Champagne Thierry Triolet
A small Grower Producer since the 60s with good, solid (and tasty) value priced wines.
Thierry Triolet has been producing his own Champagne, from growing and nurturing the vines, harvesting, pressing, blending, and aging, since the 1960s with the help of his wife Frédérique. They have 11 hectares of vines in Breton, a village in the south of Côte de Sézanne. The Côte de Sézanne is next to the better known Côte des Blancs, and both areas are known for their Chardonnay. Geographically, the Côte de Sézanne is an extension of the Côte des Blancs with a very similar terroir.
His 11 hectares of vines in the villages of Bethon, Montgenost, and Villenaux-la-Grande, are 80% Chardonnay with 15% Pinot Noir and 5% Pinot Meunier. He makes 40,000 bottles and year and sells some grapes including to Krug and Billecart Salmon. Minimal intervention is practiced and fermentations take place with natural, indigenous yeasts from the skins of the grapes.
Not
a lot of information is available online on his wines, so some of this
information is based on my translations from his nice
French language
Website (great pictures!) aided by the Grateful Dead blaring in the
background while I sip his lovely Grande Reserve (tasting notes below).
Incidentally, visitors are welcome with prior reservations - see the Web
site for details
Wines include the Brut NV, 80% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Noir, the Grand Reserve, 100% Chardonnay making it a Blanc de Blancs (although the label on my bottle doesn't mention that) and aged 3 years on its lees, the Brut Vieilles Vignes vintage Champagne, made entirely of Chardonnay and from a parcel of vines that are 40+ years old, and a Rose which is 55% Chardonnay, 30 Pinot Noir, and the rest half still Pinot Noir and still Pinot Muenier. They refer to their Rose as "un vin de gourmandise" which I translate to a big and tasty wine. They also make a Carte Noir, 60% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot Noir et 5% Pinot Meunier, in both Brut and Demi-Sec (sweet) varieties.
Tasting Note: Champagne Thierry Triolet Grand Reserve Brut NV
Light golden yellow in color
One the nose, apple cider upon opening, baked apples with a touch of cinnamon, sawdust and minerals
Pretty big and bold for a Chardonnay based wine, with applesauce, baked apple. A very nice mouthfeel. As it warms some lemon and lime yet without the bitterness/tartness.
Not a blockbuster, but a good solid value, especially at the US$35 I paid. Certainly as good or better than many big names at higher prices.
I hope to encounter some of his other wines soon.