Delamotte Rose NV, Mesnil-sur-Oger, AC Champagne

Description

Introduction

Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are co-fermented and saignés in order to produce this complex, elegant Champagne rosé.

Background

Champagne Delamotte’s history stretches back over 250 years. It was founded in 1760 by vineyard owner François Delamotte, and as such is the fifth oldest house in the champagne region. Established from the outset in a beautiful residence in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, which houses its cellars and offices even today, Champagne Delamotte was taken over in 1828 by the Chevalier Nicolas Louis Delamotte, a nobleman of some note, who had organised the magnificent coronation festivities of Charles X of France in 1825.

The house has passed from generation to generation and even changed name at one point but was re-established as Delamotte in the late 1940s when it came into the hands of the de Nonancourt family and was presided over for years by Bernard de Nonancourt, one of the most legendary figures in the recent history of the champagne industry.  In 1988, Laurent Perrier took over the management of Champagne Delamotte, which was also joined officially with the prestigious Champagne Salon.

Didier Depond has presided over both champagne houses since 1997.

Vineyard location is the key that guides Delamotte’s expression, defining the house’s elegant, focused style of wine. A house like no other with its chardonnay grapes sourced from the Grand Cru villages of the Côte des Blancs, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Oger and Cramant, and its pinot noirs from Bouzy, Ambonnay and Tours-sur-Marne, Delamotte is one of the very few champagne houses to cultivate such a passion for the expression of this unique area of champagne.

Vineyard Information

Location: Pinot Noir is sourced from Grand Cru vineyards located in the South-East slopes of the Montagne de Reims : Bouzy, Ambonnay and Tours-sur-Marne. The Chardonnay is from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger.

Climate: officially ‘cool continental’ denoting cold winters and warm, but rarely scorching summers.

Soil: The sub-soil is mainly chalk with clay and sand forming the main topsoils; the vineyards are only found on chalky sub-soils because, due to the shallow topsoils, they retain their heat overnight.

The grapes rarely ripen fully this far north and the result is a light wine with searing acidity, ideal as a base for sparkling wine

Winemaking

Grape varieties: 80% Pinot Noir 20% Chardonnay

Fermentation: Hand-picked and hand-sorted grapes, crushed in a high-tech crusher and malolactic fermentation is standard with minimal dosage. Remuage done entirely by hand.

Delamotte Brut Rosé is made by the traditional saignée method, extracting colour and complexity from the skins through maceration before and during fermentation. This traditional rosé method seldom used in Champagne because of a complex process, although it brings much elegance and structure to the wine.

Every Champagne by Delamotte is entitled to Chardonnay and our rosé although, it is a ‘saignée’, is no exception. By co-fermenting the two grapes as opposed to blending two varietal wines, the complexity of each personality is preserved without hindering the elegant ‘saignée’ colour. The balance between the dominant Pinot Noir and the smaller percentage of Chardonnay in the Delamotte Rosé gives this wine its beautiful, salmon-pink colour.

Maturation: Delamotte rosé spends 3-4 years on the lees before disgorgement.

  Tasting notes

A very pale, refined rosé, this fine pink champagne owes its wild salmon colour to the careful balance of pinot noir and chardonnay, which give the wine its delicate notes of wild strawberries and raspberries, with a hint of smoke and freshly-baked biscuits.

Summary