Grower Champagne: BENOÎT LAHAYE

When it's time to celebrate good times; we reach for Champagne!!! I recommend that you not only seek out TRUE Champagne that represents only eighteen percent of the sparkling wine made in the world, BUT; GEEK OUT and enjoy the VERY RARE; GROWER CHAMPAGNE! Only 5% of the Champagne imported into the USA is grower Champagne.

BENOÎT LAHAYE

<ben-wa> <La-y>

Grand Cru, Blanc de Noirs, Champagne

"Blanc de Noirs" refers to a wine produced entirely from black grapes (“red” grapes)

Grapes: Pinot Noir

MIRABELLE PLUM / FLORAL / RASPBERRY / PEAR / ETHEREAL / CARAMEL  

Lahaye’s vineyards are planted almost entirely to Pinot Noir (88%), with the majority of the vines in Bouzy, a hectare in Ambonnay, and a small parcel of old vine Chardonnay in the Cotes de Blancs. Benoit feels strongly about working the land as naturally as possible; he stopped using chemicals in the vineyards in the mid-90s. He became organically certified in 2003 and biodynamically certified in 2010. Benoit Lahaye is a farmer first and winemaker second.

In this bottle there is more than wine; there is generations of experience tending to the vines, there is attentive care that only uses natural and sustainable methods. There is attention and thoughtful talent that you will be able to taste! This is wine the way it is supposed to be; seek it out!

You can find it at the NEW Restaurant Poppy at The George Hotel in Collage Station, Texas.

Grower Champagne: PIERRE PETERS

When it's time to celebrate good times; we reach for Champagne!!! I recommend that you not only seek out TRUE Champagne that represents only eighteen percent of the sparkling wine made in the world, BUT; GEEK OUT and enjoy the VERY RARE; GROWER CHAMPAGNE! Only 5% of the Champagne imported into the USA is grower Champagne.

One of the very best...
PIERRE PETERS
Grand Cru, Brut Cuvée de Réserve
Their flagship Champagne is a blend of more than 20 vintages and is exclusively composed of Chardonnay from Grand Cru villages in the Côte des Blancs. Côte des Blancs is a department of Marne, across 8,000 acres with east facing slopes almost exclusively planted with Chardonnay. The Grand Cru villages here are highly regarded and many the best known prestige cuvees of the big Champagne houses source their fruit from these same vineyards.
Grapes: 100% Chardonnay
APPLE / WHITE PEACH / LIME / HONEYDEW / HYACINTH / TOASTED ALMOND
The Pierre Péters estate is in the heart of the "Côte des Blancs" in the village of Le Mesnil sur Oger. It has been the family house for six generations and has produced Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Champagnes since 1919. Their wines come exclusively from their vineyards.

In this bottle the wine is completely comparable to the greatest and most famous names in Champagne! The experience will be unforgettable with luminous flavors and deep dimensions that make one wish the glass was bottomless. Seek it out!

You can find it at the NEW Restaurant Poppy at The George Hotel in Collage Station, Texas.

Grower Champagne: VILMART & CIE

When it's time to celebrate good times; we reach for Champagne!!! I recommend that you not only seek out TRUE Champagne that represents only eighteen percent of the sparkling wine made in the world, BUT; GEEK OUT and enjoy the VERY RARE; GROWER CHAMPAGNE! Only 5% of the Champagne imported into the USA is grower Champagne.

One of the very best...

VILMART & CIE

<Vill-ma> and <Sea>

“Cuvée Rubis” <Cuvee ruby>

Brut Rosé, Champagne

Grapes: 90% Pinot Noir and 10% Chardonnay

SENSUAL LAYERS / PERFUMED FRUIT / SPICECAKE / ANISE / RED BERRY  

Vilmart and son Laurent are considered the greatest grape growers in Champagne! Appreciate that Champagne has hundreds of years of history, many very famous vineyard sites and thousands of men and women growing grapes and making wine. Vilmart is at the 49th parallel, considered to be the most northern of wine growing possibilities. This cool climate is partnered by the cliffs of pure limestone powder in which the vines dig into with their roots. The vines are very old, with many growing on their own root stocks and dating back to the days before many of the old clones were ripped out in favor of more "productive" new clones.

In this bottle is more than great flavors and an exciting sensory sensation; in this bottle you will taste art, smell a symphony and drink in sublime poetry. Seek it out!

You can find it at the NEW Restaurant Poppy at The George Hotel in Collage Station, Texas.

Grower Champagne: Geek Out!

When it's time to celebrate good times; we reach for Champagne!!! BUT; in our glass it is more likely to be sparkling wine than TRUE Champagne, but don't be a wet blanket and point that out, man. The sparkling wines presence just seems to heighten the feeling of celebration. Some guy like me pointing out that sparkling wine can only be called Champagne if it comes from the region of Champagne, France, just outside of Paris. Well, that does not heighten the feeling of celebration at all. The best thing to do, for all of us, is for you to just go ahead and pour TRUE Champagne!

And, Champagne is well worth the money. It represents eighteen percent of the sparkling wine made in the world. It is a rare jewel that you can afford. Comparable rare wines from other regions sell for many multiples of the price of Champagne. The quality is undisputed and unsurpassed! And, it is not hard to find a great Champagne; it is in every wine shop and every restaurant. Many are brand names you will recognize and when you gracefully mention them, by brand, to your self-important friends; they will be oh so impressed! And, everyone will be happy ever after...

Only, that is not what wine is about.
Wine is not supposed to be fashion. Wine is not supposed to be brand names that one buys because it impresses the right people. Wine is art! It is a collaboration between man and nature. It's beauty is in the five senses of the beholder. The sparkling wine that embodies this the best is not mearly Champagne; it is GROWER CHAMPAGNE!

Grower Champagne is sparkling wine crafted by grape growers and their families. The men and women who live and work in the vineyards. Their careful hands touch the vines in the vineyards and their watchful eye on the grapes, the harvest, the fermentation, the ageing and the entire process to make cuvées that reflect their distinct vineyards and style. It is 'homemade' Champagne.

Everyone loves home grown tomatoes, unique character of farm fresh eggs, distinctive single origin coffee and gourmet chocolate? Grower Champagne is like that; it rarely tastes the same every year and each producer is different. And, this is part of what makes it so compelling, AND IRRESISTIBLY DELICIOUS!

Good news; Grower Champagne will not cost you any more than comparable Champagne. Bad news; it is VERY RARE; only 5% of the Champagne imported into the USA is grower Champagne. It will be hard to find. You might have to geek out and search for it. Your efforts will be worth it.

I Highly Recommend:

• VILMART & CIE
• PIERRE PETERS
• BENOÎT LAHAYE