The boutique Champagne house of Gatinois is located in the lovely village of Äy, in the Vallée de Marne. The town of Äy is probably best-known as the home of such famous Grandes Marques as Bollinger, Gosset and Deutz, but it also boasts some of the best small grower-récoltant producers as well, foremost amongst them Champagne Gatinois. Äy is one of the most important villages in all of Champagne, as it vineyards are all ranked as grand cru and it is considered one of the very top sources for pinot noir in the Champagne region. The current head of the house is Pierre Cheval-Gatinois, who has been at the helm of this lovely house since the early 1980s, and oversees just over seven hectares of vineyards that the family owns in Äy. For many years the family primarily made its living as grape growers, with much of its production earmarked each year to be sold to Bollinger. Monsieur Cheval-Gatinois continues to sell of about half of his crop to the Grande Marques, including Bollinger, to this day, but with each passing year he is bottling more of his production on his own. Pierre Cheval-Gatinois is very much the Champenois traditionalist (with his family dating back eleven generations as vignerons in the region), and has spoken out repeatedly about the potential pitfalls of using new oak in the fermentation and elevage of Champagne, which has been gaining adherents amongst several of his fellow grower-récoltants in the region.
The village of Aÿ is incredibly well known for its traditional (i.e., old) Pinot Noir clone which, compared to Côte d’Or Pinot, has a bracing level of acidity. The Pinot tannins, however, are neither bitter nor drying in the mouth. The structure is impeccable: firm, and with great definition.
Gatinois is one of the few remaining houses that still owns a plot planted with the traditional clone of the region, Petit Pinot d’Aÿ. Walking in the vineyard, the clonal differences are apparent and shocking. Next to the younger vines, Gatinois’s petit pinot vines look like dwarfs: they are roughly half as tall as their younger counterparts. They are also extremely thick with gnarled trunks that supply their low yield bunches with exceptionally rich sap. The vines yield a miniscule 2.5 tons per acre, about half the average yield in Champagne. It is composed mostly of the 2004 vintage, along with a little from 2003 and 2005.
The Brut Grand Cru, made from 90% Pinot Noir and 10% Chardonnay, is robust enough to hold up to a meal. It’s less creamy and toasty than some big name Champagnes, and its fruity flavors match a meal of roast chicken or even gamier birds, or a pork chop on the grill. Don’t drink this with Dessert! Drink now – 2013.
