In addition, despite the difficult conditions, ProWein 2025 presented a number of new and interesting cuvées. Last but not least, one could go in search of new discoveries without rushing. My selection of nine champagnes (plus one still wine from the Coteaux Champenois) is not intended to be an objective best-of. Champagnes that I have already written about elsewhere are not included. However, each cuvée embodies masterful savoir-faire and is at the forefront of current Champagne production.
1 Champagne Lallier Ouvrage Grand Cru Extra Brut
The name Lallier is closely associated with Champagne and the commune of Aӱ since around 1900. Initially, of course, mainly as the owner of Maison Deutz & Geldermann (until 1993). From there, the Champagne Lallier brand developed slowly and with many twists and turns (detailed in my Champagne book). In spring 2020, the Italian spirits company Campari-Milano announced that it had acquired 80 percent of Champagne Lallier. In 2021, Dominique Demarville, the long-standing chef de cave of Veuve Clicquot, moved to Lallier.
The Cuvée Ouvrage is now one of Lallier’s Grands Crus Créations and was labeled as Domaine Lallier until recently. Unlike the mono-parcellaire bottlings Les Sous and Loridon, which are not sold in Germany, Ouvrage comes from two parcels. 35% Chardonnay from Les Hureux in Oger. And 65% Pinot Noir from Le Meurtet in Aӱ. Ouvrage at Lallier means: completely handcrafted from the vineyard to the cellar and bottled under natural cork. The current edition (base 2019, 4 grams dosage) tastes very classic and generous, with notes of stone fruit and brioche. Good acidity, some complexity and density (94p).
2 Champagne Jacquart Chouilly Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs 2014 Brut
Champagne Jacquart celebrated its 60th birthday last year – and can also look back on an eventful history. To make a long story short: The brand was once the flagship of a cooperative from Reims and is now part of the Alliance Champagne cooperative group. This plays Champagne Montaudon as a fruit-driven secondary brand in the food retail sector. Jacquart, on the other hand, has benefited greatly from the premiumization strategy of recent years. Above the popular entry-level segment under the Mosaïque label, there are extremely successful cuvées at an excellent price-performance ratio. Signature Brut B016 and Blanc de Blancs 2016 Brut, which celebrated its premiere in Düsseldorf, are currently impressing.
The company also took its 60th birthday as an opportunity to add a third, final cuvée to its Mono Cru series, which was launched in 2020. It is now called The Triple 1 Collection. One grape variety, one municipality, one vintage, only around 3,000 bottles each. The series began with the Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Chouilly 2014, followed by the Blanc de Blancs Premier Cru Villers-Marmery 2016 and finally the Blanc de Noirs Grand Cru Aӱ 2018, a first for the house with its focus on Chardonnay. My favorite in this trio is the Chouilly. Very fresh, with green apple and ripe lemons on the nose, dense and vertical on the palate, with crisp acidity. Still has a bright future ahead of it (94p).
3 Champagne Mandois Clos Mandois 2012
I had overlooked the small Maison Mandois from Pierry in the southern hills of Épernay for a long time. Recently, there was news about the construction of an impressive state-of-the-art winery. Here, the base wines from the estate’s best parcels are vinified partly in tulip-shaped cement fermenters and partly in wooden barrels from Taransaud and Stockinger. Time to get to know them. At ProWein, I was able to welcome Claude Mandois, the fifth generation head of the family business. Here, grapes are processed exclusively from south of the Marne, with Chardonnay dominating the 35 hectares of their own vineyards.
Chef de Cave Maximilien de Billy presented an exceptionally harmonious collection. The Blanc de Blancs Victor 2013 is racy, the expressive Rosé Victor 2016 is spicy and peppery, but the Clos Mandois 2012, a pure Meunier from a 1.5-hectare monopollage in Pierry, towers above them all. Only produced in exceptional vintages and matured in wood, this is the only cuvée from the maison in which the malo is blocked. This preserves the freshness, which marries excellently with the impressive complexity (95p).
4 Champagne Gosset 21 ans de cave à minima Extra Brut
Champagne Gosset’s presence at the trade fair this year was dominated by the new “Suzanne Gosset” rosé cuvée. She had managed the Maison, now based in Épernay, for many years and introduced the use of a transparent bottle as well as the house’s first rosé. In principle, it is the reissue of an anniversary cuvée Grand Rosé Millésime 1985, but now from the 2017 harvest (albeit without mentioning the vintage). A very elegant, successful champagne that is more complex and more vinous than the “standard” Grand Rosé.
