In 2012, the film "The Artist" won the Oscar for best film, Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her Diamond Jubilee in style - 60 years of reign - and Barak Obama was re-elected for a second term, a vintage is always like a journey through time and brings back forgotten emotions. That year speaks of elegance, style, a balanced mix between respect for traditions and modernity. The 2012 vintage is another very beautiful expression of this, a vintage that never falls into nostalgia but rather into the subtle expression of an exceptional year with high aromatic potential.
Winning Meteorology
The birth of a great vintage depends on a few things, and in particular on the weather that will reign over the current year. The year 2012 begins with a mild and dry winter, followed by a cold February. Spring is rebellious, cool, with little sunshine but an almost summery period sets in in March. Budding (development of buds) arrives earlier than expected. In the following months, the weather alternates between rain, wind, mildness and frost until offering warm and sunny weather from the end of July to September. What does not kill you makes you stronger, capricious weather pushes the vine to its limits, forcing it to draw on its resources to bring out the best in itself. Very quickly, Laurent Fédou, Cellar Master of the House is impressed by the quality and character of certain Pinots Noirs and Pinots Meunier, and naturally comes the desire to sublimate them to capture this year like no other.
A bouquet of fruity aromas without added sugar dosage
A champagne should never be a question of arithmetic, let's just point out that the 2012 cuvée V is a Blanc de Noirs, that it is made from 70% Pinot Noirs and 30% Pinots Meunier, 40% Grands Crus and 20% Premiers Crus. Let's talk about its character instead. All of Laurent Fédou's work consisted of giving personality to this vintage without taking away what makes the House's style. The result? A champagne with a subtle blondness that lets fine bubbles rise up, patinated by time, a brioche nose, slightly toasted, tinged with aromas of very ripe yellow fruits and elegant notes of raspberries upon aeration. Let's start tasting, fresh, mineral, saline with a long and persistent finish sprinkled with notes of grapefruit. Cheers!
Always in good company
Elegant, this 2012 vintage marries with a range of flavors, from the simplest to the most elaborate. Take seafood, salmon gravlax, langoustines à la nage, Cancale oysters, scallop carpaccio, its salty notes are a pure marvel on these noble products. For cheeses, it's a bit the same story, magnificent on a Brillat-Savarin and just as smooth on a Brie de Melun, a soft cheese with a bloomy rind. A champagne to serve in a large wine glass to give this distinguished guest the freedom to express all his aromas.
