PERRIER-JOUËT
Belle Epoque
Blanc de Blancs
Blanc de Blancs
2006
Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blan
c de Blancs is the quintessence of Chardonnay with the brilliance and rarity of a yellow diamond.
HERVÉ DESCHAMPS
Chef de caves de la Maison Perrier-Jouët
THE VINTAGE
2006 was a good year in Champagne, with a near-perfect growing season. July witnessed a heatwave across the region, followed by fresher weather and welcomed rain in August, allowing the grapes to rest before the Indian summer took them to perfect maturity. By harvest, the Chardonnay grapes of Bouron Leroi and Bouron du Midi had attained the ideal balance between sugar, acidity and pure floral aromas. The year’s conditions were particularly favourable to Chardonnay, with the ripeness of the grapes, combined with aromatic richness and vinosity, resulting in a wine of exceptional finesse and generosity.
THE EYE
Bright, shimmering gold with subtle glints of green. Exceptionally fine bubbles.
THE NOSE
Pure, intense aromas of white flowers – acacia, hawthorn, lilac and elderberry – complemented by subtle overtones of honey, poached pear, pineapple and candied lemon. Hints of vanilla, hazelnut milk and brioche.
THE PALATE
A delicious crispness in the mouth, fresh yet never aggressive. The wine is full and rich, with a long, silken, elegant finish.
FLORAL · PURE
Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs champagne is not only the rarest Perrier-Jouët cuvée, but also the most emblematic – the culmination of the House’s 200-year expertise in revealing the intricate floral facets of its signature Chardonnay grape. Sourced from just two legendary parcels of vines, Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs is the expression of a single grape variety, a single terroir and a single year – a sublime champagne shimmering with golden light, whose freshness and purity are the exhilarating prelude to an explosion of lush floral notes.
AN EXCEPTIONAL TERROIR
Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs is crafted from 100% Chardonnay grapes from only two small parcels of vines – Bouron Leroi and Bouron du Midi – within Cramant, one of the most prestigious Grand Cru villages in the renowned Côte des Blancs. These two exceptional plots, covering just 6.8 hectares/16.8 acres, were among the first acquired by Maison Perrier-Jouët in the mid-19th century, when Charles Perrier, the son of the founders, used his extensive knowledge of viticulture and the terroirs of Champagne to identify their potential for yielding the supreme expression of the Chardonnay grape. Bouron Leroi and Bouron du Midi do indeed unite all the conditions necessary for revealing the unique floral character of Chardonnay. Set halfway up a gentle southeast-facing slope, they enjoy ideal exposure to the morning sun, while their chalky soil maintains constant levels of humidity throughout the year. The small size of these prized plots, and Maison Perrier-Jouët’s meticulous approach to viticulture, mean that only a limited quantity of grapes can be produced in any given year, while a vintage is declared only in years of near-perfect conditions. Consequently, no vintage of Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs numbers more than 40,000 bottles.
AN INTENSE, INTRICATE CHAMPAGNE
While each vintage has its own personality, reflecting the conditions of its specific year, all present a number of unmistakable qualities, the result not only of their shared provenance, but also of the particular care taken in their elaboration, including a minimum of six years’ ageing on the lees to allow the full floral complexities of the wine to develop. Thus, Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs is characterised by a warm gold colour with almost iridescent glints of green, an intense and intricate bouquet of wild white flowers, rounded out by luscious hints of fruit and honey, and an astonishing freshness and purity that linger into an elegant, silken finish. An exceptional taste experience, it is the ultimate expression of the ethos of Maison Perrier-Jouët, which reinvents nature in order to create extraordinary moments of wonder and delight.
IDEAL PAIRINGS
Spider Crab
Passion Fruit
Cep
Mushrooms
DISH PAIRINGS
Thai fried rice stone pot with king crab
Mushroom risotto with shaved truffle
COMPOSITION
100% Chardonnay
EMBLEMATIC CRUS
Bouron Leroi and Bouron du Midi in Cramant
DOSAGE
8 grams per litre
MINIMUM AGEING
Six years
BEST SERVED TEMPERATURE
Around 12°C