Champagne Christian Gosset is a boutique project by one of the most experienced winemakers and family names synonymous with quality in the village of Aÿ in the Vallée de la Marne. The Christian Gosset style is aromatic, powerful, and structured but always in search of finesse and elegance, with a common thread of verticality, precision, and intensity. Christian Gosset crafts gastronomic Champagnes destined to elevate world-class cuisine with a trademark long, complex finish. Christian’s ethos for his wines follows three tenets: typicity, precision, and pleasure.
Croix-Courcelles is made from two very small south-facing parcels of pinot noir and chardonnay planted at a slightly lower elevation in the Grand Cru village of Aÿ in the Vallée de la Marne. The two parcels are at the bottom of the slope, facing south, planted in deep, chalky soils on the road that leads to Épernay. Produced only in exceptional vintages in tiny quantities, Croix-Courcelles represents a powerful and transparent expression of the complexity of the Aÿ terroir. Croix-Courcelles has an aromatically intense and complex nose with notes of strawberry, blackcurrant, blueberry, pepper, honey, spices, plums, violets, and foliage on a smoky, toasty background. The palate is broad with a beautiful vinosity and a dense texture. The finish is very long and structured, marked by minerality and adorned with savory elements.
Vinification
Bunches are hand-picked in small baskets with a strict selection in the vineyard. Winemaking is low-impact and low-intervention, with the pressing done at his neighbor Jean-Baptiste Geoffroy’s winery in a traditional Coquard basket press. The coeur de cuvée arrives by gravity into Christian Gosset’s cellar, directly into new and used 228L French barriques, where it undergoes both alcoholic and malolactic fermentation. The wine is only moved twice – once into the fermentation barrel and once into the bottle. As Christian says, “let the wines ferment quietly, and then we meet again in July for the bottling.” The wine remains in the barrel completely undisturbed for 11 months without bâtonnage until bottling, which is important to avoid any oxidation. As a result, little to no sulfur is needed because the wine is not moved.
Croix-Courcelles produces six barrels of wine, and only one new barrel is introduced each year; the others are between two and five years old, and all are produced by Tonnellerie de Champagne. Christian Gosset Champagnes are raw and natural, with no fining, filtering, or cold stabilization. He doesn’t feel the wine needs to be totally clear because disgorgement removes any potential sediment. All wines are aged in his cellar for a minimum of three years on the lees before disgorgement, regardless of the vintage.
Region
Champagne
Village
Aÿ Grand Cru in the Vallée de la Marne
Parcel
Croix-Courcelles
Exposure
Southern
Grapes
100% Pinot Noir
Vine Age
Planted in 1969
Soil
Chalk
Alcoholic Fermentation
Pressing in traditional Coquard basket press, alcoholic fermentation with native yeasts in new and used 228L French barrels from the Tonnellerie de Champagne
Malolactic Fermentation
Spontaneous in barrel
Secondary Fermentation
Méthode Champenoise with liqueur de tirage
Aging
36 months on the lees, sur lattes
Disgorgement
June 2024
Dosage
3g/L
S02
45mg/L
Fining, Filtration, & Cold-Stabilization
None
Farming
Practicing Organic
Vegan
Yes
ABV
12.5%
Pack Size
6x750mL