Henri Giraud MV19 tasting reveals hidden depths in Champagne
The trade was introduced to the newest vintage release of Henri Giraud this week, with the Aÿ Grand Cru Fût de Chêne MV19 becoming the latest cuvee to be added to the cannon of this little known, yet widely prized, Champagne house.
Noted for its Pinot Noir-dominant cuvees and use of oak from the neighbouring Argonne Forest, Henri Giraud has garnered a loyal following over the years, despite never quite reaching the same level of recognition of Aÿ’s more amplified houses.
Fittingly, a spotlight was shone onto the unique work of cellarmaster Sébastien Le Golvet and his team during the tasting, hosted at Fitzrovia’s Carousel.
For almost 400 years, the family has taken its oak from the undulating wooded areas of the Argonne, marrying the minerality-charged terroir of its Grand Cru chalk vineyards with carefully defined characteristics of oak barrels, which have been honed through varied toasting processes.
It’s an incredibly detailed and precise regime. All of the wood is sourced from the Argonne Forest, before being used to barrel ferment and age the wines. Meanwhile, a huge amount of research has been undertaken in order to identify a number of different terroirs and plots which each impart their own characteristics.
There is a sustainability component too: for every tree felled, more are replanted in order to maintain the ecosystem.
“No one else in the world of wine works as we do,” said Le Golvet, cellarmaster since the mid-2000s and son-in-law of 12th generation owner Claude Giraud.
“We have identified different parcels of terroir in the forest and each parcel will have an impact on the wine: some plots are more angular, while elsewhere we have more generosity and flavours of apricot. Other plots give more velvety notes. We also geo-localise each oak tree, with full traceability of the barrels. Wood lower down brings more breadth, while higher up the oak affords more elegance and finesse. We’re really trying to marry the barrel with characteristics of the particular vineyard.”
Le Golvet personally supervises the toasting of each barrel, while tasting the must on the second day of harvest in order to match each of the Aÿ plots with Argonne oak.
In the winery, things are equally finely tuned. A third of the wine is taken from a perpetual reserve solera system which is refreshed every year with wines from the latest harvest and carries notes and flavours of each vintage dating back to 1990.
This imbues a richness and complexity to the younger wines, while in turn adding intensity and depth (the MV19 2019 comprises a third of the Solera base wine and two-thirds from the 2019 vintage).
Elsewhere, amphora made from sandstone is used for its versatility in the Dame-Jane rosé, which is vinified in sandstone eggs, while heaters are used to control malolactic fermentation and produce the house’s fruit-forward richness, underscored by signature salinity.
The house is also notable for its use of a separate solera system on the banks of the Marne, which forms the base of the house’s Ratafia Solera (70% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay). This solera-aged blend contains fruit from across 26 years (1990 to 2016) and sees the must fortified with grape brandy to make a mistelle before being matured in barrel.
Imported by New Generation Wines in the UK, the Champagne house is due to celebrate its 400th anniversary next year.
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56-58 Church Walk, Burgess Hill, West Sussex, RH15 9AN
Registered in England No. 6646125. VAT No. 938 4452 95
