Perrier-Jouët launches ‘jewel’ in Belle Epoque collection

Launched in London last week was the “jewel” in Perrier-Jouët’s Belle Epoque range: its Blanc de Blancs, hailing from the critically-acclaimed 2012 vintage in Champagne.

To mark the launch of this rare cuvée in the UK, on 24 May Pierre Gagnaire, head chef at three-Michelin-starred restaurant Sketch, designed a five-course tasting menu to pair with Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs vintages, from the 2012 release back to the 1993 – the first year this pure Chardonnay expression was made, following the launch of the Belle Epoque prestige cuvée in 1969 with the 1964 vintage.

“Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs is the jewel of the Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque collection – the quintessential expression of Chardonnay in the style of Maison Perrier-Jouët,” commented cellar master Séverine Frerson, who attended the launch in London last week.

Produced in limited quantities and only from the best harvests, Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs is crafted using Chardonnay from the Grand Cru village of Cramant in the Côte des Blancs, and more specifically from two historic Perrier-Jouët plots with limestone-rich soils and ideal sunlight exposure: Bouron Leroi and Bouron du Midi.

The latest release from these sites – covering less than 40 hectares – employs fruit from the first-rate 2012 harvest, which benefitted from a sunny summer after a cool, wet spring, producing wines with an ideal sugar-acid balance and ripe fruit flavours.

Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs 2012 has spent a minimum of eight years in the cellars in Epernay, and has now been released to markets with an RRP of £340.

“For its elegance, its refinement and its wonderful silken texture, I associate Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs 2012 with a white orchid, my favourite flower,” said Frerson.

The bottle itself features a white Japanese anemone, a design created for the Maison Perrier-Jouët by Emile Gallé, an Art Nouveau master, in 1902.

Tasting note (Patrick Schmitt MW):

“A fantastic expression of pure Chardonnay Champagne from an outstanding vintage, and at a delicious stage in its development, the latest release of the rare Belle Epoque blanc de blancs is both wonderfully creamy and piercingly fresh, with a core of ripe yellow fruit, grilled nuts and roasted coffee, and a finish that makes your mouth water, with chalk and citrus zest characters lingering long after you’ve swallowed this fine fizz.”