Billecart-Salmon

FOUNDED IN 1818 BY HUSBAND AND WIFE NICOLAS FRANÇOIS BILLECART AND ELISABETH SALMON, THE HOUSE OF CHAMPAGNE BILLECART-SALMON IS ONE FULL OF FAMILY TIES AND A RICH HISTORY.

LOCATED IN THE HEART OF CHAMPAGNE, in a village named Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, the house has, since its birth, been tended to by every member of the Billecart family, all of whom are committed to the house oath: ‘Give priority to quality, strive for excellence’.

It is this aspiration that saw the house re-established by Charles Billecart, son of Nicolas, who took over as manager of the house in 1848 when his father died.

In the face of adversity, (the house was ransacked by the Germans during the Great War), leaving just 25,000 bottles in reserve by 1919, Charles worked tirelessly to rebuild the house, accumulating by 1939 stockholdings of 800,000 bottles - all of which the house owned outright, an incredible feat as there was no credit available at the time.

After restoring the house, Charles passed the reigns onto his son, Jean Roland-Billecart, whose sons François and Antoine, the 6th generation of the Billecart-Salmon family, now manage the house and have been doing so since their father retired in 1991.

Today, Champagne Billecart-Salmon is one of the last remaining houses to be under founding family management, a fact the house prides itself on and the future of the house is one which inextricably involves family; the next generation of the Billecart family, Antoine’s nephew and François’ son Nicolas, began with the company in 2010

and is already beginning to work his way into the ranks.

As well as Nicolas becoming a welcome addition to the family business, in March 2015, Antoine Roland-Billecart, director of Champagne Billecart-Salmon, was named Commandeur of the Ordre des Coteaux de Champagne, with the transfer of office taking place at the premises of Billecart-Salmon in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ. The Ordre des Coteaux de Champagne is the official fraternity of the major Champagne brands and through Chapters, tastings and other activities, its mission is to promote the region, the variety, versatility, taste and other unique characteristics that make Champagne wines synonymous with success and celebration everywhere.

As head of the Ordre for the next two years, Antoine will devote his time (when not running the day to day business of the house), to promoting the ethos of Champagne around the world.

With family firmly behind the house, Billecart-Salmon is free to strive to create Champagnes that are refined and pure: the overarching philosophy in all the Champagne Billecart-Salmon cuvées is to exhibit delicacy and elegance, with the body of the wine to be balanced and fine.

In order to achieve this excellence, Billecart-Salmon sources its fruit from the outstanding terrains found in Montagne de Reims, the Tourism in Vallée de la Marne and the Côte des Blancs. Here the grapes are cultivated with care and knowledge by the Billecart-Salmon team, producing exceptional Champagne, of rare complexity and with unrivalled freshness.

The house prides itself on the styles of wines it creates; Billecart-Salmon cuvées are a sum of all their parts and preference is given to fruit character and definition, with the house’s flagship, single vineyard wine, Le Clos Saint Hilaire, coming from a 1er Cru Pinot Noir vineyard, located in the township of Mareuil-sur-Aÿ.

On the perpetual quest for excellence, Champagne Billecart-Salmon has always been an active promoter of innovation and advancement, and while by no means one of the largest producers, the house has been at the forefront of modern technical advancement. Perhaps Billecart-Salmon’s most revolutionary production technique is the unique procedure of double débourbage, or double cold stabilisation/settling, where, after a customary clarification process to settle out any solids, the juice is settled for a second time at incredibly low temperatures, between 2 and 4°C, for a period of 48 hours.

This technique has been employed by the house since 1952 and was inspired by processes used in the production of beer and while the process is slow and expensive, the resulting juice is clean, pristine and pure – exactly the style that the house strives to create.

In the interest of innovation, the house was also one of the first to create a nonvintage Champagne Rosé. Champagne Rosé was previously more often than not a vintage wine, usually quite expensive and made for the sole purpose of matching with food. Billecart-Salmon believed that Champagne Rosé could be much more than this, and thus created an aperitif style, nonvintage rosé, which remains a pioneer of the category to this day.

With an impressive portfolio of exceptional Champagnes and a history boasting the best champenois tradition, the house of Billecart-Salmon is one of historic excellence, a notion that stands to this day. ❧

Tasting notes

BILLECARTSALMON BRUT RÉSERVE NV

Appearance: Light gold

Aroma: A rich bouquet with elegantly fruity notes and hints of white flowers

Flavour: Full and focused flavour, combined with a fine freshness

BILLECARTSALMON BRUT ROSÉ NV

Appearance: Salmon pink

Aroma: A subtle aroma leading into an elegant, delicate bouquet, featuring fine notes of red fruits and zesty citrus fruits

Flavour: Its special method of vinification gives this cuvée a light, elegant flavour, followed by a fresh finish with delicate notes of raspberry and brioche

BILLECARTSALMON BLANCS DE BLANCS NV

Appearance: Gold

Aroma: Intense, dry fruit aromas, almonds and fresh hazelnuts mixed with notes of fruits, particularly white peach

Flavour: The creamy sensation of the mousse complements the aromas of buttered brioche and mineral intensity, leading to a persistent finish with a fresh and elegant sweetness

BILLECARTSALMON BRUT SOUS BOIS NV

Appearance: Light to medium yellow

Aroma: A rich mix of harmonious expressions (dry fruits, fresh citrus and white fruits), coupled with finely buttered seductive notes

Flavour: A burst of flavours highlighted with notes of grilled brioche and toffee

BILLECARTSALMON BRUT VINTAGE 2006

Appearance: Salmon pink

Aroma: Intense, mature crunchy fruit with an elegant and harmonious character of orchard fruit, citrus fruit and biscuit highlighted with notes of gourmet pastries (buttery, warm madeleines)

Flavour: On the palate, it exhibits sensational richness of white stone fruit and quince, amplified by a precise vinification and slow rising creamy mousse. The wine offers body, power and depth. The finish is chiselled and persistent