So there I was at some swanky party, so swanky that I knew absolutely nobody. I think I was invited by mistake. I mooched about, got bored and muscled in on a group of fun-looking folk – and soon found myself chatting to one Diogo Veiga, export manager for Brimoncourt Champagne. Never heard of it, I said. Try some, he said, and I did.
Well, crikey, it fair blew my socks off, so fine a fizz was it. I can’t remember when I was last so taken aback by a wine completely new to me. Why the heck had nobody told me about Brimoncourt?
Great freshness, lively lemon notes, hints of toasty brioche, honey and peaches, and with the finest bubbles
I’ve since become a devoted fan and the Maison, based in a former wine-label printing factory in Aÿ and boasting Bollinger, Gosset and Deutz as neighbours, has been added to the itinerary of our Spectator Wine Club tours of Champagne. We’ve been royally entertained there twice by Diogo and the impossibly dashing CEO/owner Alexandre Cornot, a former naval officer, paratrooper, lawyer, entrepreneur and art dealer, who founded the house in 2008. I am delighted I managed to persuade them to offer their exquisite champagnes here and at such generously discounted prices. They should be on everyone’s shopping list.
The Brimoncourt Brut Régence NV (1) is the Maison’s signature champagne, the one that first alerted me to the exceptional quality of the brand. A blend of 80 per cent Chardonnay and 20 per cent Pinot Noir, with a dosage of just six grams per litre, it’s aged for four years before release. It’s wonderful, marked by great freshness, lively lemon notes, hints of toasty brioche, honey and peaches, and lifted by the finest of bubbles. If you consider big names such as the Bols, Lols and Pols are anything between £40 and £60 a bottle, it’s a steal at this Spectator price. £35.10 (or £33.35 if you buy 12) down from £39.
The seductive, salmon-pink Brimoncourt Brut Rosé NV (2) is glorious, blended from 40 per cent Pinot Noir, 35 per cent Chardonnay and 25 per cent Pinot Meunier. It has weight, character and style and is really quite complex. Floral and enticing on the nose – think roses and sweet peas – there’s wild strawberry and raspberry in the mouth and just the faintest hint of cream. Indeed, although it finishes dry, the fruitiness and dosage of 8gpl give it a hint of vinous Eton Mess. I absolutely love it. £38.25 (or £36.34 if you buy 12) down from £42.50.
The Brimoncourt Blanc de Blancs NV (3) is made exclusively from Chardonnay, of course, drawn from six Premier and Grand Cru vineyards in the Côtes des Blancs. Aged in bottle for six years before release, it’s hugely impressive. There’s Brimoncourt’s exuberant signature freshness, the finest of mousses and touches of toast, citrus and white stone fruit. There’s an elusive sweetness, too, but it finishes clean and dry, with an appetisingly saline final flourish. £43.20 (or £41.04 if you buy 12) down from £48.
I usually quail at champagnes labelled Brut Zero, Ultra Brut, Extra Brut and so on, finding them too sharp and acidic to enjoy. The Brimoncourt Extra Brut Grand Cru NV (4), though, is absolutely bang on, a blend of 80 per cent Pinot Noir and 20 per cent Chardonnay from Grand Cru vineyards only, aged for six years in bottle. Crucially, the tiny 2gpl dosage gives it the slightest, gentlest of touches on the tiller, without obscuring the intense purity and freshness of flavour nor the clarity of its concentrated finish. Bravo Brimoncourt! £46.80 (or £44.46 if you buy 12) down from £52.
Finally, the outstanding 2009 Brimoncourt Millésime (5), in its uber-chic bottle. A 70 per cent Chardonnay and 30 per cent Pinot Noir blend that spent 12 years maturing in bottle, it’s everything fine vintage champagne should be, a snapshot of both terroir and vintage, in peak condition and full of fresh orchard fruit, honey, hazelnuts, almonds and cashews. Good grief it’s tasty! £99 down from £110.
The mixed case has two bottles each of wines 2, 3 and 4. Any reader buying 18 bottles or more will receive a free magnum of Brimoncourt Brut Régence NV. Order before 18 December and you will be entered into a draw to win a jeroboam of Brimoncourt Brut Régence NV. Delivery is free to the UK mainland.
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