Wine Paris now offers an overview of current champagne production like no other place. If my estimate is correct, there are now more than 160 producers. The local newspaper ‘L’Union’ reported that ‘probably never before have so many champagne producers been represented at a trade fair’. But of course, this is only a snapshot, as many important large maisons and influential winemakers were also missing this year. In my opinion, this is a mistake: hardly any other event increases the visibility of one’s own brand more than Wine Paris. Be that as it may, for visitors, the density of the offerings and personal contacts, as well as the abundance of novelties and events, are simply overwhelming.
I was only able to attend three events. A delicious cheese and champagne tasting by Champagne Besserat de Bellefon (with outstanding cheeses from artisan affineur Philippe Olivier). An insightful masterclass on Bruno Paillard‘s Blancs de Blancs champagnes by Alice Paillard (pictures on the right and below, see also here). And a memorable grand dinner hosted by Champagne Pommery & Associés with Paul-François and Nathalie Vranken at the Michelin-starred restaurant Lucas-Carton in Paris. Here are twelve (and more) remarkable tasting experiences from Paris, listed in alphabetical order.
1. Champgne Agrapart Avize Ameunia VME 23 Brut Nature
It began in 2020/21 while I was working on my book about champagne. At that time, Agrapart & Fils sold his champagnes increasingly under the name Pascale Agrapart. Then, a year ago, the house, founded in 1894, was actually split up. On the one hand, there is Champagne Pascale Agrapart et Fils – specifically Pascale Agrapart and his son Ambroise. And then there is Champagne Agrapart, which has included the name of the commune Avize in its brand name. This is run by Pascale’s brother Fabrice and his partners Johanna Bertilsson Stephen and Emmanuel Turpin. The house has its own vineyards, but also buys additional grapes, so technically it is a négociant. Agrapart Avize also takes a different stylistic direction from its predecessor, for example in its partial vinification in wood.
In Paris, I was first able to taste the expressive signature cuvée Atoma Blanc de Blancs (P 23) from a still young Réserve perpétuelle established in 2020. Then followed the single-varietal Meunier champagne Ameunia and the rosé Anthocya, both of which are not yet on sale and have provisional labels. The latter (with 98% Chardonnay and only 2% Pinot Noir) is probably one of the least colour-saturated rosé champagnes ever. Ameunia, made with grapes from Mareuil-le-Port and Festigny in the Marne Valley, is Agrapart’s first Meunier ever. At the time, I found it to be the strongest wine of the trio, spicy, with little direct fruit, but lots of grip and expression (93p.).
2. Champagne J. Charpentier Pierre-Henri 100% Meunier Sous Bois
With Champagne Collard-Picard, I recently profiled another Champagne house based in Villers-sous-Châtillon. At the same time, I became aware of winemaker Marie-Pierre Lutet-Charpentier as president of the ‘Groupe des Jeunes Vignerons de la Champagne’. I had dedicated a section to her in my article ‘Re-Generation’ in the 2026 France special edition of Meininger Verlag (online here). Of course, I took the opportunity in Paris to meet her and taste her champagnes. They come from the J. Charpentier winery, which her father Jacky Charpentier founded in 1974. For several years now, responsibility for the vineyards and champagne production has increasingly passed into her hands and those of her brother Jean-Marc.
As a producer from Villers-sous-Châtillon, there is naturally a special focus on the Pinot Meunier grape variety. The top cuvée of the house, Pierre-Henri, ages in wood with blocked malolactic fermentation. This is how René Collard, the forefather of single-varietal Meunier champagne from the neighbouring village of Reuil, preached it should be done. And today, Collard-Picard does the same with its Cuvée Racines, as does Alfred Gratien with its Cumières champagne (see below). This is also a very successful recipe at J. Charpentier. Dark gold in the glass with pink reflections, the nose reveals stone fruit and ripe brioche aromas. Powerful, creamy and yet fresh on the palate (94p.).
