Gonet-Médeville, Brut NV Tradition 1er Cru
Xavier Gonet comes from a long-established family of growers in Champagne, based in Le Mesnil. In 1997 he married Julie Médeville, whose family has been producing Sauternes for generations at their Bordeaux estate, Château Gillette. When Julie’s parents retired, Xavier joined her in carrying on her family tradition. And somehow along the way, they also found the time and energy to continue Xavier’s lifelong passion, founding their own Champagne house, Gonet-Médeville, in 2000 in the village of Bisseuil in the Marne Valley. When his family’s holdings were being divided, Xavier opted to receive a small allotment of their top Premier and Grand Cru vineyard sites from which he could produce “exquisite, small-production Champagnes.” To that end, they farm all of their fruit organically and vinify each parcel separately to capture the individual terroir of each site before blending. Their Champagnes are known for their remarkable elegance and delicacy. This cuvée is 70% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Noir, and 5% Pinot Meunier, from vineyards in Bisseuil, Trépail, Mareuil sur Äy, and Le Mesnil sur Oger. Like all of their wines, it doesn’t go through malolactic fermentation and gets very little dosage. And it is simply lovely, with inviting complexity and texture and pretty notes of toast and soft spice, all of which lingers long and pleasantly on the palate. It is $55.75 and would be a perfect start to any meal, or would pair very nicely with light appetizers or scallops.