The great house of Billecart-Salmon is still family-run and operated, and has survived and thrived for seven generations, now run by Mathieu Roland-Billecart, for over two centuries, in the heart of Mareuil-sur-Aÿ. The family owns 100 hectares of their own grapes, and contracts out with some of Champagne’s greatest growers for another 300 hectares – all spread across 40 Grand Cru sites throughout the Champagne region. Their vintage cuvees get the choicest picks of the top lots of Grand Cru fruit and this is exactly what this wine is all about!

The 2016 Extra Brut doesn’t have a fancy name, but its composition and vinification more than make up for it. It’s got a cepage of 66% pinot noir fruit from the Montagne de Reims and 34% chardonnay from the Côte des Blancs. There’s only a touch of dosage at 1.9 grams per liter and a lengthy 76 months of aging on the lees in the carved chalk cellars. Florality is the name of the game here with this wine’s intoxicating bouquet, along with a nostalgia-inducing orange creamsicle accent followed by toasted hazelnuts, brioche, and then some citrus and caramelized pineapple. Fresh and uplifting elements of slate and pure chalky minerality on the finish provide tension and focus –  all of the hallmarks of an outstanding wine. Vintage Billecart-Salmon Grand Cru – for only $90? Now that’s a score worth toasting to!