My Store: New Jersey (change store) 888-686-6673
The Champagne Les Beaux Regards is a single vintage Blanc de Blancs, with 70% of the wine coming from a Chardonnay vineyard of the same name in Ludes, which was planted in 1902 (the balance comes from Mareuil-le-Port on the left bank of the Marne).
Most of the centenarian vines in Les Beaux Regards are still in production, and serve as a source of selection massale whenever Chardonnay is replanted on the estate. Beautiful minerality, and deep, complex aromas of chalk and stone mark this extremely refined Champagne.
As with all of the Bérêche Champagnes there is no malolactic fermentation. Further, all of the cuvées, with exception of the Brut Reserve, receive their second fermentation under cork, rather than the standard steel crowncap. This is a labor-intensive approach with manual disgorgement, that Raphaël and Vincent feel is essential to preserving the character of each individual cuvée.
About this wine producer: The original Bérêche estate is centered around 2.5 hectares of vines established by Leon and Albert Bérêche in 1847. Successive generations expanded the property, and today there are a total of 9.5 ha in and around the communes of Craon de Ludes, Ormes, Trépail, and Mailly, all in the Montagne de Reims, as well as the area around Mareuil-le-Port on the left bank of the Marne. The 0.15 ha Mailly parcel, acquired in 2012, is their first Grand Cru vineyard. Since joining their father Jean-Pierre in 2004 and 2008 respectively, Raphaël and Vincent Bérêche have risen to the head of the class of Champagne’s corp of elite grower producers. Most of their wines are sold directly to private customers, who drive from Brussels and Paris and London to pick up their six or twelve bottle allocations at the winery in Craon de Ludes. Almost all the rest goes to Michelin-starred, like Gérard Boyer’s iconic Les Crayères in Reims, or to specialist retailers like Le Verre Volé and La Cave de Papilles in Paris.
$99.00