2005 Jacquesson & Fils Extra Brut Avize Champ Cain, 12-bottle Lot

Jacquesson et Fils was founded in 1798 in Dizy by Memmie Jacquesson. It was Napoleon’s favorite Champagne, and he awarded the maison several medals for excellence. But the modern history of the estate started in 1974 when it was purchased by Jean Chiquet. Today Jacquesson is owned and operated by Chiquet’s sons, Laurent and Jean-Herve. The 75 acres of vineyards produce about 350,000 bottles of Champagne a year. Vineyards are located in the Grand Cru villages of Ay, Avize and Oiry, and several Premier Cru villages. The estate makes a full line of Champagnes but of special note is the 700 series, which is a non-vintage Brut produced each year. Since 2000 the cuvee includes a number on the label that represents the latest non-vintage cuvee produced by the maison. For instance Cuvee No. 734 is based on the 2006 vintage, with additions from previous vintages.

Champagne is a small, beautiful wine growing region northeast of Paris whose famous name is misused a million times a day. As wine enthusiasts and all French people are well aware, only sparkling wines produced in Champagne from grapes grown in Champagne can be called Champagne. Sparkling wines produced anywhere else, including in other parts of France, must be called something besides Champagne. Champagne producers are justifiably protective of their wines and the prestige associated with true Champagne. Though the region was growing grapes and making wines in ancient times, it began specializing in sparkling wine in the 17th century, when a Benedictine monk named Dom Pierre Pérignon formulated a set guidelines to improve the quality of the local sparkling wines. Despite legends to the contrary, Dom Pérignon did not “invent” sparkling wine, but his rules about aggressive pruning, small yields and multiple pressings of the grapes were widely adopted, and by the 18th and 19th centuries Champagne had become the wine of choice in fashionable courts and palaces throughout Europe. Today there are 75,000 acres of vineyards in Champagne growing Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier. Champagne’s official appellation system classifies villages as Grand Cru or Premier Cru, though there are also many excellent Champagnes that simply carry the regional appellation. Along with well-known international Champagne houses there are numerous so-called “producer Champagnes,” meaning wines made by families who, usually for several or more generations, have worked their own vineyards and produced Champagne only from their own grapes.