Champagne Extra Brut
La Pie Tome VI

The Champagne La Pie from Domaine Les Croix by Gaspard Brochet is one of the most intimate and conceptual expressions of the Écueil vigneron, on the south-western slope of the Montagne de Reims. With this project, Gaspard continues his research into the textural purity of Chardonnay, exploring the deep relationship between wine, time and oxygen. The cuvée takes shape from two parcels in the Premier Cru of Écueil, Les Plantes and Les Prés Mousseux, vines with an average age of 35 years planted by his father Vincent halfway up the slope on black clay soils crossed by natural spring veins that give the wine freshness and vitality. It is an exercise in listening to and interpreting the terroir, the result of an artisanal and experimental approach in which technical rigour and creative freedom live together in perfect harmony.

This edition, Tome VI, with a 2023 base harvest, is made solely from Chardonnay grapes and presents itself as a Blanc de Blancs of great precision, in which vinification takes place by gravity in small fût de chêne, without racking, filtration or topping up, in a process that favours the natural evolution of the wine and the aromatic complexity arising from contact with oxygen. After the tirage comes ageing on the lees for a minimum of 24 months, completed by a final dosage of 1 g/l, in Extra Brut style, which preserves the utmost transparency and purity of expression.

On the palate, La Pie Tome VI reveals a character of great finesse and luminous tension. On the nose emerge lemon zest, sweet almond, hawthorn and an iodine hint, wrapped in a mineral note and a measured oxidative touch. On the palate the attack is lively and sleek, with a citrus-edged backbone that unfolds over a silky texture veined with chalk, in a tight dialogue between vertical drive and volume. The finish is saline and prolonged, marked by returns of flint, dried flowers and fresh hazelnut, which sums up with restraint the oenological sensibility of Gaspard Brochet.