As longtime subscribers know, grower Champagne is still one of the world’s most under-valued categories of wine, and as such we offer a lot of them here. We’re thrilled to add Champagne Doyard to the mix, as it is widely regarded as one of the great small houses in the Côte des Blancs. Based in the Premier Cru village of Vertus, the Doyard family has roots in Champagne going back to the 17th century, and the estate as it is known today has been domaine-bottling since the end of the Second World War. These days it’s young Charles Doyard at the helm, farming 11 hectares of vines, mostly Chardonnay and mostly in Vertus, but with some additional old-vine parcels in that murderer’s row of Grand Cru Chardonnay villages mentioned above. Their farming is non-certified organic and biodynamic, with herbicides and pesticides both strictly forbidden.

 

There are a number of things that make the Doyard wines unique. For one thing, Charles Doyard sells off as much as 50% of his annual production to négociants, keeping only the very best ‘base’ wines to use in his cuvées. The wines, including Cuvée Vendémiaire (which represents about 80% of their production), are subjected to extra-long aging on their lees—usually 48 months minimum—and they’re bottled at a slightly lower atmospheric pressure than most Champagnes, lending them ‘vinosity.’ The base wines for Cuvée Vendémiaire are fermented in both wood barrels (40%) and steel tanks, but only a small percentage of those lots (20%) have undergone malolactic fermentation; in the end, you get a wine of considerable depth, but also of razor-sharp acidity. This is Chardonnay at its most electric.

 

This edition of Cuvée Vendémiaire is based on the 2010 harvest, with reserve wines from the ‘08/’09 vintages. In the glass it is a reflective straw-gold, with a nose of chalk dust, white flowers, green and yellow apple, citrus blossom, lemongrass, brioche toast, raw hazelnut, and crushed stones. Its importer uses the term “fiercely elegant” to describe it, which I like; the combination of flavor depth and focus is downright fascinating. As with so many Champagnes, this clearly has the structure for extended aging, but my suspicion is that you’ll be popping a bottle sooner rather than later: Serve this at 40-45 degrees in larger all-purpose white or even red wine glasses, as it expands nicely as the carbonation dissipates a bit. This is quintessential oyster wine, as in raw, tangy, West Coast varieties such as Kumamotos or Hama Hamas. Add even more zip with a mignonette like the attached. That is good living!