Coteaux Champenois rouge Grand Picou 2019 Tarlant

The Coteaux Champenois Rouge Grand Picou 2019 from Tarlant is one of the most precious and fascinating bottles from this family house in Oeuilly, whose Champagne roots reach back to 1687. Only 1,071 bottles produced, from a single parcel of just 0.25 hectares belonging to Benoît Tarlant's maternal grandmother. The Coteaux Champenois Grand Picou proves it is possible to cultivate a Pinot Noir of Burgundian elegance in Champagne, if one has the courage to swim against the current. A wine of power and concentration, always clear and precise.

The parcel and terroir

The Grand Picou parcel sits in the lieu-dit of the same name on the commune of Saint-Agnan, in the Vallée de la Marne Ouest. These 0.25 hectares were planted in 1982 by Suzanne Boiselle, Benoît Tarlant's maternal grandmother, using a careful selection of massal vines chosen from the finest in the house's vineyard. Perched at 180 metres altitude on a 12 per cent slope, facing due south, this parcel rests on hard Lutetian limestone and flint, a geological substrate of absolute minerality and precision. This limestone and flint are precisely what gives this still Pinot Noir its tension, freshness and stony minerality, setting it apart from all other Coteaux Champenois expressions. The harvest took place on 20 September 2019, entirely by hand, by Benoît and Mélanie themselves. The grapes were 100 per cent destemmed, fermented spontaneously with indigenous yeasts over 15 days of maceration and gentle punchdowns. Ageing lasted 20 months on fine lees in Burgundian pièces, without fining, hand-bottled on 16 July 2021. Unfiltered.

Tasting profile

The colour is a slightly translucent cherry red, with a transparency and luminosity that immediately recall great Pinot Noirs from Côte de Nuits. A fine reduction on opening, characteristic of the Burgundian school, fades quickly to reveal a nose of striking precision and complexity: black cherries and plums of crisp definition assert themselves naturally, accompanied by rose petals, damp earth, roots, a hint of white pepper and very fine, very precise flint minerality. On the palate, the wine shows refined juiciness and concentration, with that remarkable inner calm which is the absolute signature of great Pinot Noir. Dark fruit is carried by earthy and mineral notes, a lively acidity that sharpens with each sip, dense extract and present tannins of fine, elegant grain. The finish is long, mineral and marked by persistent spice, with resonant earthy notes supported by fine fruit and the characteristic tension of the terroir.

The house

Since the reign of Louis XIV, the Tarlant family was already cultivating vines in the Vallée de la Marne. Today, Benoît and Mélanie Tarlant, twelfth generation, farm 14 hectares in Oeuilly under certified organic agriculture, vinifying each variety from each parcel separately with a precision and rigour that have made them one of the benchmark houses of independent Champagne. Benoît and Mélanie Tarlant did not invent Champagne, but they have shown what it is capable of when one frees oneself from the marketing diktat of the grandes maisons.

Food pairings

This Coteaux Champenois Grand Picou pairs beautifully with roasted duck with wild mushrooms, beef steak with porcini, Bresse chicken with morels or aged cheeses such as a 24-month Comté or Époisses. Decanting for 30 to 45 minutes is advised to allow the fine reduction to dissipate. Served between 14 and 16 °C, it will reveal the full flint minerality, natural tension and Burgundian elegance of this unique, confidential Champagne Pinot Noir, born from a vine planted by a grandmother and vinified by her grandson with all the love and precision it deserves.