The village of Ambonnay is one of the best-known of Champagne’s 17 Grand Cru villages, located right in the heart of the Pinot Noir-dominated Montagne de Reims subzone. Fourth-generation vigneron René Coutier farms about 9 hectares here, although a hefty proportion of his fruit (80%) is still sold off to cooperatives; the family reserves their best fruit for themselves, producing only about 2,000 cases across a range of different cuvées. René’s father was the first to plant Chardonnay in Ambonnay, way back in 1946, and this is a key component of the Coutier house style: generally speaking, Ambonnay is known for a higher percentage of clay in its soils and a slightly warmer microclimate than most of its neighbors, resulting in more sumptuous, deeper styles (along with some of the better examples of Coteaux Champenois still wines from Pinot Noir). Tradition Brut, the introduction to the Coutier range, contains about 30% Chardonnay, which lends considerable raciness and nerve to an otherwise rich, round, characteristically “Ambonnay” wine.

Grapes at Coutier are hand-harvested, whole-cluster pressed, and, in the case of Tradition Brut, fermented in stainless steel. This bottling is 70%-30% Pinot Noir-Chardonnay (100% estate fruit from Ambonnay) and received a rather low 6 grams/liter of dosage. It is based primarily on the 2011 vintage and was disgorged in May 2014.

One thing that’s clear from the outset—both in appearance and aromatics—is that this is a Pinot-driven Champagne. It’s fine, persistent bubbles are backlit with a slight coppery tint (suggesting a trace amount of skin contact) to the classic Champagne gold. The nose is full of warm baking spice and lots of red fruits, most notably red currant and red apple, giving way to more savory, secondary aromas of button mushroom, crusty bread, and clotted cream. The texture is rich, round, ample, and yet it finishes clean and crisp, the Chardonnay doing its job admirably. Still, I see this less as an apéritif style than as a bold and deeply mineral accompaniment to first (or even main) courses. As we note often, ditch the flutes here in favor of some all-purpose white (or even red) glasses, and serve this hearty, soulful Champagne at around 50 degrees to really appreciate its breadth of flavor. I think it’d be amazing with cured salmon or maybe a slightly more wintry seafood preparation like the one in the attached recipe. These grower Champagnes are just the gift that keep on giving. Enjoy!