Uutiset
Historia
Champagne Guy Charlemagne is situated in the heart of the Côte des Blancs, in the small village of Mesnil sur Oger. As father to son winegrowers since 1892, we only harvest and vinify grapes from our own vineyards. We produce around 130 000 bottles per year, sold 30% in France and 70% abroad.
Our motto "QUALITY IS MY TRUTH" is a constant motivation. Surrounded by a highly qualified staff, we all work together to elaborate our wines with the same objective. As a family business where tradition finds its path, we wish to share with you the values of our prestigious terroir by highlighting quality, authenticity and our dream.
The existence of vineyards in Champagne goes back over 2,000 years and an AOC (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée) has prescribed its boundaries since 1927.
Its northerly geographical position, difficult climatic conditions, particularities of the subsoil and hillside plantings makes Champagne a unique and special terroir, one which gives Champagne wines their inimitable characteristic.
The nature of the subsoil serves as a guide to selecting three grape varieties of Champagne : Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes, and Chardonnay, the only white grape in Champagne.
The Champagne vineyards are divided into three large viticulture regions : Vallée de la Marne, Montagne de Reims and Côte des Blancs and each with a favoured grape variety. The Vallée de la Marne has clay soil which is particularly suited for Pinot Meunier. The Montagne de Reims has a deep limestone layer and is therefore perfect for Pinot Noir. The Côte des Blancs has a shallow layer of limestone and is planted exclusively with Chardonnay grapes.
Viiniviljelykset
Our vineyards, 15 hectares (37 acres), are composed mainly of vines situated in the Côte des Blancs, and more specifically, in the Mesnil sur Oger and Oger crus. The complement is composed of vineyards in Mancy, Cuis, Glannes and Sézanne. Our grapes are therefore essentially Chardonnay (87%) and the rest Pinot Noir.
A selection of the best plots and specific single vineyards as : Chetillon, Coullemets, Vaucherots, Mont-Joly, Aillerand du Midi… allows us to elaborate champagnes with character, where the personality and characteristic of each terroir is exhibited.
Viinivalmistus
Harvesting is carried out entirely by hand and usually takes place in September. Picked at perfect maturity, the golden Chardonnay berries will produce champagne, famous for its finesse and delicacy. Freshly cut, the grapes are delicately pressed in one of our two traditional presses, each containing 4 000 kilograms of grapes.
Slow fermentation comes next, thanks to our thermo-regulated stainless steel vats, where our harvest will slowly be transformed into wine. Philippe CHARLEMAGNE takes immense pleasure in fermenting its « Mesnillésime » cuvée in 225 liter oak barrels where the wine will develop new aromas. After fermentation comes the time of blending, by marrying wines with different aromatic and organic qualities and proceed with each blend, which is unique. This process, the secret of which is tightly guarded by the Charlemagne house, is a search for that special harmony which will give exceptional cuvées.
After blending, the wine is bottled. The bottles will age quietly in our chalk cellars, where bottle fermentation will naturally take place in the dark of our constant temperature cellars. Our high quality cuvées patiently ripen, until the expression of our savoir faire is highly acclaimed by champagne lovers. After riddling and disgorging, our bottles are meticulously prepared and labelled, before receiving the Charlemagne emblem : The Eagle !
Sisäpiiritietoa
A classification of the different Champagne villages was established by professional trade bodies at the beginning of the 20th century. This classification called « Echelle des Crus » (growths scale) catergorises the villages between 80% and 100%. To date, amongst the 313 viticultural villages which produce an equal number of demarcated « crus », only 17 benefit from the 100% value, called the Grand Cru appellation.
Le Mesnil sur Oger and Oger, where the Charlemagne house owns its terroirs are two of theprestigious Grand Crus of the Champagne vineyards, where the coveted Chardonnay grape is king.
These two 100% Grand Crus of the Côte des Blancs both have an East/South-East exposure and are planted on limestone soil, ensuring constant water supply to the Chardonnay grapes that infuse our Grand Cru wines with their finesse, elegance and mineralogy.
Only the best single vineyards of the terroir are selected for our Grand Cru cuvées (such as Chétillon, Coullemets, Vaucherots, Mont-Joly, Aillerand du Midi ...). The average age of these parcels is around 42 years old. This mosaic of micro-terroirs allows us to obtain champagnes with strong characteristics They all help to determine the Charlemagne style, which in turn ensures its quintessential spirit and durability.