2012 Guy Larmandier, Champagne Brut Zero Grand Cru "Cuvée Signé François" Vieilles Vignes

For many generations the large Champagne houses have been marketing their top wines, known as tête de cuvée, as pure, bottled luxury (think of Roederer’s “Cristal” or Veuve Clicquot’s “La Grande Dame”). But savvy sommeliers and connoisseurs know that you can get the same quality for much less if you look toward the smaller “grower-producers.” Today’s discovery is a perfect example: Guy Larmandier’s “Cuvée Signé François” checks all the boxes of a powerhouse tête de cuvée, with very old Grand Cru vines, long lees aging, and additional aging post disgorgement. It is richly, exquisitely textured yet perfectly precise, full of both power and finesse. Whenever Larmandier makes a “Signé François” you know it is a good vintage, but the 2012 is a generationally great one. This is epic Champagne, and priced incredibly reasonably considering–don’t miss it! Guy Larmandier is a small estate based in Vertus, on the southern edge of the Côte de Blancs, Champagne’s preeminent Chardonnay growing regi