Hélène Charbaut Champagne 1er Cru Blanc de Noirs "La Pirouette" 2022
Producer: Hélène Charbaut is the fourth generation of her family's winegrowing estate in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, where she established her own label beginning with the 2020 vintage. After studying viticulture and gaining experience with producers including Leclerc Briant and Péhu-Simonet, she returned to Champagne with a philosophy centered on parcel-specific, single-variety Champagnes that express both vineyard and vintage. The family farms Premier Cru vineyards across Bisseuil, Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, and Avenay-Val-d'Or, using sustainable farming practices, mechanical cultivation, cover crops, and minimal chemical intervention. Each parcel is harvested separately, fermented with indigenous yeasts, and vinified individually in oak barrels before blending or bottling. Sulfur additions are kept low, wines are bottled without filtration whenever possible, and production remains extremely limited, allowing each cuvée to reflect a distinct site rather than a house style. Vineyard: La Pirouette is sourced entirely from the Haut de la Pirouette parcel in the Premier Cru village of Bisseuil. Planted in 1960, the vineyard is dedicated exclusively to Pinot Noir and occupies a southwest-facing slope where the combination of sunlight exposure and the cool influence of Champagne's climate allows for gradual ripening while preserving freshness. The soils consist primarily of clay-limestone over Campanian chalk, providing excellent drainage together with the mineral foundation that defines many of the Grande Vallée de la Marne's finest vineyards. Rather than blending fruit from multiple sites, Hélène Charbaut bottles this vineyard independently to highlight the individual character of the lieu-dit. The old vines naturally produce lower yields, contributing greater concentration while maintaining the structural precision associated with chalk-rich terroirs. Winemaking: Produced from 100% Pinot Noir, only the cuvée (the first pressing) is retained for vinification. Fermentation takes place entirely in 228-liter French oak barrels using indigenous yeasts, followed by approximately 10 months of élevage on the fine lees in barrel. The wine is bottled without filtration, preserving texture and aromatic complexity before undergoing extended maturation on its lees in bottle. The 2022 vintage was disgorged on November 25, 2023 and released as Brut Nature with 1 g/L dosage, allowing the vineyard's mineral structure and Pinot Noir character to remain the primary expression of the wine. Barrel fermentation and restrained intervention are intended to build texture without masking the identity of the vineyard. Food Pairing: The structure and vinous character of La Pirouette make it particularly well suited to richer dishes. It pairs naturally with veal osso buco, roast chicken with morels, grilled lobster with beurre demi-sel, duck breast, pork loin, mushroom-based dishes, roasted guinea fowl, and aged Comté. The combination of Pinot Noir, extended barrel élevage, and Brut Nature dosage also allows the wine to accompany an entire meal rather than serving solely as an aperitif.