Champagne Friday 15.0 Joseph Perrier, Heidsieck & Co.

Every Friday The no1 Champagne expert in the world will taste new & old Champagne s to give You a tip or two for the weekend.

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

This week it was time for Friday Champagne 15.0 Joseph Perrier, Heidsieck & Co

[by Twenty Studios]

Joseph Perrier according to Champagne Club by Richard Juhlin

★★★★

‘The only Champagne domain of any importance in Châlons-en-Champagne today. And it is perhaps on account of its geographical location that Joseph Perrier is often forgotten when the finest champagnes are discussed. Ever since the firm was started in 1825 it has maintained a low profile but is well-known among wine experts. At present this domain is owned by Laurent-Perrier. The methods of vinification are modern, apart from the use of 600-litre oak barrels for the reserve wines. Monsieur Fourmon and the winemaker Claude Dervin deny they ever used of cognac in the dosage, which is an allegation put forward in some wine books.

The company’s style is based on the excellent Pinot locations they have on their twenty hectares at Cumières, Damery and Hautvillers. The wines are always fruity and soft, with a great deal of elegance. The ’79 is one of my favorites and the ’53 is magical! The 2008 Josephine has tones reminiscent of the 82 that once seduced me in a hotel room in Reims. Or put more correctly, overtones. These are mint toffee, bergamot, strawberry caramel and honey. More dominant is a rather more classical fruity spectrum of fine grapes and floweriness. Young, potent structure with nice, keen, crispy acidity. Newcomers of the brand is a vintaged rosé and a Blanc de Blancs and a lieu-dit Pinot Noir from Cumières.

Heidsieck & Co. according to Champagne Club by Richard Juhlin

★★★

‘This important label became part of the Canadian Seagram Group in 1972. But later, in October 1996, the house was taken over by the Vranken Group. The former Reims house owns 112 first-class hectares in Verzenay, Bouzy, Verzy, and Ambonnay, to name a few. They even owned the mill in Verzenay and the vineyards that belonged to it. In the beginning the company—founded in 1834—was called Hiedsieck & Co.

It took its present name in 1923, when it was situated in Reims. In recent years the firm has been recognized for its 1907s, which have been lying at the bottom of the Gulf of Finland since 1916. This good but hardly exceptional Champagne has quickly achieved cult status. The bottles sell for astronomical sums, despite the fact that this is the world’s commonest old Champagne. The house has been in a deep rut since the fantastic 1960s, when both the vintage wine and the Diamant Bleu belonged to the extreme elite. Under Vranken’s protection, large amounts of money are now invested to restore its reputation. With Hervé Ladouche as chef de cave, things actually look very promising. The wines are often bready and filled with gun powder aroma.‘

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