2015 Gaston Chiquet Special Club Brut

Winemaker Notes Golden yellow hue with a hint of green and a fine mousse. Fine nose that is fresh, elegant, and floral. Fresh and balanced palate; hazelnut, quince paste in the long finish. An elegant wine. Blend: 68% Chardonnay, 3% Pinot Noir Village/Vyd: Chardonnay: 53% Dizy 1er Cru (20% Haut de Souchienne, 20% Veilots, 13% Crohaut Guillemoinel), 15% Hautvillers 1er Cru (Lagrange, Croix Courcelles); Pinot Noir: 32% Dizy 1er Cru (Griboury); Clay and limestone over chalk Malo: Yes Élevage: Stainless steel Sur Latte: 90+ Months Dégorgement: January 2023 (4-6) 94pts Jeb Dunnuck The 2015 Champagne Special Club Brut is a seductive offering from the Chiquet house. Pouring a silver-straw hue and composed of 68% Chardonnay and the rest Pinot Noir, this year's release is lush and expressive on opening, with a decadent perfume of red apple, sweet brioche, honeyed Meyer lemon, and wet stone. Approachable on the palate, it opens with a rounded and pillowy mousse, a supple texture, and modest acidity, although at this stage, it remains fresh and inviting, with a touch of green almond notes on the finish. Although I don’t see 2015 as the longest-lived of vintages, this wine will have an open drinking window that may prove to surprise me over the coming decade or more. 93pts Wine Spectator Finely balanced, with bright acidity enlivening delicately woven flavors of cherry, crushed almond, blood orange sorbet and toast point. Satiny in texture, with floral and mineral accents on the finish. Disgorged January 2023. Drink now through 2028. 625 cases imported. Gaston Chiquet has made a name for itself as one of the best. In a region with thousands of small producers, it is a credit to owners Antoine and Nicolas Chiquet. Based in the evocatively named Dizy, the family first planted vines in 1746 but did not produce Champagne until 1935, when brothers Ferdinand and Gaston Chiquet took the bold step of setting up their own label, rather than merely selling grapes to the larger houses. With vineyards in the great villages of Ay, Mareuil-sur-Ay and Hautvillers, they currently produce 15,000 cases each year, from a blend of 45% Pinot Meunier, 35% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Noir Gaston-Chiquet (DIZY) Nicolas Chiquet farms 23 hectares in the Valle de la Marne in the villages of Ay, Dizy, Hautvillers and Mareuil-sur-Ay. All of the fruit (including that which is used in the non-vintage cuvee) comes from premier and grand cru grapes. Nicolas does not employ any oak aging at Gaston Chiquet; he believes that concentration, fruit maturity and malolactic fermentation impart enough body and texture to make aging in barrel unnecessary. The vineyards are planted to equal (forty percent each) parts chardonnay, pinot meunier and twenty percent are planted to pinot noir. Gaston-Chiquet also produces a vintage dated chardonnay from 5 parcels on the western side of the grand cru village of Ay. Usually recognized as a grand cru village for pinot noir, these vines of chardonnay were planted in Ay in the 1930s. “In 1919, two brothers, Fernand and Gaston Chiquet—winemakers born and bred—came together to create their house Chiquet Brothers. They were ‘pioneers’ in Champagne, the very first winemakers to take the initiative, bold at the time, to keep their grapes, turn them into Champagne and sell their own wine. Nicolas Chiquet planted his first vines in 1746, and since then eight generations have tilled Dizy’s soil. Gaston Chiquet registered the company in 1935 and expanded the property with land in Aÿ, Cumières and Hautvillers. Gaston Chiquet is best known for making the only blanc de blancs from the Pinot village of Aÿ. Aÿ was the big name in the area long before wines became sparkling, and many were the kings and popes who counted Vin d’Aÿ as their favorite wine. The vineyards slope down steeply to the village by the Marne River, and the best locations are just over the town, sheltered from the wind and with maximum exposure to the sun.” -Richard Juhlin, 4000 Champagnes