Jean Vesselle Oeil de Perdrix Blanc de Noir Brut Champagne 3L

D&M NOTES:

TASTING: This "Grower Champagne" is made entirely of Pinot Noir grapes that are briefly macerated for a hint of color, aged three years. The nose shows deep flowers with stone fruits and a light underripe raspberry tone. The palate has a touch of spice and light raspberry and strawberry with good presence and moderate acidity.

ABOUT THE PRODUCER: For nearly 300 years, the Vesselle family has been tilling the chalky soils of Bouzy and cultivating some of the village’s best-placed Pinot Noir vines. The family’s collection of grand cru vineyards and generations of leadership in championing Pinot Noir is what makes wines from Domaine Jean Vesselle such eloquent examples of Blanc de Noirs Champagnes. Wines here combine a classic Champagne elegance with the signature Bouzy power, especially in wines such as ‘Oeil de Perdrix.’

CRITICAL ACCLAIM:

"In modern Champagne, any color that might bleed from the skins into the juice is usually filtered out, so the wine is clear. In this traditional style, Delphine Vesselle allows the ripe Pinot Noir grapes from her vineyards in Bouzy to bleed color from their skins, and doesn’t filter it out, hoping to preserve what she describes as the soul of Pinot Noir. Everyone on our panel was struck by this wine’s beauty, as its delicate touch seemed to connect with every scent and taste receptor at once. Auction-consultant Craig Ganzer commented on that complexity: “I just kept taking notes,” he said. The pink color and the range of green herbs in the scent seem to resonate through the wine, taking its radish-like tension and formal structure in an understated direction." - 95 PTS, WINE & SPIRITS (12/2019)

“The NV Brut Oeil de Perdrix is floral, resonant and super-expressive, the Oeil de Perdrix has so much to offer. The interplay of aromatic top notes and Bouzy richness makes for a compelling, open-knit Champagne that is an absolutely joy to taste. This is such a gorgeous and totally distinctive Champagne. I would prefer to give it at least a few more months in bottle, as it is a bit tight today, especially on the finish.” - 93 PTS, ANTONIO GALLONI, VINOUS MEDIA (12/2019)