Tasting Note
98 Points, Neal Martin, 2024-2038 Vinous The magnum of 2008 Brut Millésime Grand Cru from Egly-Ouriet was spectacular. It is just a “killer” bouquet with scents of dried honey, lemon sherbet, white truffles and linseed oil, exquisitely defined and intense. The palate has fabulous weight and is balanced, quite “deep” to the extent that blind, I would almost say it was a Blanc de Noir. There is a nonchalance about this champagne that holds the drinker spellbound, delivering stunning precision on its multi-dimensional finish. Frankly, even for someone who has admitted being ambivalent to champagne, it’s one of the most sublime that I have encountered for a very long time. I get the fuss.Review Date: 16 Feb 24
About the Producer
The Champagnes of Francis Egly draw on fruit from old vines in the Grand Cru villages of Ambonnay, Bouzy and Verzenay. This applies as much to his superb Grand Cru Extra Brut NV as to the heralded Crayères and vintage cuvees. The only wines that are not from 100% Grand Cru fruit are the Vignes de Vrigny, which is made from Premier Cru-classified Pinot Meunier and the relatively recently introduced ‘Les Premices’ from the village of Trigny. All of Egly’s wines are aged well beyond the norm before release. Nothing is hurried and each step is meticulous. Each cuvée benefits from extended ageing of at least four years on lees in bottle, way ahead of the statutory minimum for Champagne. The Vieillissement Prolongé (or V.P. for short) is the most dramatic example, spending 84 months on its lees. All of Egly’s wines are low dosage, referring to the amount of sugar in the liqueur d’expedition that is added after the disgorgement process which adjusts the wine’s overall sweetness or dryness. In Egly’s wines, there is nothing to mar the sheer purity. Each wine in his range is capable of developing complexity in the bottle with age. These wines are produced in smaller quantities than most of the Champagnes with which you may be familiar; they are not seeking to further the aspirations of a brand, but rather to represent their origins. They are a far cry from some of commercial output of many famous names in Champagne. Making wines of such high and unerring quality requires not only considerable practical skill, but equally near maniacal focus. That’s exactly what you get with Egly-Ouriet: they are highly individual Champagnes that are now receiving the credit they are due.
