Champagne Robert Moncuit has called Le Mesnil-sur-Oger home since 1889, when Alex Moncuit began farming vines on the village's famously chalky slopes. His grandson Robert bottled the estate's first vintage in 1928, and the domaine has stayed in family hands ever since, passing to his daughter Françoise in 1987 and to her son, Pierre Amillet, in 2000. Pierre now runs the estate with his wife Maud, tending 8 hectares entirely without pesticides or herbicides. Every parcel across their Mesnil and Oger holdings is picked, sorted and vinified separately, a painstaking approach built around one obsession: Grand Cru Chardonnay grown in pure chalk.

The Millésime is Robert Moncuit's flagship vintage bottling, produced exclusively from the estate's oldest vines in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and made only in years Pierre considers worth declaring. Like the rest of the range, it's raised in a combination of stainless steel and neutral oak through full malolactic fermentation, an approach that leans into a riper, more vinous style than many of its neighbors while never losing Mesnil's signature chalky spine. The result is a 100% Chardonnay Grand Cru that speaks to both a specific place and a specific moment in the vineyard's long history.

Why You'll Love It

• A richer, more textural expression of Mesnil-sur-Oger's chalk, built from the estate's oldest vines.
• Aromas of lemon curd, ripe pear, toasted brioche and orchard fruit sit atop a distinctly mineral base.
• The palate is full and vinous, with citrus and stone fruit giving way to a chalky, saline finish.
• A more generous, food-friendly style than Moncuit's leaner cuvées, without sacrificing the site's trademark tension.
• A wine that rewards a bit of patience but is already showing beautifully.

How To Serve It

• Serve at 48 to 50°F, slightly warmer than a standard aperitif Champagne, to let its richer texture unfold.
• A short 15 minute decant helps open up its fuller, more vinous character.
• An all-purpose stem works well, giving the wine room to show both its mousse and its aromatics.
• Pair with a chilled lobster salad brightened with Meyer lemon and tarragon, or another richer seafood dish that can stand up to its texture.