The second novelty went almost unnoticed: 21 ans de cave à minima Extra Brut. This is a range introduced a few years ago by cellar master Odilon de Varine. These are champagnes in which the length of the bottle fermentation and the complex autolysis aromas are more important than the naming of a vintage. The series initially started with a 12-year-old and a 15-year-old. The 12 ans Rosé was presented in 2023 (more here). Now comes the very limited bottling (1,200 bottles) of the 21s from the 2000 base vintage. An enormously complex champagne for advanced drinkers, with aromas of quince, herbs and toast (96p).
5 Champagne Collard-Picard Archives Millésime 2012
The Maison Collard-Picard is an exception in many respects. They are the only winegrowing business (Récoltant Manipulant) located on the prestigious Avenue de Champagne in Épernay. The house was founded by Olivier Collard and Caroline Picard. He comes from a Champagne family in the Vallée de la Marne, she from one in the Côtes de Blancs. No wonder that their particular strengths lie in Chardonnay and Meunier. The latter is bottled as a single varietal in the Cuvée Racines. With the addition “Autre Crus”, the family ironically refers to the low status of the champagnes from the western Marne. The counterpart is the Dom. Picard Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru from the (unmarked) 2020 vintage.
The highlight of the tasting was the Archives Millésime 2012, produced in the manner of the ancestors. A cuvée with 80% Chardonnay from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and 20% Pinot Noir from the Les Oies parcel in Reuil on the right bank of the Marne. The base wines are matured on the lees in wooden barrels for 30 months before tirage. The result is a very complex champagne with aromas of red berries and brioche that is both powerful and fresh on the palate (95p).
6 Champagne Besserat de Bellefon Cuvée des Moines Blanc de Blancs 2015 Extra-Brut
Besserat de Bellefon is a must-go at every ProWein, if only for the reason that they bring along a bottle of their rare Vintage Collection every year. This year it was the 1990 (more about 1986 here), which presented itself intact, but already quite oxidized. Probably not the best bottle. The really big news from the Maison from Épernay, however, was the resurrection of the “Cuvée des Moines” – the former flagship of the house. In 1930, Victor Besserat had actually created a champagne with a slightly lower pressure (4.5 instead of 6 bar) for the restaurant director at the Parisian luxury department store Samaritaine, the Crémant des Moines. The cuvée lost its name “Crémant” to the regional sparkling wines of the same name from France, but the method remained under the name “Cuvée des Moines”. Following a relaunch of the brand in 2018, however, it was banished to the back label.
Now the “Cuvée des Moines” is experiencing a renaissance as new prestige cuvées from Besserat de Bellefon. Firstly as the classic Assemblage Millésime 2012 Extra Brut and then as Blanc de Blancs 2015 Extra Brut. I currently prefer the latter. Wonderfully creamy thanks to the soft mousse and at the same time with the racy acidity of a non-malo champagne. A big hit (96p)!
7 Champagne Bollinger Aӱ Grand Cru La Côte aux Enfants 2014
Maison Bollinger made a strong showing at this year’s ProWein. With a view to the 200th anniversary celebrations in 2029, the company is currently working hard to focus its range (more on this here). In particular, this means a strong emphasis on Pinot Noir in the portfolio. The house from Aӱ presented not only the two impressive Grandes Années (Blanc and Rosé) from 2015 and the fabulous RD 2008 in Düsseldorf, but also the new PN VZ19 with a focus on the 2019 vintage and Pinot Noir from Verzenay.
And finally, La Côte Aux Enfants 2014, only the third vintage after 2012 and 2013 (here are the notes on the premiere and the following vintage). An Aÿ rouge of the same name, a rare Coteaux Champenois, has been produced from the southern parcels of this monopole since the 1980s. The grapes from the 2-hectare north-western slope used to flow primarily into La Grande Année Rosé. Since the number of Vieilles Vingnes Françaises with authentic roots is decreasing, a new tradition of a Cuvée Parcellaire from Bollinger is now being created here. In fact, one has the impression that the champagne is getting better and better. 2014 combines the generosity of 2012 with the precision and verticality of 2013, but first and foremost it is an incredible impression of elegance and finesse that almost takes your breath away (98p).
