2018 Champagne Waris Hubert, Blanche, Blanc de Blancs, Grand Cru, Avize, Extra Brut
About this WINE
Champagne Waris Hubert
An independent family business, Champagne Waris Hubert is run by Olivier Waris, his wife Stephanie, and their three children. The family have a long history of farming in the area, but only started making Champagne in 1998. Now, they hold 18 hectares that are all in organic conversion and will achieve certification in 2023.
With Olivier, there is no recipe or status quo. Individual parcels and lieux-dits are vinified differently depending on the vintage, creating a broad spectrum of wines. The heart of their estate lies in the legendary Avize terroir, but they also farm Grand Cru vineyards across Oger and Cramant, alongside some Premier Cru sites in neighbouring regions.
As a relative newcomer in this historic region, Waris Hubert has not been bound by the constraints of market expectations or legacy. Instead, the domaine has been able to instigate change and leapfrog the quality of many famous names, in a relatively short period of time. Olivier combines slow cold fermentations, low sulphur use and extended lees ageing to create an artisan range of Champagnes that are richly textured and expressive, combining the very best of modernity and tradition.
Blanc de Blancs
In Champagne, the term Blanc de Blancs designates Champagnes made only from Chardonnay grapes. The vineyards located between Cramant and Mesnil-sur-Oger in Côte des Blancs yield the best examples of the style.
A classic Blanc de Blancs is restrained and elegant when young, yet with ageing it develops a mouth-coating brioche richness that overlays an intense expression of fruitiness. Blanc de Blancs are endowed with longer ageing potential than a typical Blanc de Noirs.
Recommended Producers: Salon, Billecart Salmon, Jacques Selosse, Dom Ruinart, Krug, Le Mesnil Grand Cru, Guy Larmandier
Chardonnay
Chardonnay is often seen as the king of white wine grapes and one of the most widely planted in the world It is suited to a wide variety of soils, though it excels in soils with a high limestone content as found in Champagne, Chablis, and the Côte D`Or.
Burgundy is Chardonnay's spiritual home and the best White Burgundies are dry, rich, honeyed wines with marvellous poise, elegance and balance. They are unquestionably the finest dry white wines in the world. Chardonnay plays a crucial role in the Champagne blend, providing structure and finesse, and is the sole grape in Blanc de Blancs.
It is quantitatively important in California and Australia, is widely planted in Chile and South Africa, and is the second most widely planted grape in New Zealand. In warm climates Chardonnay has a tendency to develop very high sugar levels during the final stages of ripening and this can occur at the expense of acidity. Late picking is a common problem and can result in blowsy and flabby wines that lack structure and definition.
Recently in the New World, we have seen a move towards more elegant, better- balanced and less oak-driven Chardonnays, and this is to be welcomed.
When is a wine ready to drink?
We provide drinking windows for all our wines. Alongside the drinking windows there is a bottle icon and a maturity stage. Bear in mind that the best time to drink a wine does also depend on your taste.
Not ready
These wines are very young. Whilst they're likely to have lots of intense flavours, their acidity or tannins may make them feel austere. Although it isn't "wrong" to drink these wines now, you are likely to miss out on a lot of complexity by not waiting for them to mature.
Ready - youthful
These wines are likely to have plenty of fruit flavours still and, for red wines, the tannins may well be quite noticeable. For those who prefer younger, fruitier wines, or if serving alongside a robust meal, these will be very enjoyable. If you choose to hold onto these wines, the fruit flavours will evolve into more savoury complexity.
Ready - at best
These wines are likely to have a beautiful balance of fruit, spice and savoury flavours. The acidity and tannins will have softened somewhat, and the wines will show plenty of complexity. For many, this is seen as the ideal time to drink and enjoy these wines. If you choose to hold onto these wines, they will become more savoury but not necessarily more complex.
Ready - mature
These wines are likely to have plenty of complexity, but the fruit flavours will have been almost completely replaced by savoury and spice notes. These wines may have a beautiful texture at this stage of maturity. There is lots to enjoy when drinking wines at this stage. Most of these wines will hold in this window for a few years, though at the very end of this drinking window, wines start to lose complexity and decline.
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Description
This impressive cuvée, named after Oliver Waris’ only daughter, delivers incredible value. Fruit was sourced exclusively from the Grand Cru Les Avats lieux-dit of Avize. The 2017 vintage offered incredible depth and concentration; this was a stunning vintage in the Côte des Blancs. The wine spent two years in steel prior to secondary fermentation, building its texture. The nose is rich in bitter-sweet mandarin, while the richly textured palate is complex, composed, and full of autumnal spice, flecked with saffron.
Drink 2024 - 2034
Davy Żyw, Senior Buyer, Berry Bros. & Rudd
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