3. Champagne Coessens Largillier Millésime 2019 Extra Brut
The Coessens family perhaps most purely embodies the Burgundian philosophy of winemaking in Champagne. A single vineyard (monopole), a single grape variety (Pinot Noir) and, usually, a single vintage. But the house from Ville-sur-Arce in the Côte des Bars goes even further. Winemaker Jerôme Coessens noticed that his Largillier vineyard produced four different wine profiles. So he named four sub-plots after their flavours: Mineral, Fruit, Flower and Material. Supported by pedological studies, he built his portfolio on these differences. My favourite in a fascinating collection was Largillier Millésime 2019 Extra Brut from the Matière sub-parcel. From an outstanding vintage, aged in wood including malolactic fermentation, the champagne was disgorged in 2024. On the nose, red berries, mandarins and toasted white bread. Lots of substance and density on the palate, with good freshness (94p.). No wonder Guillaume Selosse worked with Coessens and sourced grapes from him for the micro-cuvée Largillier.
4. Champagne Esterlin Cléo Blanc de Blancs 2012
Until last year, the champagne cooperatives of Vinay and Mancy in the Côteaux Sud d’Épernay were only known to true specialists. Nevertheless, the Coopérative Vinicole de Mancy had established the Esterlin brand with some success. It now resides under this label – as the only cooperative of its kind – on Épernay’s prestigious Avenue de Champagne. In January 2025, after much back and forth, it merged with the neighbouring cooperative of Vinay. This means that the predominantly Chardonnay-based vineyard will now be supplemented by Meunier. In April, the news that Gabrielle Malagu had been appointed cellar master of the new entity Coopérative Vinay Mancy – Champagne Esterlin caused quite a stir. She came from the prestigious Gosset house, where she was supposed to follow in the footsteps of Odilon de Varine as cheffe de cave.
In any case, I became aware of her impressive expertise during a report on Gosset. And then I turned my attention to Champagne Esterlin. Their top cuvée is Cléo Blanc de Blancs, here from 2012. Malolactic fermentation is blocked in the base wines. Half of them are aged in used 228-litre Burgundy barrels and half in muids with a capacity of 350 litres. The champagne combines the generosity of the vintage and the creaminess of the wood barrel ageing with the fresh malic acid from the blocked malo. A rather irresistible combination (94p.)!
5. Champagne Alfred Gratien Cumières Clos Le Village 2019
Last autumn, Champagne Alfred Gratien announced the launch of its first single vineyard champagne. Clos le Village comes from the heart of the Premier Cru commune of Cumières on the banks of the Marne. The south-facing plot is less than 0.2 hectares in size and was planted 100 per cent with Pinot Meunier in 1961. Less than 2,000 bottles were produced from the first vintage in 2018. As is customary for the house, founded in 1864, Clos le Village was vinified in small used oak barrels without malolactic fermentation in order to preserve its freshness and precision.
This time, however, the focus is not on Chardonnay, Alfred Gratien’s signature grape, but on Meunier. And in this cuvée, it shows what it’s capable of. After all, 2018 was a hot ‘année solaire’ and Cumières is probably the hottest Premier Cru location in Champagne. Thanks to blocked malolactic fermentation, the cuvée presents itself with wonderful freshness. The mousse is restrained, with citrus, stone fruit, almonds and brioche dominating the nose. Complex, taut mouthfeel, with a still youthful acidity and a salty finish (95p.).
6. Champagne Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millénaire 2017 & Cuvée Champagne Charlie 2020
There had recently been major changes at Charles Heidsieck. Cellar master Cyril Brun departed for Trentino in March 2023. Just two and a half years later, his successor Elise Losfelt left the Maison for family reasons. With his successor Emilien Erard, the house will hopefully find calmer waters again. Compared to the situation in 1985, when the maison’s production plummeted from a good 4 million bottles to 250,000 bottles, the current personnel changes are, of course, almost marginal. This is a good thing, because the house is now at the forefront of the Grandes Marques et Maisons de Champagne, not least because its Brut Réserve is outstanding in its segment. In the presentation, both the non-vintage champagnes and the Millésimes were in dazzling condition.
Since the 1983 vintage, the vintage Blanc de Blancs had been the house’s sole prestige cuvée until recently, known as Blanc des Millénaires. Here, the Maison presented the current 2017 vintage in Paris. It was not an easy year, but as cellar master Emilien Erard assured me, the Chardonnay yielded very good results. Because the vineyards in Cramant suffered, base wines from Chouilly were added to the blend this time, along with the classics Avize, Oger, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and Vertus. The ninth edition of Blanc des Millénaires (7/2025 disg.) showed citrus freshness on the nose, combined with apricots, hazelnuts and yeast pastries. Still very young on the palate, but complex and with a salty, chalky finish (95p.). Also making its debut was Champagne Charlie Cellared 2020, the second version of the house’s ‘new-old’ prestige cuvée, a tribute to its founder. Not a vintage, but – in addition to 46% from the 2019 vintage – composed mainly from old reserves. And these are of the finest quality, such as Cramant 1996 or Avize 2009 (blend total 66% Ch|34% PN). A spectacular result that combines freshness with maturity and complexity with liveliness, along with a creamy texture (97p.) Unfortunately, only a few thousand bottles.
