Clos des Goisses
By Simon Field MW, DWWA Regional Chair for Champagne
‘Why Clos des Goisses?’, I ask Charles Philipponnat. ‘This vineyard is exceptional,’ the 15th-generation head of the family producer says, ‘due to a combination of three factors taken to their extreme: a chalky base of great purity; a steep 35°-45° slope; and a full southern exposure.’
History and statistical data are happy to confirm this; long known as the ‘Grand vin des Goisses’, it was the 1951 vintage from this vineyard that was the first in Champagne to be sold bearing a ‘Clos’ label (some three decades before Krug’s Clos du Mesnil, its first vintage being 1979); and year in, year out, its average temperature is a full 1.5°C warmer than elsewhere in the region. The proximity to the river Marne means the sun reflects onto its imposing slopes (pictured) and allows an atypically thick shard of pure belemnite chalk to work its magic.
Thereafter, all is straightforward; a significant percentage of the wine is barrel-fermented, its
sheer power and almost tannic rigour more than a match for the wood, and any inclination to a malolactic fermentation is denied. Intervention is not necessary as all the hard work has already been done in the vineyard, the precipitous slopes worked by a combination of winches, caterpillar carriers and an exceptionally fit and dedicated team! The wine rewards this effort with its sheer power (Pinot Noir dominates) and unparalleled longevity. Only the best of its 14 plots, all vinified separately, make the final cut.
But hang on a moment… it’s not a grand cru, so how can it possibly be the greatest vineyard? Charles is completely unfazed by such an observation, citing the fact that Champagne awards its crus to villages rather than specific sites, and that while Mareuil-sur-Aÿ is more than worthy of its premier cru status, there is one vineyard which sits head and shoulders above the rest, and that vineyard is Clos des Goisses. Nowhere else in Champagne does nature inspire nurture with such alchemical benevolence, thereby fully justifying the vineyard’s hard-earned reputation as the best of the best.
Try:
Philipponnat, Clos des Goisses Extra Brut 2012
£200 (in bond)-£270/75cl Acker, Bordeaux Index, Millésima
Philipponnat, Clos des Goisses Extra Brut 2008
£241.67 (ib)-£324 Bordeaux Index, Christopher Keiller, Cru, Lay & Wheeler, Mann Fine Wines, The Finest Bubble
Location Mareuilsur-Aÿ, Champagne, France
Owner Maison Philipponnat
Size 5.83ha
Altitude 80m-115m
Aspect South
Primary soils Belemnite chalk with very thin topsoil Grape varieties Pinot Noir, Chardonnay (approximately 80/20 ratio)