5/7/26 -

As spring rolls around, it feels like a time to celebrate more than just warmer temps. We have Mother's day this weekend with upcoming graduations, Memorial day, and so much more. I figured it was as good a time as any to bring back one of my favorite emails. I have worked on a few iterations of this during my time here at CSW, and today we have 6 Champagnes all under $65 and all from vineyards worked organically or biodynamically. Additionally, I included one to 'splurge' on that although is a bit more, it is a wine that I believe is an incredible value. Alongside 1-2 classics, I have featured producers that are much newer to our shelves, showing how vibrant and exciting the region is. As much as Champagne is a celebration beverage, it truly should be on your table for all occasions, so use today as an excuse to stock up on some of our favorites!   

I have worked to make sure as many different styles of Champagne are highlighted today as possible. We have both single varietal Chardonnay and Pinot Noir offerings alongside blends that cover the space in between, all rounded out with the perfect Spring and Summertime Rose. 
 
-Hanna Krilov Cohen

Click on the link below to go directly to the wines or continue reading for more info on the wineries!

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Champagne Bonnaire NV Les Versants Extra Brut
Located in the village of Cramant, brothers Jean-Emmanuel and Jean-Etienne Bonnaire have been running the family winery for the past decade. They represent the 4th generation of Bonnaires to bottle their own Champagnes. Since taking over they have continued to improve their facilities and farming practices. HVE certified and in the process of organic certification since 2020, they have recently introduced grazing pigs as an alternative to mechanical weeding. Their wine, Versants, is a great entry into their style, a blend of 40% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir, and 30% Pinot Meunier from three plots around Cramant. The wine is vinified in stainless steel and aged sur lattes for 30 months. Disgorged with 4g/L dosage.  A hint of brioche leads into ripe apple and citrus notes with a beautiful, bold, rich, textural palate.  

Jacquinet-Dumez NV Champagne Dialogie Blanc de Noirs 1er Cru Extra Brut
Diane Jacquinet represents the fifth-generation of winemakers from the Dumez and Jacquinot families. Her family has been in the region since 1935, and when her father took over as winemaker in 1984 he did a lot of work to modernize the domaine, and was the first in the family to stop selling grapes to the local co-op. Today, the winery is in the process of converting to organic farming. I was recently introduced to these wines and was incredibly impressed with the energy and expressiveness of these Champagnes, and at a very approachable price too, I think this is only the beginning of amazing wines we should expect from Diane Jacquinet! During a recent tasting I was blown away by the Dialogie, a 80/20 blend of Pinot Meunier and Pinot Noir from Montagne de Reims. Vinified in concrete, oak, and stainless steel. The wine spends 24 months sur lattes before getting 3g/L dosage.  This Champagne shows lovely fruit, full of red berries and floral notes. The wine has excellent body, and texture and is almost too easy to drink! Uncomplicated, incredibly delicious Champagne.

Pierre Moncuit NV Delos Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru [2021]
The Moncuit family is on its third generation of vignerons, and second generation of female winemakers. Even though the family has been in the Cotes des Blancs since the end of the 19th century, it wasn’t until the early 1950s that Pierre Moncuit began to bottle estate-grown Champagnes. He passed the vines over to his daughter Nicole in 1977 who has helped to form the Moncuit wines we know and love today. In 2007, her daughter Valerie Charpentier joined and slowly began taking over the full management of the estate. They create truly incredible Blanc de Blancs of terroir from incredibly old vines. Each wine is made from a single vintage and Nicole points out that “this practice allows each wine to more precisely express its particular growing season and makes the evolution in the cellar more fascinating to follow as the years unfold.” Delos is a 100% Blanc de Blancs of Chardonnay from Mesnil-sur-Oger on an average of 20 year old vines planted on chalk and limestone. Grapes are all hand harvested and vinified in stainless steel. The wine spends 24-30 months sur lattes and is disgorged with 7g/L. Although not aged long enough for vintage designation, this wine is made 100% from the 2021 vintage. It has notes of white flowers, citrus, and orchard fruit. The palette is mineral with great body and texture. Quite a classic expression of Blanc de Blancs from a fantastic winemaker!

