Our Signature Cuvées
These cuvées pay homage to Henri CHAMPLIAU’s passion for horse racing.
As a breeder and owner, he was fortunate enough to experience the thrill of racing at the highest level, notably thanks to the victories of Wild Miss in 1955 and Petrone in 1968.
This passion, which continues to run through our family, inspired the character and style of these wines.
Petrone 68, Blanc de Blancs Brut
Petrone was a colt of Wild Miss which my grandfather, Henri Champliau, sold to the American actor Eddie CONSTANTINE. It was one of the best horses of its generation in 1968 in France and the USA.
The method is known as ‘Charmat'. We use a horizontal tank, which maximizes the surface contact between the wine and the lees. This tank is equipped with a rotating device that gently raises up the lees into the wine to extract all the aromatic potential. Thanks to this tool, we avoid the astringency, vegetable taste and 'green' acidity of the majority of sparkling wines. This achieves richer, rounder and fruity aromas.
The other mark of quality is the respect for time! The process for creating the bubbles takes a minimum of 3 months for the cuvée to be perfectly balanced with delicate, well-incorporated and even bubbles prior to bottling.
Download the specifications sheet
Tasting Note: Copious bubbles, pear and apple aromas, soft and generous on the palate finishing with a beautiful freshness with citrus notes. This wine is very easy to drink, can be enjoyed on any occasion and can also be used for mixing cocktails.
Wild Miss 55, Méthode Ancestrale Rosé
Wild Miss was the first thoroughbred filly that my grandfather Henri CHAMPLIAU bought in Deauville. In 1955, she won the Prix Vermeille at Longchamp-Paris, one of the finest races for a filly.
The méthode ancestrale is an old method of production that has ended up becoming very modern!
Low alcohol levels (7.5% vol) and 100% natural.
We use the grape variety Gamay (Beaujolais), known for its aromatic potency, which is perfectly suited to this method of production.
We put the must (grape juice) In a horizontal tank equipped with a rotating device that lifts up the lees into the wine to extract all the aromatic potential.
The tank is left open at the beginning of the alcoholic fermentation, which turns the sugar from the grapes into alcohol, until it reaches 6.5% volume of alcohol. The tank is then tightly closed. The fermentation continues until it reaches 7.5% volume of alcohol and creates the effervescence.
At this precise moment, the temperature of the tank is lowered to -2 °C to kill the yeasts and stop the alcoholic fermentation naturally.
The process for creating the bubbles lasts 3 months in total (very important to have delicate and well-integrated bubbles) before the wine is bottled. There is no addition of sugar-based tirage or accelerator liquids! The sweet flavour is 100% natural because it comes only from the residual sugar from the grapes.
Download the specifications sheet
Tasting Note: Pink colour, delicate and dense bubble mousse, raspberry and cherry notes. A sensation of sweet pleasure on the finish balanced by the fresh acidity of the fruit.
