Champagne Larmandier-Bernier Latitude Blanc De Blancs NV 1500ml (6 Bottles)

by Fine Wine Cellars

$1,799.00 GST Included

AUSTRALIA WIDE SHIPPING INCLUDED

2018 base with 40% reserve wines going back to 2004, disgorged in April 2020. Latitude is 100% Côte des Blancs Chardonnay from vineyards on the southern side of Vertus. These vineyards are on roughly the same latitude, hence the name, which also hints at the breadth of texture that the wines from these sites (having more clay in the soil) tend to offer up.

In the cellar, Larmandier uses mostly large format casks (almost all the wood now comes from Stockinger in Austria) with less and less reliance on steel tanks. The alcoholic and malolactic fermentations take place naturally, and there is no fining or filtration. Bottles are matured over a period of more than two years, disgorged manually and dosed at low, extra brut levels (in this case, four grams per litre) a minimum of six months before release.

Pure and mineral, this, like all the recent bottlings, offers superb texture and stone-fruited depth without sacrificing the cut-diamond precision and citrusy, chalky energy that is a given from this area. In short, this is classic Larmandier–100% delicious and all class. This is a wine that is extremely versatile at the table, especially if served in a wine glass, and can even be decanted. It will pair with everything from fish, shellfish, terrines, any white meat dish, game and most cheeses (except blue or strong washed-rind).

“The NV Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs Latitude 1er Cru is a powerful, driving wine that exemplifies the house style at Larmandier-Bernier. There’s real texture and breadth here. Citrus, dried almond, chamomile and crushed flowers build in a beautifully resonant, expressive Champagne that shows the natural richness that is common in the southern part of Vertus. This release is 60% 2018 and 40% a perpetual reserve that goes back to 2004. It’s fabulous.” 93 points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous

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About Larmandier-Bernier

“Few growers’ ranges in Champagne are as consistently outstanding as that of Larmandier-Bernier,” Andrew Jefford, The New France

“In a region where vineyard work is not always given the priority it deserves, Larmandier-Bernier is a model of what can be achieved through conscientious and diligent care in the vines.” Peter Liem, Champagneguide.net

“Pierre and Sophie Larmandier craft dramatic, vinous wines of real personality and class. Sustainable farming practices, indigenous fermentations and aging in cask are some of the cornerstones of an approach that yields distinctly potent, textured wines full of character.” Antonio Galloni, Vinous

Today we offer the superb new releases from this stellar grower. The new bottlings of Latitude, Longitude and Rosé de Saignée all draw on the impressive (if small) 2019 vintage, and we can happily offer these wines in a range of formats that include extended lees aging. The new single-terroir cuvées also stem from a range of vintages: Terre de Vertus from 2015 (six years on lees); Chemins d’Avize from 2014 (seven years on lees); and Vieille Vigne du Levant (over eight years on lees). Finally, Larmandier has released the second vintage of its new Rosé de Maturation. Following over six years in bottle, the 2014 offers a totally different experience from the Rosé de Saignée: it’s a more layered, fleshy and complex wine. Across the board the quality is, once again, awe-inspiring.

Like other benchmark growers, this is a producer that keeps evolving and reaching ever-greater heights. The wines still have the energy and intense minerality they have always offered, and now there is even more depth, layers and complexity. In part this is due to an increase in the lees aging cycle, which the Larmandiers now deem essential to the expression of their wines. For some time, Pierre and Sophie Larmandier have also indicated their wish to age their Champagnes for even longer before release, and the new, underground maturation cellar now grants them this opportunity.

Fine Wine Cellars

On the one hand, our role as a merchant of all things wine & spirits could not be simpler. We aim to source the most delicious, the most authentic, and the highest quality products possible from Australia and around the world in order to offer them to our clients. We live or die by how well we perform this task. Of course things are rarely as simple or as easy as they seem. Hunting for wines & spirits is no different. Apart from the months spent travelling, countless days and evenings spent tasting and the outrageous wine expenditure in the name of ‘research’, sourcing quality wine and spirits requires expertise and experience. Understanding the potential of a producer and their products is much more than just a slurp and a spit.

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