7. Champagne Henriot Cuvée des Enchanteleurs Grand Cru 2015
Last year, I reported on the latest vintage of Henriot’s prestigious Cuvée Héméra. Now, at the beginning of this year, news came that the Maison is reissuing its traditional top champagne, the Cuvée des Enchanteleurs (English: Enchanters). This was available until the 2000 vintage, before being replaced by the Cuvée Héméra between 2005 and 2013. However, with two changes of ownership in a short period of time, the range can be shaken up. In any case, 2015 was a very good vintage for Champagne Henriot, as the vintage had already shown (more here).
According to the Maison, only the name of the top cuvée has changed, not the concept. This means that the champagne is composed of the house’s six ‘founding grands crus’. That is, 50 per cent Pinot Noir from Mailly, Verzenay and Verzy in the Montagne de Reims. And 50 per cent Chardonnays from Chouilly, Avize and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. The result is rich and complex, yet elegant and pure, with a pleasingly low dosage of 3.5 grams! A very successful champagne from the challenging 2015 vintage (95p.).
8. Champagne Penet-Chardonnet Coline & Candice Verzy Grand Cru 2010
I reported on Penet-Chardonnet in more detail last year (here). The single vineyard specialist from the northern Montagne de Reims had made a lasting impression on me with his champagnes. That’s why I visited the stand again in Paris. There, it became apparent that the labels of the single vineyard champagnes had been significantly improved by a redesign. And then I was able to taste the Coline & Candice Grand Cru Verzy Extra-Brut (from 2010) for the first time. The cuvée, aged in wood, is one of the house’s two prestige cuvées. It is also the counterpart to the Diane Claire from Verzenay, which is vinified in stainless steel. After tirage in May 2011, the bottles were disgorged in August 2023. The twelve years of yeast storage give the champagne a powerful, multi-layered fullness. It goes very well with the structured freshness of the wines from Verzenay. The 18 months of bottle storage after disgorging contributed significantly to the wine’s harmony. A champagne with a lot of class (95p.).
9. Champagne Pol Roger Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill 2018 & Vinothèque 2004
This time, the Maison’s new products were presented by a young man with a prominent name: Martin Heidsieck. As a representative of the sixth generation of the de Billy family, he recently began working as a brand ambassador. He began by presenting a splendid trio of vintages: 2018 Brut, 2019 Rosé and 2016 Blanc de Blancs. The latter, currently the strongest of these three cuvées, will not be replaced by the 2018 vintage until 2027. This was followed by a double whammy. First, the Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill 2018 (deg. 10/2024), the successor to the not entirely convincing 2015 vintage. Once again, a very ripe vintage, resulting in a rich, winey champagne. At present, however, the fullness and multidimensional fruitiness still mask the actual structure. Connoisseurs should therefore exercise patience (94+p.).
Just how worthwhile this can be was demonstrated by the real novelty in Paris: Sir Winston Churchill Vinothèque 2004. This shows how excellently Pol Roger’s Prestige Cuvée can mature. For all its power and richness, which the cuvée is known for, it possesses a certain cool elegance (96p.). To describe this as ‘Britishness’ may be a cliché, but it is certainly not far-fetched. Together, these components form the core of what makes the ‘Winston’ what it is.
10. Champagne Pommery Cuvée Louise Brut 2008
The Cuvée Louise deserves attention simply because it is the prestige cuvée of a large and traditional maison. Above all, however, it is one of the (regular) cuvées with the longest bottle fermentation on the market. At Wine Paris, Pommery & Associés presented the long-awaited 2008 vintage, one of the best in recent decades. It appeared a year after Dom Pérignon’s P2 from 2008, which was essentially its vinothèque bottling. The regular Dompi was presented in 2018, as was Roederer’s Cristal 2008. Like no other cuvée, Louise is characterised by autolytic notes, aromas that come from the decomposition of yeast. Interestingly, this does not manifest itself in a creamy, broad-shouldered character, but rather in a delicate and restrained one. I was able to observe this recently during a Louise vertical tasting at KaDeWe in Berlin.
