Red fruit: strawberry and raspberry, with touches of roses, peonies and yellow fruit: peaches and apricots. Long-lasting finish and a final minerality for this Brut Nature (dry) with no added sulfur.
Region: Côte des Bars
Grapes: 100% Pinot Noir
Vinification: Planted 100% to Pinot Noir, Les Cognaux is located at the top of the hill with south/southeastern exposure. The word Cognaux is an old local word that means 'little corner,' as in a nice little corner of the world to grow grapes.
All cuvées are made using the same process: vinification with natural yeasts without any fining or filtering. Cold settling occurs naturally with the winter frosts. Alcoholic fermentation, natural malolactic fermentation with 18-20 months sur-lie in bottle, disgorged à la volée, and bottled without any liqueur de tirage (Brut Nature) or added SO2. The Ruppert-Leroy is biodynamic except for the perpetual Domaine blending cuvee. Each Champagne is single vintage and from one vineyard giving precision of terroir. They also have a small biodynamic farm where they grow produce and animals for their local commune. This is a small production of 5500 bottles produced for this vintage.
About the Winemaker: Benedicte Leroy's parents were originally sheep breeders in the village of Essoyes in Côte des bars –Aube. In 1980 they converted their land into vineyards, and step by step, they created a small Domaine of around 4 hectares. In 2009, when his father retired, Benedicte left his job as a PE teacher to gear his family's domaine. Since then, he has applied the biodynamic principles both in the vines and in the cave, aiming at producing the most natural Champagnes possible. Every Cuvée comes from a single year, a single parcel (Lieu-Dit) and always without dosage (Brut Nature).