Remi Leroy NV Reserve Blanc de Noirs Extra Brut [Base 22]
Coming from the Aube, the southernmost sub-region of Champagne, which shares their Kimmeridgian soils with Chablis. Most of his vines are planted to Pinot Noir and Chardonnay with just a small amount of Pinot Meunier (this is reflected in his Non-vintage wines). Rémi only makes wine from approximately half of the vineyards he farms, selling the rest to negociants, which leaves the very best parcels for himself. He is very passionate about his organic vineyards, but feels even stronger about his Burgundian work in the cellar, making a very vinous style of Champagne. His wines spend the winter and spring on the lees in a mix of stainless steel and oak (purchased from Thomas Pico and Hubert Lamy in Burgundy). 
His 'Reserve' is a Blanc de Noirs of 100% Pinot Noir with 85% from 2022 and 15% from 2021. Sourced from the villages of Meurville, Bergeres, and Fontaine in the Aube. The 30 year old vines are planted on mainly Kimmerigdian soils with some Portlandian. The wine is fermented and aged in stainless steel and undergoes malolactic fermentation. Aged 24 months on the lees and disgorged with 1g/L. This is a rich, powerful style of Champagne that still contains great minerality. It has aromas of red florals, with orchard fruits intertwined beautifully with toasted bread and chalk. Big, powerful Champagne at its best!

Méa NV Rosa Delice 
The Mea family has been in the Grand Cru village of Louvois since 1922. The tiny Grand Cru gets its name from wolves (loup in French) that used to come out of nearby forests and wander into the village to hunt. For this reason, you can see imagery of wolves on many of the Mea labels. Sophie represents the current generation who was joined by her husband Franck in 2019. He is a Bordeaux native with a strong love for Champagne. Sophie has made huge steps for their vines, she took over 2015 and since 2016 they have used no chemical fertilizers, herbicides, or pesticides. She says, "We are just one step in the transmission of this land and this know-how passed down through five generations. What drives us is the ability to continue to better understand and respect this land in order to bring out its finest fruit. We are proud to humbly transform this fruit into authentic Champagne wines. And what a pleasure it is to share them with you around the world!” Their Rosa Delice is blend of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir with 10% Bouzy Rouge. The Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes are sourced from terroirs on the northern slopes of the Montagne, including Ludes and Montbré, both Premier Cru. It is fermented and aged in tank for 10 months before being aged on the lees for 3 years. The Champagne has notes of bright cranberry and ripe strawberries. A fresh, fun, and simply tasty Champagne Rose. 

Ponson NV 1er Cru 
If you have ever gotten a bottle of Champagne from CSW, there's a great chance you have had the amazing wines from Ponson! The Ponson Family have owned and worked the vineyards for five generations in the Petit Montagne. After completing his enology degree, Maxime Ponson returned home at the age of 25 and was hoping to convert the vineyards to organic viticulture. His father disagreed but allowed Maxime to convert ½ hectare to organic farming to compare with his own more conventional approach. Maxime was able to convince his father that organic viticulture was the right move for the domaine. The conversion to fully organic for the remainder for the domaine was completed for the 2018 harvest. Their 1er Cru Champagne has been a go to for Chambers St. Wines for years! A blend of 70% Pinot Meunier with 15% each of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, Max describes this bottling as a picture of his vineyards, which, if you haven't seen yet, is now featured on the label. A map of the region with the plots for this wine are highlighted in green. The wine is incredibly drinkable with great balance of power and freshness. Great with food or on its own, this is a wine that very well could be the best deal in all of Champagne.

Bonus Wine! *not under $65
Pauline Colin Bereche 2020 Ludes 1er Cru
I couldn't help myself here and had to throw just 1 more wine in. It recently arrived and I have just been so excited about the newest release from Pauline, especially with Mother's day coming up this seems like an excellent wine to show alongside the amazing value wines I have already written about.

Pauline Colin represents the 7th generation of the Colin family to tend vines in Ludes and Mailly. Her parents introduced organic farming to the estate and she has continued on with this method. After honing her skills at Ruinart and Krug she returned home and started her own project in 2016 focusing on 2 hectares of old vines. She chose to skip over the 2017 vintage as she welcomed her youngest child into the world and returned the following year with a small debut. 2019 brought forth a slightly larger production (in the grand scheme of things) and allowed Pauline to hone her blend for this cuvee, adding Chardonnay and a touch of Petit Meslier. She makes just one wine a year, from one terroir and the results are fantastic!

A blend of 70% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay and 5% Petit Meslier, the 2020 is sourced from selection of just two hectares of old vines. Vinified in barrel with extended lees aging before spending 48 months sur lattes. There is one single vintage and disgorgement per release. The 2020 has beautiful complexity, balance and depth. With the help of the Meslier, amazing freshness even from a riper year. Notes of citrus, florals, and stone fruit with a intense minerality on the palette serves as an amazing representation of Ludes. 

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