Champagne Brut Nature «Odyssée Pétillante Chapitre 2»

This second chapter – the second vintage of Odyssée Pétillante – is undoubtedly a great wine; however, and I’d better say this right at the start, it will require a little patience. Whether that means allowing the wine a few more months of bottle ageing or giving it a chance to breathe before enjoying it. Yes, you read that correctly: we recommend decanting the wine, albeit briefly, but the difference – you’ll see – is enormous, as if you suddenly had a different wine in your glass.

As well as cultivating their vines biodynamically and handling as much as possible themselves, Romain and Thomas work traditionally in the cellar with a penchant for perfection. The press is a classic, large vertical model, which Thomas operates with three mates – a pressing session easily takes a good four hours. Romain’s place is in the cellar, where he checks the juice dripping from the ceiling – yes, the press stands directly above him on the ground floor – and directs the best batches into the central steel tank. He immediately distributes the contents into the used small oak barrels, where the juice ferments into wine, without the addition of cultured yeasts, of course. After a few months, the wine is then bottled and given a little more juice (sweet, i.e. unfermented) to kick-start the second fermentation, which creates the fine perlage.

No sulphur, no additives of any kind, and therefore no dosage either; this wine is a pure, natural product – as, incidentally, are all of Romain and Thomas’s champagnes – with a wonderfully fruity aroma and a soft, velvety texture on the palate, finishing with a juicy note that makes you smack your lips before your mouth starts watering profusely. The wine is balanced yet powerfully dynamic; one could almost say it is bursting with energy. A wine that is not only a delight as an aperitif; no, you can even serve this wine with a poultry dish – it can hold its own.

We can only recommend that you take a very, very close look at the wines of these two brothers and don’t hesitate to get on board, to be part of something great as it unfolds. Otherwise, you’ll find yourself in the same situation as with the wines of Richard Leroy or Roses de Jeanne, to return to the subject of champagne.