Blanc de noirs Champagne: Panel tasting results

blanc de noirs Champagnes — (Image credit: Credit Unknown)

Tom Hewson, Eugenio Egorov and Sarah Knowles MW tasted 79 wines, with 2 Outstanding and 50 Highly recommended

Blanc de noirs Champagne: Panel tasting scores

79 wines tasted

Exceptional 0

Outstanding 2

Highly recommended 50

Recommended 26

Commended 1

Fair 0

Entry criteria: producers and UK agents were invited to submit their current-release blanc de noirs Champagnes (made from 100% red grapes: Pinot Noir and/or Meunier)

Scroll down to see the top-scoring wines from our blanc de noirs Champagne panel tasting

Celebrating Champagne’s heritage

Although Chardonnay is a mainstay of Champagne today, making blanc de noirs – or ‘white from black’ – from black-skinned Pinots is written in the region’s DNA.

The practice of gently pressing the bunches whole in order to extract almost no colour from the skins was a speciality in the time of Dom Pérignon (17th century), and today the Pinot Noir and Meunier grapes – especially (but not uniquely) from the regions of the Montagne de Reims, Marne Valley and Côte des Bar – yield a fantastic diversity of styles.

Among the wines scoring 90 points or more in this tasting were plenty of familiar growers and small houses.

Yet it was also exciting to discover the fine performance of lesser-known, limited-edition cuvées such as those from Boizel (see recommendations), Jacquart and Piper-Heidsieck.

Prominent houses such as Cattier and Nicolas Feuillate offered fine, approachable styles with a touch of toasty, buttery richness, while plenty of independent estates offered precise, invigorating and dry options.

High-end

‘The quality was, broadly speaking, very good,’ says Sarah Knowles MW.

‘We had very few poor wines at all in a large lineup. I also found the diversity of styles particularly interesting – from more traditional, long-aged, plum-scented wines through the more reductive styles (which I particularly enjoyed) and out to the more elegant, brighter wines.’

Eugenio Egorov was similarly impressed by the broad diversity of styles.

‘While the rich, Pinot-driven character is the signature of the blanc de noirs style, the influence of the winemaker plays a big role,’ he notes.

‘Through masterful choices in vinification and dosage, a vast spectrum of expression is possible. We encountered everything from rich, vinous Champagnes to elegant, precise and highly approachable cuvées.’

With plenty of top wines from the excellent 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2020 vintages, which are all currently on the market, there’s no doubt that it’s a particularly good time to explore Champagne’s Pinot heritage.

What to eat with blanc de noirs Champagne, by Fiona Beckett

Truffle-risotto-is-one-of-many-fine-pairings-for-a-blanc-de-noirs-Champagne.-Credit-Olga-Larionova-Shutterstock.jpg — Truffle risotto is one of many fine pairings for a blanc de noirs Champagne.

The Champenois have always paired Champagne with food, but many people still think of it purely as an aperitif wine – a wine for parties and other celebrations.

Not grower Champagnes, and not blanc de noirs, which are much more serious, complex wines that can happily be enjoyed through a meal.

Their typically rich toastiness makes them a natural for roast chicken, a richly creamy risotto with truffles – almost anything umami (think dishes with white miso and sesame). And because they’re effervescent – they share this with other Champagnes – they work with almost anything fried, including chips!

Lighter, fresher styles will work with seafood, especially grilled lobster and scallops.

In general, I find it helps to think of hot food rather than cold with wines of this weight and quality, though they would be spot-on with a pâté en croûte or rare roast beef.

In a restaurant, they’re perfect with the luxury snacks that increasingly kick off a meal, especially with anything on toast or in pastry. Oh and don’t forget Vacherin Mont d’Or; it’s a sublime cheese match for a blanc de noirs.

See all notes and scores from the blanc de noirs Champagne tasting

The judges

Tom Hewson correspondent for Decanter and Decanter Premium online, and a DWWA judge. A jazz musician, he writes on sparkling wine more broadly on the Six Atmospheres Substack

Eugenio Egorov is wine director at Six Senses London hotel & spa. Born in Ukraine, he began his hospitality career in restaurants in Italy and Florida, USA, before moving to London in 2014

Sarah Knowles MW is a buyer for The Wine Society, covering categories including Champagne. A DWWA judge, she has been a Master of Wine since 2015 and previously worked in buying for on-trade specialist Amathus Drinks