Benoit Marguet is first in line to become the next globally recognized grower Champagne superstar. His wines have already infiltrated the collector market and are becoming reliable standouts at top Michelin-starred restaurants around the world. Now, it’s just a matter of time before the secret is out to the general public.
Having rewritten the rules at his five-generations-old family estate and collection of Grand Cru vineyards, Benoit is now bottling some of the most expressive and fascinating wines in the region. This is truly elite level Champagne. Fortunately for all of us, Benoit’s relative newcomer status means that the price of his wines—even this superlative Grand Cru bottling—remains shockingly reasonable. I recently enjoyed this wine at a high-end grower Champagne tasting in San Francisco and can confirm that it delivers in every way. This is powerful, layered, rich and detailed Champagne that goes toe-to-toe with the big houses. Look no further if you seek a rare and memorable bottle for your next special occasion.
Benoit Marguet’s success in the vines and cellar comes not from luck or the expertise of hired consultants, but from many years of humble study and hard work. Born and raised in Champagne, Benoit cut his teeth after college by working as an oenological lab technician at the service of numerous top Champagne houses. After, he worked as an oenologist at Mumm before traveling to Washington State where he served as assistant winemaker under legendary winemaker Paul Hobbs. Wishing to strengthen his understanding of global wine tradition and restaurant service—and needing to fulfill his obligation to the French military—Benoit oversaw an enormous cellar while serving as a sommelier in the main officers’ dining hall in Paris. Having finally achieved a sufficiently in-depth and nuanced understanding of wine, Benoit returned home to his family’s small 7-hectare Champagne property.
Back home in the village of Ambonnay, Benoit immediately set to work revolutionizing the way his family’s property functioned. His goal was to create a farm where the vines and cellar functioned not as separate parts, but as one complete circuit. In 2004, he began transitioning his family’s vines to biodynamic farming. I cannot stress enough how challenging an undertaking this is in Champagne. The famously cold and wet weather combined with a regional tendency toward monoculture creates an environment in which only the most focused and skilled vigneron can succeed with organic and biodynamic viticulture. Benoit attacked this challenge with great zeal. By 2009 he had completely transitioned 3 hectares to biodynamics, and by 2011 his entire property was certified organic. What’s most impressive is the uncompromising totality with which Benoit approaches organic farming and biodynamics—seemingly everything is done the hard way. He uses horses in the place of tractors and he experiments relentlessly in an effort to find natural substitutes for sulfur in his vineyards and wine. Before harvesting a single cluster, Benoit is known to walk every row and individually “thank” each vine for its contribution to the vintage. In visiting Marguet, it’s clear that this unique combination of outside-the-box thinking, humility and determination contributes to the stunning quality of the wines.
Benoit’s approach in the cellar is as unorthodox as it is fascinating. He conducts blending outside in the open air so he can taste his wines in the same environment as his vines. He also uses opaque, black glassware in the blending process so as to ensure his decisions are guided solely by aroma and texture, not appearance. A look into Benoit’s barrel room reveals a vast arsenal of ancient wooden vessels of all sizes. There are large fermenters, small Burgundy barrels, and even smaller, more obscure barrels like those used in Sauternes. There is no fancy machinery and no chemicals. Additionally, enormous stones and crystals are placed throughout the cellar. These illuminate the space and Benoit believes they also have a positive impact on the energy of his cellar and wines. While there is no conventional scientific evidence to explain this, I will say that there is something altogether unique and expressive about these wines. They have a vividness and detail that is truly distinct.
This wine, the NV Benoit Marguet Grand Cru “Shaman,” is a product of superior farming practices. Benoit is a viticulturist first and a gifted winemaker second. This wine is composed from some of the most meticulously farmed Pinot Noir (60%) and Chardonnay (40%) in all of Champagne. Specifically, fruit comes the renowned lieu dits “Les Crayères” and “Les Bermonts” in the Grand Cru village of Ambonnay, and “Les Loges” and “Les Hannepés” in the Grand Cru village of Bouzy. This bottling is predominantly from 2013 vintage but there is a significant amount of reserve wine from previous years so it retains a non-vintage label. In the glass, the wine is bright and light golden in color with an exceptionally precise mousse. Rich aromas of honey crisp apple, lemon blossom, quince and pear precede subtler notes of toasted brioche, biscotti and almond cake. There is a perfect balance between vivacious youth and the depth and richness of older vintages in the base wine. Still, this wine continually draws me back to its structure, power and focus—it’s an extremely high-class bottle of Champagne down to the last detail. Quite often so-called “grower” Champagnes are austere and mineral to a fault, but this wine is just bursting with richness and depth. Please serve at 50 degrees in large Bordeaux stems. Cheers!
