Champagne Philippe Glavier Blanc de Blancs Mesnil Emotion Brut Grand Cru 2015

Blanc de Blancs Champagnes from the Mesnil-Sur-Oger Grand Cru are practically the highest form of the style, delivering intensely chalky minerality, high acidity, and stunning aging potential. Add in the Glaviers’ wine growing and making prowess, along with an astounding 8 years of aging on the lees, followed by a judicious dosage of just 3 grams per liter, and this deeply layered 2015 Emotion Brut is absolutely something worth giving a whirl.

Philippe and Véronique Glavier have managed their small estate in the Grand Cru village of Cramant since 1995. Set in the Côte des Blancs, the estate isn’t the Glaviers’ first rodeo in terms of the wine industry. Philippe and Véronique both hail from winegrowing families, with Véronique standing as the twelfth generation of her family from the nearby village of Monthelon. Philippe is a third-generation vigneron who inherited a small domaine that now serves as their base. Over the years, they’ve built their holdings to a total of 4.5 hectares – with 49 different plots in Cramant, Avize, Oger, and Le Mesnil. Each plot is farmed and vinified separately, granting the pair a nearly limitless possibility of Chardonnay combinations for blending.

To put it plainly, I am head over heels for this wine! The bouquet is generous, lively, and tantalizingly fresh, with slivered almonds, orange blossoms, and Meyer lemons – all framed by a warming, creamy effervescence. The mouthfeel is round and viscous to match, but with an uplifting and bright acidity that sparkles. Grilled pineapple, dried mango, orange oil, Earl Grey tea, white peaches, and lemon cream, accented by spicy-sweet notes of candied ginger. It’s clean and ample throughout – offering tons of pleasure and complexity for a rather exceptional price! We don’t have nearly as much as we’d like – and sadly, this won’t be around for long!