Collard-Picard "Cuvée Selection" Brut Champagne

$49.99

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K&L Buyer

The NV Collard-Picard Cuvee Selection Brut is a blend of 80% pinot meunier and 20% chardonnay. The pinot meunier is from the Collard side of the family, from Olivier’s vineyards in the western Marne Valley. Nobody else in Champagne has such mastery over the native-to-Champagne varietal as the Collard family does. Rene’s vintage champagnes were made only in the best of years and carried on the tradition of the 19th century style of champagne. Several writers refer to those wines as being in the “British” style (truffles, cognac, sherry and caramel), though we have many Americans who shop with us who claim it as their own.

Staff Reviews

Scott Beckerley

A round and full Champagne, with loads of rich fruit. Amazing bubbles, clean and linear. Toasted hazelnuts, sea salt and grapefruit zest on the nose. In the mouth, brown butter, caramel, spice and clean citrus fruit. The finish is where the Chardonnay stands out. Unlike other Pinot Meunier-based Champagnes, this one has the unmistakable minerality of fruit from Mesnil to enhance the zippy finish. I highly recommend this Champagne for those of you who are curious about Meunier-based sparklers. It is also an ideal pairing for fowl and rustic smoked meats where other Champagnes tend to fall flat.

Notes

This new husband-and-wife Champagne house is the product of two venerable Champagne families. Olivier Collard is the grandson of the great René Collard in the village of Reuil, one of the most respected récoltant-manipulants in all of Champagne. His wife, Caroline Picard, is the cousin of Chantal Gonet of Champagne Phillipe Gonet in Mesnil. Their heritage gives them access to some of the best fruit in the entire region. Olivier's vineyards are in the western valley of the Marne, where Pinot Meunier is king, and there is no family with more mastery of this native plant than the Collards. Delphine's vineyards are in the hallowed, pure chalk soils of Mesnil-sur-Oger, the most famous of all the grand crus for Chardonnay. This bottling is all from Olivier's side of the family holdings and is 50% Meunier and 50% Pinot Noir. The base wine is fermented in stainless steel with no malolactic fermentation. The reserve wines are aged in giant foudres (3000 liter or larger barrels) to encourage some contact with oxygen but to avoid flavoring the wine with barrel spice. This is a fresh Champagne with a straw color and a subtly pear-like nose from the Meunier. On the palate it is round and full, with plenty of richness and body from the Pinot Noir. The wine is still fresh and vibrant on the finish, and makes a great aperitif. (Gary Westby, K&L Champagne Buyer)

Details

Origin	Champagne, France
Type/Varietal	Other White Wines
SKU	1035577