Cuvée perpétuelle RP21AB Extra Brut Premier Cru

Tasting note

The Cuvée Perpetuelle Extra Brut is a blend of 40 % Pinot Noir, 30 % Chardonnay and 30 % Meunier from the 2020 base vintage as well as 40 % reserve wines from previous harvests, which are blended continuously (solera method). The grapes come from a total of 35 parcels from the Chamery, Vrigny and Coulommes-la-Montagne sites, which are classified as Premier Cru and are located in the western part of the Montagne de Reims, the Petite Montagne. The average age of the vines is 35 years and the soils include siliceous and calcareous sands, silty-loamy soils on calcareous subsoil and calcareous clay soils with millstone.

The first fermentation takes place 85 % in stainless steel tanks and 15 % in oak barrels; malolactic fermentation is a desired stylistic device. Before blending with the reserve wines, the wines mature on the lees for eight months before being bottled unfiltered and with only minimal addition of sulphites (less than 25 mg/l) for at least four years and finally with three to four grams of shipping dosage.

Color:

Strong straw yellow with light copper reflections and fine perlage.

Nose:

The nose of Bonnet-Ponson's Cuvée Perpetuelle Extra Brut 1er Cru RP20AB is clear and uncluttered with almost bookish accuracy. Initial autolysis notes of biscuits such as sourdough bread crust are disciplinedly added to the array of saline aromas of oyster shells and wet pebbles, along with table chalk. Citrus is on board anyway, as are the light oxi notes of a sliced red apple. Whitecurrants and some rhubarb provide the strings in the chorus.

Mouth:

Tart red fruit on the palate, rhubarb again, good tannin entry, grippy on the palate, chalky impression on the texture, aromatic swing between citrus fruit after lime zest and a salty, mineral character. The palate is pleasantly brushed against the grain with a good amount of pressure and is fuelled by a small-pearl mousseux.

Food pairing suggestions

• Risotto with young peas, rhubarb and tarragon (Vegetable & Vegetarian)
• Oysters with redcurrants and parsley(seafood)
• Hand-cut veal tartare with oysters and quail egg (meat)

Tasting notes and food recommendations from Sebastian Bordthäuser