Champagne Jacques Lassaigne "Alto" Grande Côte 2012 Blanc de Blancs - Brut Nature

Classified as belonging to the Cote des Bars region, also known as the Aube, Montgueux is a small chalk hill 12 km north of the historic town of Troyes. It is described by experts as the Montrachet of Champagne with 186 hectares of vineyards planted 85% with Chardonnay perfectly exposed in a southeast direction. The superficial part of the soil is composed of clay and limestone, while for the next 60 meters a huge blanket of chalk characterizes its conformation. This land is 13 million years old, much older than that of the Grand Cru of the most famous (and quoted) Cote de Blancs. All elements that help to create a perfect terroir that gives wines the right acidity and flavor necessary for aging. Jacques Lassaigne and his two sons Emmanuel and Ludovic are the first real promoters of the Montgueux terroir, thanks to their original blanc de blancs, full of minerality and finesse. Emmanuel, who is in charge of winemaking, cultivates his vineyards as naturally as possible, following the cycles of the sun and moon and adopting techniques that are sometimes organic and sometimes biodynamic, with the precise intention of safeguarding the plant and the soil. Also in the cellar the interventions are reduced to a minimum, a beautiful manual wooden press is used, 4 small deposits for fermentation, some old barrels of 3,000 liters and a series of barriques mostly used, but of the best French brands, which are "turned" depending on the assemblages of the various cuvee. Only indigenous yeasts are used and the champagne is neither thickened nor clarified. Emmanuel is a fanatic of the winemaking process: each stage must have its own time to be made with the utmost care. For example, for the "prise de mousse" phase, which usually lasts from 1 to 3 months (this is the time when bubbles are formed thanks to the action of the yeasts that ferment the sugar by releasing anhydride carbonic and ethyl alcohol), Emmanuel devotes more than 3 months to the creation of a must with a very fine froth. For some cuvee he even makes two phases of prise de mousse: after the first one the wine is returned to the barrique until it is completely flattened. Then the final prise de mousse is made. A technique that in addition to giving perlage and finesse of primacy promotes a significant reduction in the use of sulphur dioxide. All wines have rather low dosages so that their terroir of origin can shine. Small barriques have also been introduced in order to give complexity and "thickness" to the different cuvee. Emmanuel is a purist methodist who is always ready to take every opportunity to improve, perfect and increase the quality of all his cuvee, each of which reflects where it comes from.