Cuvée “Envol” Brut Nature Sans Soufre Ajouté 2019

Wine description for Cuvée “Envol” Brut Nature Sans Soufre Ajouté 2019 by Olivier Horiot

Character

A Champagne that refuses any embellishment: bone-dry, chalky, with a stark elegance. The name “Envol” – the ascent – suits a wine that dispenses with both dosage and added sulphur, drawing its unadulterated energy from precisely this restraint. Here, it is the terroir that speaks, not the cellar.

Terroir & Origin

Les Riceys, in the southern Champagne region of the Côte des Bar, is the only village in the area to hold three appellations – Champagne, still wine and the legendary Rosé des Riceys. Beneath the vines lies Kimmeridgian chalk, geologically related to the soils of Chablis, which imparts a pronounced minerality to the wines. Olivier Horiot, whose family has tended vines here since the 17th century, has been farming biodynamically since 2010 – the soils are ploughed with horses, and synthetic additives are strictly forbidden.

Grape Variety & Vinification

Pure Pinot Noir – the variety that dominates three-quarters of the Horiot estate’s vineyard area and is truly at home in the Côte des Bar. Fermentation is spontaneous, carried out with wild yeasts in used barriques; each parcel is harvested and vinified separately. Neither filtered nor fined, with minimal sulphur – and none at all added to this cuvée. Bottled as Brut Nature: zero grams of residual sugar, uncompromising.

Food Pairings

The taut, mineral structure calls for oysters or a simple sole in butter. Alongside Comté or mature Parmesan, this Blanc de Noirs reveals what chalk and Pinot Noir can achieve together. For those who prefer something more rustic: country-style charcuterie – the wine’s austerity positively welcomes the contrast.