In southern Champagne, just South of the Côte de Sezanne at the tip of the Aube, the village of Montgueux has made a name for itself as a tiny pearl of world-class Chardonnay amongst a sea of Pinot Noir. Here in Montgueux, known as Mons Gothorum (hill of the Goths) in Roman times, a strikingly deep and isolated outcropping of that famous Champagne chalk resurfaces. What has resulted is perhaps the most exciting new terroir in Champagne, having been planted only since the 1960s. The Montgueux slope extends for nearly 100 meters, and the due South exposure along with the warmth of the Aube make for quixotically exotic Chardonnays whose opulence is kept in check by the keen minerality and edge of its chalk soils. Emmanuel Lassaigne's father, Jacques, was one of the first to plant this land in the 1960s and the estate remains true to form as the yardstick by which all others are measured in Montgueux. Moreso, It has risen to the occasion as one of the truly cult favorites of the in-the-know Champagne crowd. These are true expressions of the village's chalky soils and are exciting for the nervy balance of weight and acid that is rarely seen in a Blanc de Blancs, let alone one at this price point.
