, JP instead continues to expand his range, experimenting with lower dosage levels in his benchmark cuvées, and producing stunning Coteaux Champenoise from recently acquired, historic vineyards.