Or shall we call it ‘The Richards’ ?! Instead of ‘The Champagne Oscars’ ? We want to sum-up the year of 2025 from a Champagne perspective. In 20+ categories we hand out awards for this years most memorable Champagnes & Champagne related topics!
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Historical winners
| 2025 | Le Mesnil-sûr-Oger Grand Cru |
| 2024 | Cramant Grand Cru |
| 2023 | Verzenay Grand Cru |
| 2022 | Aÿ Grand Cru |
| 2021 | Ambonnay Grand Cru |
| 2020 | Avize Grand Cru |
Le Mesnil-sûr-Oger
Grand Cru
430 hectares
Grand Cru – 100 percent Chardonnay
6 Négociant-Manipulants [Champagne houses]
35 Récoltant-Manipulants [Growers]
3 Cooperatifs-Manipulants [Cooperatives]
South of Oger lies the most famous of all Champagne villages, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. Oddly enough, the village did not receive its Grand Cru recognition until 1985, even though Salon from the village has long been the world’s most sought-after blanc de blancs. From 1905, Salon was alone on the throne until my favorite wine of all categories, Krug Clos du Mesnil, appeared with its now legendary debut vintage in 1979, where the village’s beautifully pure aromatic spectrum was paired with the well-deep richness and barrel-aged exoticism signature of Krug. The greatness of Le Mesnil is its incredibly pure mineral character and high acidity that keep the wines alive longer than any other. The village’s special clone is best suited to the steep slopes at an altitude of between 160 and 220 meters. The wines from here have an incredibly intense and at the same time elusive bouquet with hints of gunpowder, petroleum, lime, orange blossom, flint, chalk and dried rose petals, as well as penetrating acidity, even if the percentage of acidity in a cuvée is low. The wines can be shy and knotty when young, but over time, around the steel-hard backbone, develop wonderful aromas of coffee, exotic fruit, mandarin, roses and walnuts.
Famous vineyard sites
The most famous sites in the village are Clos du Mesnil (Krug, formerly Clos Tarin), Les Chétillons (Pierre Peters, Guy Charlemagne, Pierre Moncuit, Robert Moncuit, Pertois-Lebrun), Musettes (J.L. Vergnon), Jutées, Cocugneux, Champ d’Alouettes, Coulmets (Guy Charlemagne), Le Mont Joly (Pierre Peters), Mont Martin, Hautes Mottes (J.L. Vergnon), Les Carelles (Selosse).
Village character
Of course, we find Le Mesnil character in many great prestige champagnes such as Krug Millésime, Henriot des Enchanteleurs, Dom Pérignon, Billecart-Salmon Cuvée N.F. and Cristal, but in pure form the favorites are Krug Clos du Mesnil, Selosse Les Carelles, Salon, B.C. Origine, Les Chétillons, Pierre Peters Les Chétillons, Guy Charlemagne Les Coulmets, Guy Charlemagne Mesnillésime, J.L. Vergnon Confidence, J.L. Vergnon Résonance, Frank Bonville Pur Mesnil, Pierre Peters Le Mont Joly, De Sousa Caudalies Mesnil, Nicole Moncuit Vielles Vignes, Philippe Gonet Belemnita, Gonet-Médeville Champs Alouette and Gonet-Médeville Louvière, often in the order mentioned.
Largest landowner in the village
Of the champagne houses are: Delamotte, Salon, Krug, Duval-Leroy, Louis Roederer, Moët & Chandon, Thienot and Veuve Clicquot. Main producers in the village: Salon, J.L. Vergnon, Guy Charlemagne, Pierre Peters, Claude Cazals, Pierre Moncuit, Philippe Gonet, Delamotte, André Jacquart, Robert Moncuit, Michel Turgy, Robert Charlemagne, Launois, Alain Robert and Pertois-Moriset in that order.
