Guillaume is a spirited guy, to say the least. Though it was raining cats and dogs with the kind of blow-you-away winds you only see in stories like “The Wizard of Oz,” Guillaume was happy to meet us – flashlight in tow – to get ready to taste his wine and show us his very cool (and rather unexpected) cellar. Of particular note was the mysterious wooden box where he stored his compost tea and the next round of bull horns to be buried as part of his biodynamic preparations. He’s super passionate about his vines, as I’ve found most biodynamic practitioners tend to be, but the results speak for themselves. I digress – after the compost tea show and tell, he showed me his apothecary, where he stores foraged roots, dried herbs, minerals, and the like – to be turned into tinctures and shared as needed with individual vines and thereby avoid the need for blanket chemical treatments of entire vineyards as you might find elsewhere. If that’s not dedication, I don’t know what is.

Guillaume’s specialty is pinot meunier, the second black grape of Champagne that was once relegated to only blending status. His meunier’s are his largest production wine, and this one in particular comes from the 2017 harvest, with 50% of the wine from his perpetual reserve of estate pinot meunier. The wine ages on the lees for a whopping 63 months before being finished with a disgorgement and dosage of 5 grams per liter in December 2022. The judicious use of dosage was to ensure that L’Indigene did indeed showcase its terroir, without all of the “makeup” that often masks wine’s true character. Because the dosage is rather low, the fruit characteristics are in full swing with a powerful floral nose and roasted hazelnuts that meld with ferrous notes and hints of fresh-pulled saltwater taffy. It’s an intense and brooding Champagne, with weight and considerable heft behind every sip. A fine-boned vein of tingly minerality lifts this beautifully, but not before grilled lemons, black plums, black cherries, and malted chocolates make an appearance. It’s clean, but savory, fresh, and rich – and just beautifully, powerfully dichotomous in the most thought-provoking way. My mind is blown every time I sip this wine. 

It’s a 98-point Champagne that we’ve imported directly to share with you at the criminally underpriced mark of only $45, which is truly unbelievable given the quality, rarity, and overall exceptional nature of this wine. This is a beautiful and utterly fabulous bottle that shouldn’t be passed up! Champagne Marteaux Guillaume is a cult wine in the making, and I – and you! – get to watch their sure-to-be meteoric rise from the ground up. Wouldn’t it be awesome if you knew you were one of the first people to be aware of his considerable talents? Get this wine in your cellar, stat!