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Wine Description
The Story
L’Apôtre is the estate's top cuvée — a single-vineyard champagne from the La Pierre St-Martin vineyard, with vines planted in 1946 by Léclapart's own grandfather. The wines are barrel matured in order to match the concentration and intensity of grapes from these old vines. In each vintage, L’Apôtre is known for presenting the greatest complexity and expressiveness of any of the cuvées.
Léclapart uses no reserve wines, instead producing each champagne from a specific vintage that appears on the label. Chaptalization was only performed in 2001 and 2007, and the initial fermentation uses only wild yeast. Amateur and half of Artiste are aged in enameled steel tanks, while the rest are matured in oak casks. To stabilize the wines and avoid the use of sulfur, all cuvées undergo malolactic fermentation. The wines remain "sur lie" until shortly before the next vintage's harvest and are filled without fining, filtration or cold stabilization. All champagnes are zero dosage.
Leclapart's wines are notable both for their extremely high quality, yet also an uncompromisingly distinctive nature. They are remarkably pure and nuanced, and express the essence of Trépail. The wines are released relatively young, as Léclapart lacks warehouse space. Ideally the champagnes will be allowed to mature for several years in the cellar before being enjoyed. Decanting is recommended should the champagnes be opened young, as they can be otherwise inaccessible in their youth.
Vintage 2006
A cold winter and springtime frosts laid the foundations for this vintage of abundant yields (12,997 kg/ha). Uneventful flowering was followed by exceptionally hot and sunny weather, which lasted until August. A dank August left producers fearful but fortunately warm, bright conditions in September redressed the balance. Harvest commenced on September 9th, producing grapes high in sugar level but notably low on acidity. The general health of the grapes was sufficient, producing wines which excel over the preceding 2005 vintage, another warm and ample year. The year's greatest wines are supple and expressive and despite the richness they escape being overly heavy. Overt and welcoming upon launch, the best come with excellent capacity for ageing. Winey, and richly fruity characters, most Champagnes regrettably miss some tension and finesse. Wines of the vintage include Taittinger Comtes de Champagne, Krug Vintage and Dom Pérignon Rosé.