In Paris, Louise 2008 made its debut (for me) as part of a dinner at the Lucas Carton restaurant, hosted by the Maison. Here, the cuvée presented itself as pale gold, with a restrained nose, yet vinous, elegant, very pure and almost delicate on the palate (94p.). The fact that there is also structured power hidden beneath this surface became clear during the pairing, if not before. It remained clearly in the foreground alongside a poultry course by Michelin-starred chef Hugo Bourny with melted onions, sudachi lemons, mustard seeds and Likouala pepper. The prospects for a long life are excellent!
11. Champagne Rare Rosé 2014 (Magnum)
Champagne Rare dates back to Piper-Heidsieck’s prestigious cuvée of the same name, which the house first released with the 1976 vintage. In fact, the cuvée had various predecessors, such as the Florens Louis champagne, produced in vintages between 1961 and 1973. To mark the 200th anniversary of the founding of Champagne Heidsieck, the nucleus of Piper-Heidsieck, the maison presented the first Rare vintage in 1976. Since the 2007 vintage, it has also been available as Rare Millésimé Rosé Brut. Since then, there have been only three successors to date: 2008, 2012 and 2014. The number of bottles is just 1,500.
The cuvée usually consists of 60 per cent Chardonnay and 40 per cent Pinot Noir. The grapes come from nine cru vineyards in Champagne, particularly from the Montagne de Reims. Vinification takes place in stainless steel, and malolactic fermentation occurs. For the 2014 vintage, 18 per cent red wine from the commune of Les Riceys was added to the blend, an unusually high proportion. Accordingly, the striking salmon-coloured rosé presents itself with copper reflections and a generously vinous, refined texture. I last had the 2014 Rare Rosé by the glass at a KaDeWe tasting (more here). In Paris, in a magnum, the champagne showed a touch more freshness and elegance (95p.).
12. Champagne JM Selèque Soliste Chardonnay Pierry 1er Cru Les Tartières & Les Porgeon 2020
The Pierry-based winery dates back to Jean-Marc Sélèque. In 2008, he created his own brand based on a family business founded in 1969. After gaining extensive experience in high-tech wine cellars, he decided to take an “artisanal” approach for his own winery. He seeks the key to champagne quality in the vineyard, without foregoing the help of state-of-the-art technology when it is useful. Sélèque deliberately focuses on the terroir of the Coteaux Sud d’Epernay – and Pierry in particular. However, of the 10 hectares or so, there are also a few parcels in Dizy, Boursault and Vertus.
Solessence is the entry-level line, a blend of these different sites. Among them, the Solessence Nature stands out with its extended bottle fermentation, currently from 2020. The Soliste range consists of single-vineyard champagnes from Pierry. My favourite: Chardonnay Pierry 1er Cru Les Tartières & Les Porgeon 2020 Extra Brut. Aged for about a third in wood, this champagne shows both power and concentration. The maturity of the vintage is noticeable, but it does not come at the expense of precision (94p.).
Four trends on the horizon
Given the enormous diversity at Wine Paris, is it possible to identify trends in the world of champagne? I would perhaps identify four that may not necessarily be new, but are still gaining momentum. (1.) The increase in non-traditional newcomers. In recent years, there has been an increasing blurring of traditional business models such as négociant, cooperative and winemaker. Gaëlle Jacquet from the Comité Champagne once referred to this as ‘hybrid’ in a conversation. One example is Agrapart Avize, where winemaking tradition, négociant organisation and start-up mentality come together. This often involves players from outside the sector. (2.) Meunier is increasingly coming into the spotlight. Not only winemakers, but also cooperatives and maisons no longer see the grape variety as merely a link between Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. It is increasingly being confidently presented as a soloist, most convincingly aged in wood and without malolactic fermentation.
(3.) Champagne is becoming more feminine. This is a trend that has continued to gain momentum, as was evident in Paris. ‘La Cheffe’ is clearly good for the sector and for champagnes! (4.) The Coteaux Champenois are (back) to stay. Not only winegrowers, but also more and more maisons and cooperatives are now presenting the region’s still wines. From the hot 2022 vintage, there were also some slightly overripe Pinot Noirs to taste. On the other hand, many Chardonnays shone. For example, from old master Bruno Paillard, JM Sélèque or the unconventional cooperative Chavost, which completely avoids the use of sulphur.
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