Laurent-Perrier is one of the great Champagne houses, in terms of coat of arms, history, elegance and size. And we must be proud of the fact that it focuses strongly on Italy, where about ten years ago it opened an office, the only one in our country of a house that produces exclusively Champagne. The CEO of Laurent-Perrier Italia, Stefano Della Porta, brought together some sector journalists at the Langosteria Bistrot in Milan to talk about the latest news from the maison and to strengthen the relationship between these noble bubbles and our country and the The occasion was a good one to taste some of the company’s most representative cuvées.
Laurent-Perrier was born in 1812 in Tours-sur-Marne where André-Michel Pierlot, bottler and cooper, decided to become a producer in an area that was at the center of the three great regions of Champagne, the Montagne de Reims, the Vallée de the Marne and the Côte des Blancs. Pierlot left everything to his son Alphonse and he, without heirs, did the same with his chef de cave Eugène Laurent. And since the history of Champagne is often a matter of women and widows, when he died it was his wife Mathilde-Émilie Perrier who took matters into her own hands. The current brand was born.
Today Laurent-Perrier is led by the de Nonancourt family, who in recent decades has continued the innovative drive that has always characterized the maison, imposing and perfecting a style made of elegance, measure and constant quality. The corporate faces in this historical phase are those of Lucie Pereyre de Nonancourt and the chef de Cave Michel Fauconnet.
As mentioned, the Milanese lunch was an opportunity to re-taste three of the most interesting LP cuvées. The first was the Héritage, an assembly of some harvests of 40 of the best Crus of Pinot Noir (45 percent) and Chardonnay (55) from reserve wines only. A very remarkable wine, with a fine and persistent but not too intrusive perlage, with a pleasantly citrus and light fruit nose which then leaves room for notes of pastry and toasting, and with a clear, clean, balanced mouth. Perfect to be paired with savory and opulent dishes but, like all great wines, also to be enjoyed on its own.
The second tasting was dedicated to the Brut Millesimé 2015, which is a wine that is born rare because the maison has chosen to produce it only in the years that guarantee the best expressions. In this case it is 50 percent Chardonnay from the Côte des Blancs and 50 percent Pinot Noir from the Montagne de Reims which after blending rested for seven years on the yeasts. The color is bright straw yellow, the perlage is fine and persistent, the nose leads to notes of citrus, candied lemon, aromatic herbs, the mouth is complex and full and encourages pairings with shellfish and seafood but also with rustic dishes complexity.
Finally the third taste, the most impressive. I’m talking about the Grand Siècle, a true hymn to the art of assembly. It is in fact the union of three vintages (in this case 2004, 2006 and 2007, the latter for 60 percent) with a prevalence of Chardonnay and a balance of Pinot Noir from a maximum of 11 Grand Crus and an aging of 10 years for normal bottles which is further extended for magnums. It is a powerful, grandiose Champagne which however speaks in tones that are never shouted, like those who have strong arguments that speak for themselves. I tasted the Itération n.24 in magnum which ages for fourteen years on the yeasts and shows citrus tones which then give way to toasted and hazelnut notes.
In the mouth there is everything you could ask for from a great wine: fatness, substance, composure, finesse, depth, balance, length and breadth. A masterpiece of balance that offers encyclopedic combinations.