8 Champagne Bruno Paillard N.P.U. 2009
Following its absence in 2024, Champagne Bruno Paillard is one of the most important exhibitors to return to ProWein. Although no longer in his own pavilion (where the founder of the same name used to “hold court”), it is still part of the Champagne Lounge. Alice Paillard took over the management from her father in mid-2018. In a presentation of the current portfolio, she showed me what excellent shape Champagne Bruno Paillard is in. This demonstrates the Cuvée 72, a Première Cuvée Late Release, so to speak. It combines 36 months on the lees with 36 months post-disgorgement (= 72). Very complex and pure Blanc de Blancs 2014 Extra-Brut, more vinous and broad-shouldered the Assemblage 2015 Extra-Brut.
And then, of course, there was the new 2009 vintage of Nec Plus Ultra. Traditionally, this is a cuvée with very long autolysis (50% Chardonnay and 50% Pinot Noir), the base wines of which were matured in used wood. Correspondingly deep aromas ranging from dark citrus fruit to spices and biscuit. Creamy, dense mouthfeel with great potential (96-97p).
9 Champagne Ployez-Jacquemart Liesse d’Harbonville Millésime 2005 Brut
Bruno Paillard’s champagnes established their fame as trendy accompaniments to nouvelle cuisine. The small négociant Ployez-Jacquemart from Ludes in the Montagnes de Reims prefers associations with haut couture. In fact, the production methods of the company, which dates back to 1930, reflect the highest standards. Only Premiers and Grands Crus from the Montagnes de Reims and Côtes des Blancs are purchased in addition to the estate’s own vineyards. Bottle fermentation sometimes extends beyond 15 years and the dosage is very low. When harvests are poor, production is reduced by selling Vins clairs.
The Extra Brut Passion is a fine introduction to the world of (partially) wood-aged champagnes. The elegantly structured Blanc de Blancs 2012 Extra Brut comes from the Grand Cru Puisieulx as well as the Premier Crus Cuis and Bisseuil and was also partially aged in wood (with blocked malo). Finally, the highlight is the prestige cuvée Liesse d’Harbonville (2/3 Ch, 1/3 PN) from 2005. The base wines are aged for eight months in wood (no fining or filtration, no bâtonnage, blocked malo). Maturation in the cellar is extremely long – in fact, 2005 is the current vintage! This results in a very generous champagne, with notes of orange zest, roasted hazelnuts and brioche. The mouthfeel is quite hedonistic, but remains classic thanks to the structured Pinots of 2005 (95-96p).
10 Bruno Paillard Oger 2021 Vin Blanc des Coteaux Champenois
Still wines from Champagne is a category that is gaining more and more friends. The current trend comes from two sources. Firstly, the quasi-survivors of the great still wine origins in Champagne. And the Nouvelle Vague, the modern reinvention of the Coteaux Champenois, so to speak. One of its pioneers was Bruno Paillard, but against his own will, so to speak. Early on, Paillard had begun to develop his base wines on a parcel-by-parcel basis – only to then develop them into champagne as an assemblage. One day, three-star chef Joël Robuchon was so impressed by barrel samples of Mesnil-sur-Oger that Paillard bottled the Chardonnay as a still wine. To this day, the house supplies its tiny production of Coteaux Champenois almost exclusively to French Michelin-starred restaurants. Unlike the basic Champagne wines, however, the bâtonage is carried out here and the wines are aged in wood for a year longer.
In addition to Mesnil, Champagne Bruno Paillard now also produces an Oger and a white-pressed Pinot Noir from Les Riceys as still wines. Oger 2021 comes from four barrels and, with its intense salinity and concise but well-integrated acidity, is an excellent plea for white Coteaux Champenois (93p).
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Featured Image: Messe Düsseldorf / ctillmann
All other images: Stefan Pegatzky / Time Tunnel Images
I love how the article highlights the unique blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the Lallier Ouvrage—sounds like a great expression of the region’s terroir! ProWein 2025 seems like it was a great opportunity to dig deeper into the craft behind these cuvées.