Limited time to buy:
Champagne De Sousa, Blanc de Noirs, Grand Cru, Brut Nature NV
A producer that deserves to be much better known
William Kelley, robertparker.com, August 2022
De Sousa, Blanc de Noirs, Grand Cru, Brut Nature NV
£270 per 6 bottle case in bond
When Simon and I first tasted the De Sousa’s new, limited-edition Blanc de Noirs Brut Nature back in December 2023, we were both awestruck by this rare 100% Pinot Noir cuvée from a Champagne House based in Avize, famed for Blanc de Blancs wines.
The quality of the fruit from the family’s vines in the Pinot Noir Grand Cru village of Ambonnay in the 2018 vintage was particularly outstanding. Indeed, this is what led them to produce this Blanc de Noirs for the first time. Vintage conditions were similarly favourable in 2019. But the products of these two vintages are the sole releases of this cuvee to date. Never before and never yet since. The 2018 is gone. The 2019, almost.
Happily, we have just been granted permission to offer some of the last remaining cases. These are offered lying at De Sousa, with collection later this year. But I can assure you there is no need to be in any hurry to take delivery; this beautiful champagne will certainly benefit from a year or two more in bottle. Possibly we are doing you a favour by keeping it out of your reach a little longer!
And as we always re-iterate in respect of De Sousa: the value, the quality to price ratio, is so incredibly high. For every wine they produce.
As highlighted, this is a very small production cuvée. We quickly sold out of the 2018-base and we sold out of our first allocation of the 2019-base edition a while ago already. This is a rare second chance for an exceptional, and exceptional value, Champagne.
De Sousa, Blanc de Noirs, Grand Cru Brut Nature NV
£270 per 6 bottle case in bond
100% Pinot Noir, Grand Cru fruit from Ambonnay, based on the 2019 vintage. Base wine aged in oak for 10 months, then aged for 42 months on lees in bottle. Disgorged in March 2024. Just 830 cases produced.
This is the only the second time this cuvée has been made (the first was from a 2018 base, offered last year). It showcases the Ambonnay terroir in some style. Beautifully pure with hints of red fruit, mint, lees and a chalky quality expressed on both nose and palate. It is just so well-expressed, with an overriding sense of harmony. The clever use of oak on the base wine lends a certain roundness to this outstanding NV cuvée, that remains precise and expressive. It is the refinement of this cuvée, with enticing red fruit hints and a deceptively long finish, that really mark it out. It is easy to see why this Blanc de Noirs is winning over clients. (SL) Drink: now to 2030
We have been working with De Sousa for more than a decade, from quite soon after Atlas was founded. But in case you need a gentle reminder, or these wines are new to you, or you are new to Atlas, here is a little background.
About De Sousa
The De Sousa family (of Portuguese descent) have been in Avize in the heart of the Côte des Blancs for three generations. The house of De Sousa & Fils was founded in 1986 by the late Erick De Sousa and his wife Michelle, and today, it is run by their three children, Charlotte, Julie and Valentin. Their vineyards extend over 14 hectares (with 10 hectares owned by the family, the rest en fermage with vineyards owned by relatives or friends and all work done by De Sousa) across 13 villages and divided into 93 plots. Many of Champagne’s most famous terroir feature in their holdings, including vineyards in the villages of Ambonnay and Aÿ for Pinot Noir, and the villages of Avize, Cramant, Chouilly, Le Mesnil sur Oger and Oger for Chardonnay.
The vast majority of their vines are low yielding, given they were planted more than 50 years ago, and they have cultivated their vineyards organically since 1989 though only sought certification in 2010. In 1999, De Sousa converted to biodynamic viticulture which, if anything, has lowered yields even further. Everything at De Sousa is about quality rather than quantity. Four hectares of vineyard now see no mechanisation and are ploughed by horse, meaning there is less soil compaction, helping to maintain microbial diversity which the De Sousas see as key in vines establishing deep roots where they can tap into trace minerals. The family are always intent on raising the quality bar. Central to their philosophy is a respect for nature and operating as naturally as possible. They are convinced that this delivers finer results and, based on the evidence of the quality in the bottle, who are we to argue? The quality at this estate continues to impress us greatly.
If you are someone who needs to hear third party endorsements, William Kelley has commented that De Sousa is ‘a producer that deserves to be much better known among Anglophone wine lovers.’ Champagne critic, Peter Liem once commented that ‘it’s no accident that De Sousa is found in many of France’s best restaurants’, which just so happens to be where we first encountered them over a decade ago.