Many of us, probably most of us, spent a good amount of time in our youth figuring out what it was we wanted to do, what our passions are, and what careers we would pursue. But there are always those chosen few who seem born for a singular purpose. Alexandre Penet is in the latter camp, and his purpose and passion is crafting exquisitely precise, perfectly balanced Champagne. You could say it is in his blood, because it is. His family has been farming wine grapes for at least 400 years, and producing wine for almost a century. Alexandre harnesses all of that deep, generational knowledge and adds his own pursuit of perfection in order to accomplish the monumental task of creating a sublime experience that transcends the quotidian challenges and achieves an effortless beauty. This scintillating, bone dry Extra-Brut is truly an affordable luxury, packaged as a lovely bottle of bubbles. Grab some before it's gone!
The Penet clan have worked the vineyards of Champagne for over four centuries, but, like many growers, they only began bottling their wine in the early 1930s. Désiré and Gilbert Penet were hoping to capitalize on the global popularity of Champagne that began in the late 19th century and exploded in the early 20th century. Their son, Emile, purchased the château and cellar in Verzy that is their heart of the estate today, and he continued to modernize and update all aspects of the family business throughout the 1950s and ’60s. At the same time his son married Marie-Louis Chardonnet, whose family had their own small parcels of Grand Cru vines in the Montagne de Reims, and thus the Penet-Chardonnet label was born. Today it is the fourth generation, Alexandre Penet, at the helm.
Alexandre has a diverse background, including an enology degree, and he has taken the solid foundations that his parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents established and converted them into a world-class Champagne estate. Production is still quite small, especially by the standards of the big labels and houses, but in addition to the estate bottled Penet-Chardonnet wines, Alexandre also makes a range of wines under the umbrella of “Les Maison Penet.” This includes the Extra-Brut that we have for you to discover today. The fruit is sourced from sustainable or organically farmed Premier Cru vineyards in the Montagne des Reims, and the wine is made in the ancient, cold cellars of the Penet estate in Verzy.
The Premier Cru Extra-Brut is Alexandre’s calling card bottle, expressing his devotion to precision and balance, and to capturing the clean, chalky, and mineral laden terroir of his source vineyards. The wine is fermented and aged in a combination of steel tanks and neutral barrels, before undergoing a long, cold, and slow secondary fermentation in the soaring, vaulted cellars of the winery. Serve this crystalline, white gold Champagne in an all-purpose stem at around 45 to 50 degrees. The fine, persistent mousse is readily apparent and the classic notes of lemon zest, crisp apple, cranberry, red currant, baking spice, sourdough, and oyster shells are immediately abundant. Delicacy and finesse reign supreme, though a touch of texture from the barrels lingers in the background and culminates in a long, sea-salty finish. This is a no-brainer with oysters or any shellfish, but also perfect for a sneakily luxurious weeknight meal of fried chicken sandwiches. And the very reasonable price makes that meal all the more delicious!
