The term ‘disgorgement’ refers to the moment when a bottle of Champagne that has been aging on its lees is uncorked and the little “plug” of spent yeast cells that has collected in the neck of the bottle is expelled—by the built-up atmospheric pressure within. After disgorgement, the wine is (sometimes) rounded out with a dosage—a small amount of sugar or grape must—before it is re-corked, caged, labeled, and released into the market.
Because Champagnes are most often blends of different vintages, and because different producers leave their wines to age on their lees for different periods of time, the date of the disgorgement essentially announces the arrival of a ‘new batch’ of a multi-vintage cuvée such as Egly-Ouriet’s magnificent “Les Crayères” Blanc de Noirs. Once or twice a year, we’ll receive word of a new release of this benchmark Champagne—this is the May 2016 disgorgement—and arrange to buy as much as they’ll allocate to us. This is one of those mark-the-calendar bottlings from perhaps the most elite ‘grower-producer’ in Champagne—a rich, copper-colored stunner crafted entirely from Pinot Noir from the Montagne de Reims. We offer just about everything Egly-Ouriet makes, because they are benchmarks of value-for-dollar excellence. “Les Crayères” belongs in the very top rank of Champagne, yet is priced way below many of the elite têtes de cuvée it so clearly rivals (Cristal, Clos du Mesnil, etc.).
Longtime SommSelect subscribers already know the Egly-Ouriet story well: This is the standard-setting estate in the legion of Champagne houses who grow and vinify all of their own grapes. These “grower-producers” (from the French récoltant-manipulant, indicated by a tiny ‘RM’ on the label) have seized the moment with sommeliers and retailers, as the story of a scrappy, small-scale, family-owned vineyard doing battle with Champagne’s grandes marques—some of them owned by luxury-goods conglomerates—is an easy one to get behind. The thing with Egly-Ouriet is that it’s now itself a formidable “brand,” with as much cachet as any in Champagne. It has transcended its humble ‘RM’ moniker and become a grande marque (albeit an under-priced, under-marketed one) in its own right.
The fastidious Francis Egly, who has been in charge here since 1980, is the fourth generation to work his family’s vineyards. Their holdings have expanded to about 12 hectares, most of them in the Grand Cru-classified village of Ambonnay—home to some of Champagne’s, if not all of France’s—greatest Pinot Noir. Yes, there’s Chardonnay in there, too, but organically farmed, old-vine Pinot Noir is at the heart of every Egly-Ouriet cuvée (save for a 100% Pinot Meunier he makes from vines in the village of Vrigny). The respected Champagne writer Peter Liem dubbed Egly-Ouriet “Burgundy with bubbles,” and indeed Egly has inspired many new-generation Champagne producers to shift the focus away from blending and ‘branding’ and toward a more vineyard-specific model in the Burgundy mold (i.e., treat it like wine, not whisk(e)y).
At the top of the Egly-Ouriet heap sits “Les Crayères”: 100% Pinot Noir from Egly’s Ambonnay vineyard of the same name. To paraphrase Liem, this is Grand Cru Pinot Noir, with a pedigree to rival anything from Burgundy, which just happens to be effervescent and have a very light color. The vines are 70+ years old, rooted in chalk, and Francis Egly harvests it late, giving the Pinot Noir time to develop its vinous depth. The wine is completely barrel-fermented and, as with all Egly-Ouriet wines, it is distinguished by its exceptionally long (70 months!) aging on its lees. This, in fact, is something to comment on in more depth: By law, all Champagnes are aged on their lees for at least 12 months. The process lends Champagnes their creamy, nutty, biscuit/bread dough texture and complexity. Longer lees aging obviously deepens and intensifies that, especially when you’re starting with a base wine of exceptional ripeness. Champagne is a marginal climate where acid is always in abundance; what is less common is a ‘base’ wine for a Champagne that is drinkable before it is subjected to a second fermentation. This might be Egly’s greatest triumph (and he does, in fact, produce a benchmark bottling of ‘Coteaux Champenois’ AOC, a rare example of a ‘still’ Pinot Noir made in Champagne).
Les Crayères is a profound, penetrating, even brooding Blanc de Noirs Champagne—a knockout, plain and simple, and, relatively speaking, a knockout VALUE. The aromas are dark-toned and intense, led by brioche, yellow apple, red currant, lemon, honey and crushed stones. The palate is lush and broad, with amazing flavor concentration of cream, white mushrooms, fresh bread, preserved lemon and chalk. Although this wine is about a decade old (it’s a cuvée of 60% 2008 and 40% 2009 vintage wines), this is just the beginning; don’t be afraid to forget about this in a dark corner of your cellar. Ideally consume it just under cellar temp (~50F) in a large-mouthed Champagne stem, filled only halfway, so the aromas can blossom. If you only have traditional thin Champagne flutes, use an all-purpose white stem. A Burgundy stem works great, too, but you will lose the bubbles faster (not a bad thing). Most important is to get this darkly beautiful wine on the table with some food; it’s powerful enough to sing with an assortment of funky cheeses, but I’d pair it with the same kinds of dishes you might pair with a great Red Burgundy or California Pinot Noir. Duck confit is one of my absolute favorite dishes with rich Champagne in this style. There are many takes on this classic, but this is one you should try if you have the time.
