Champagne Mouzon-Leroux Les Fervins 7 Cepages Verzy Grand Cru 2018

Mouzon-Leroux is in its 9th generation as a family-run Champagne grower, having passed the baton from father to son since 1776. If you can believe it, the family has been stewarding their eight and a half hectares of Verzy vineyards for as long as the United States has been a country. Leading Mouzon-Leroux in the present day is Sébastien Mouzon, who took charge in 2008. His first actions were in the vineyard, where he transitioned all their hectares to organic farming practices, and then took it a step further by achieving a Demeter certification for biodynamic farming 11 years after taking the helm. In addition to these practices, Sébastien is pioneering a new technique called “vitiforestry,” where he plants trees among the vines and throughout his vineyards (a total of 1,300 at present), along with a variety of aromatic plants, including thyme, oregano, and mint. Sébastien’s winegrowing and winemaking approaches emphasize site-specific wines that demonstrate the potential and diversity within Verzy.

The vertiginous village of Verzy perches on the northern escarpment of the Montagne de Reims, overlooking a wide swath of the plains of the Champagne region. Northeast exposure in the village encourages more mineral-driven, restrained wines, especially in comparison to the Champagnes of Ay and Ambonnay on the southern ridge of Montagne de Reims. Each vineyard in this tiny hamlet has been designated Grand Cru status, which the village gained in 1985. Pinot Noir is the dominant grape varietal in Verzy, accounting for 77% of all vineyard plantings; however, all seven of the indigenous Champagne grapes are planted in the village. In the Mouzon-Leroux holdings, their Les Fervins parcel is home to each of the varietals: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Pinot Meunier, Arbane, Petit Meslier, Pinot Blanc, and Pinot Gris. The Chardonnay vines are 70 years old, the Pinot Noir is 35 years old, and the remaining five varietals were planted in 2013 and 2014. At the same time, Sébastien launched his vitiforestry project in Les Fervins, and the plot is responsible for the 7 Cepages Champagne and a still Coteaux Champenois.

Hand-harvested, each plot of Mouton-Leroux’s holdings is picked separately according to physiological ripeness, which includes not just the sugar levels but the levels of tannin, flavor, and depth of color. Their 7 Cepages cuvée is distinct in the world of Champagne, as it blends equal parts of the seven Champagne varietals (15% Chardonnay, 15% Pinot Noir, 15% Arbane, 14% Pinot Meunier, 14% Petit Meslier, 14% Pinot Blanc, and 14% Pinot Gris). The wine was natively fermented in used 228-L barrels using a pied de cuve and continued to age in barrel for eight months before the secondary fermentation. Sébastien added 1 g/L dosage before bottle aging over four years. “Lemon confit, white pepper, slate, mint, sage, and dried flowers open first, before brisk acids put it all together on the mid-palate and finish.” ~Vinous Tasting Notes