Champagne Camille Jacquet is the brainchild of famed Maison Jean Pernet, helmed by Christophe and Frederic Pernet, and Camille Jacquet. Essentially, it’s the second label to the legendary Pernet champagne house. Maison Jean Pernet is a Champagne icon that has been growing grapes since the 17th century, with their base in perhaps our favorite section of Champagne’s Côte des Blancs, the illustrious Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. Because of the Pernet’s long history in the region, they have access to over 40 acres of vines, spread across the greatest Champagne communes, including the aforementioned Le Mesnil. And like Maison Jean Pernet, Camille Jacquet, too, believes in the power of d’assemblage. In this Camille Jacquet “Tradition,” parcels from Champagne’s southern hillsides around the area of Epernay, the Marne Valley, and the Cote de Sezanne, were used to express traditional Champagne terroir.  

The Camille Jacquet label is a perfect example of how a Champagne (or really any wine) can be tricky to decipher – the “À” before Le Mesnil Sur Oger is not a typo, though it  might look like one. It denotes that the wine is made and bottled there – kind of like what we do here in the States when we put “Estate” on a label.

The great thing about sourcing grapes from different terroirs and areas of Champagne is that the wines can sometimes surprise you and give you various aromas and flavor profiles that titillate the palate. For example, this Champagne’s aroma is nutty with toasted hazelnuts and cold winter sea breeze washing over wet rocks. It’s got a preserved lemon character and a hint of green apple, but really, it’s the non-fruit characteristics that dominate the nose. The palate gives more fruit like granny smith apples, quince and their blossoms, but also keeps with the toasty nut note thread. It’s creamy and rich with fine bubbles.  Roast chicken with pan sauce and pear and blue cheese salad coming right up. Happy new year to me! For just about half off, this is just what the doctor ordered to start the year off right!