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Billecart-Salmon Brut Reserve NV

Non-Vintage

A fine example of an excellent Champagne and at a great price too!

The Brut Réserve is a light, fine and harmonious Champagne. It is made up of a blend of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier from three different years and sourced from the best sites in the Champagne region.

With reflections of straw yellow, this cuvée is recognisable by the finesse of its slowly rising bubbles and its persistent and plentiful mousse. Overall, it portrays a luminous radiance and quality. There is an elegant maturity with a touch of floral freshness for this cuvée, which expresses aromas of fresh fruit and ripe pears. A subtle pleasure with a delicate texture under the charm of white flesh fruit flavours (apples, crunchy pears). With a beautiful fluidity of a delicious lightness uniting gourmand flavours of springtime.

The Champagnes of Maison Billecart-Salmon are, above all, created thanks to the knowledge of the men who rigorously cultivate an estate of 100 hectares, obtaining grapes from an area totalling 300 hectares across 40 crus of the Champagne region.

Details

More Information
Wine Type	Champagne
Closure	Natural Cork
Alc. Vol	12.5
Units	9.37
Region	Champagne
Country	France
Grape Varietal	Chardonnay, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir
Food Pairings	Fish, Cold Starters

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Champagne

Hailing from northern France, Champagne is the most iconic sparkling wine in the world. Producing both white and rosé wines, Champagne is typically a blend of three varieties – Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.

To achieve a consistent house-style, many Champagnes are a blend of base wines from several vintages, referred to as non-vintage. These have been aged for a minimum of 15 months before release and are typically dry with high acidity, notes of apple and light toast/brioche flavours.

Vintage Champagnes are made in exceptional years, and these are aged for a minimum of 36 months. These wines typically have pronounced apple, citrus and biscuit flavours. Special Cuvée Champagnes often are aged for much longer, developing complex, nutty, honeyed notes.

France

France – the home of Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne – is arguably the world's most important wine-producing country. For centuries, it has produced wine in greater quantity – and many would say quality – than any other nation, and its attraction is not just volume or prestige, but also the variety of styles available.

The diversity of French wine is due, in part, to the country's wide range of climates. Champagne, its most northerly region, has one of the coolest climates, whereas Bordeaux has a maritime climate, heavily influenced by the Atlantic Ocean and the various rivers that wind their way between vineyards. Both in stark contrast to the southern regions of Provence and Languedoc-Roussillon, which enjoy a Mediterranean climate, characterized by hot summers and mild winters.

Terroir is also key. From the granite hills of Beaujolais to the famous chalky slopes of Chablis and the gravels of the Médoc, the sites and soils on which France's vineyards have been developed are considered of vital importance and are at the heart of the concept of terroir.

The Grape - Chardonnay

The world's most planted white grape variety, Chardonnay is prized for its ability to produce outstanding-quality wines in cool, moderate and warm climates. It is most often used as a single variety in still wines but is equally successful when used in sparkling.

The flavours of Chardonnay are many and varied; they're very much affected by where the grapes are grown, the winemaking process and maturation.

In cool-climates, such as northern France and England, you would expect flavours of orchard fruits like apples and pears, citrus and wet stones. However, in warm-climates (California, Australia) you'd get peachy flavours, tropical fruits, and sometimes even banana.

It is common to taste other flavours in Chardonnay, for instance fermenting or ageing in oak gives the wine flavours of vanilla, smoke and toast; the process of malolactic conversion can add creamy, buttery flavours; lees ageing adds body as well as biscuit notes.

Pinot Meunier

Pinot Meunier, also known as Meunier or Schwarzriesling, is a black grape variety most noted for being one of the three main varieties used in the production of Champagne (the others being Pinot noir and Chardonnay). Until recently, producers in Champagne generally did not acknowledge Pinot Meunier, preferring to emphasise the use of the other noble varieties, but now Pinot Meunier is gaining recognition for the body and richness it contributes to Champagne.

You'll often find Pinot Meunier in Blanc de Noirs (white of blacks) sparkling wines alongside Pinot Noir.

Pinot Meunier is very, very rarely used to make still wine. It can produce light and fruity red wines with high acidity, but we’re now seeing a number of English producers make still white wines out of this black grape variety.