Champagne d'Armanville / Decotanne Brut NV
(Champagne, France) - [DM 91]

Backstory
We found another one! Champagne d'Armanville comes from Chassenay d'Acre, a cooperative from the hottest Champagne region no one knows about until right now, as you read this. 

Most Champagne regions are within the Marne département (by Reims and Épernay), but 2 hours away lies the most southern and underestimated AOC region: the Côte des Bar in the Aube. This "black sheep of Champagne" has exploded in growth over the past decade; the total vineyard area has grown by nearly 20% since 2000 and now makes up almost a quarter of the entire Champagne region. 

The Côte des Bar is not some new kid on the block—for about 125 years, they've grown grapes for all the massive negociant 'big guys' up north. You know them—those iconic labels you've seen all your life, on every shelf, everywhere.

The thing is, this region was treated as second class for decades—literally. Since they were closer to Burgundy, they were viewed as foreign 'southerners' and not capable of producing true Champagne by the aristocratic big wigs of the Marne. Residents of Reims and Epernay proudly felt they were the true 'Champenoise' and pushed to exclude the Aube from the official classification of the Champagne region in 1908. This rightfully caused the Côte des Bar growers to riot and protest, only to be classified as "Champagne deuxième (second...) zone" until 1927. 

Now we understand how a 125-year-old chip on the shoulder gives the Côte des Bar producers an unrelenting drive to prove themselves. As a result of their risk-taking nature, we greatly benefit from their culture of artisanal, experimental, terroir-driven Champagne at confoundingly low prices.

An illustrious winemaker, talented oenologist and travel enthusiast from Champagne's Arce Valley travelled the world with the desire to share his expertise and his passion. During one of his trips to America, he met Lady d'Armanville, with whom he fell madly in love. She loved Champagne so the winemaker decided to make an exceptional wine just for her, a “grand vin” (with bubbles) and hence d’Armanville Champagne was born.

One hundred and fifty years later, the winemaker’s descendants are united in a winemaking cooperative, Champagne Chassenay d'Arce, where the style and spirit of Champagne d’Armanville endures. Created in 1956 thanks to the combined talents of some fifty winegrowers, Chassenay d’Arce Champagne has continuously developed the quality of its blends and takes pride in now representing 130 winegrowers, who in total have 310 hectares in the Côtes de Bar, south of Champagne. These 310 hectares, across ten distinct villages, are all located in the same valley, which ensures a certain consistency and quality, and is rare for a cooperative.

Tasting Note
Crafted from almost entirely Pinot Noir from the Cotes des Bar region of southern Champagne, this wine is intense and loaded with ripe summer peach and red delicious apple with hints of white cherry and strawberry with a vibrant core of citrus that leads into the perfect kiss of pie crust and a long, pure finish that caps off this creamy satin-textured gem!

Ratings & Reviews