The first bottles to bear the Lallier name appeared in 1906, when the Champagne house was founded by René Lallier who had married into a prestigious Champenois family. Lallier has been firmly rooted in the village of Aÿ ever since. In 1936, Aÿ was one of the seventeen villages to be classified as ‘‘Grand Cru” in Champagne, a clear indication of the quality of the grapes that grow on its famous hillsides and the remarkable wines they produce.
Lallier is developing its approach to sustainability and is working towards Vignerons en Développement Durable certification, aiming to complete the process in time for the 2020 harvest. Also, due to the effectiveness of Lallier’s bespoke strain of yeast, it works with lower levels of sulphur dioxide than many other Champagne houses.
Champagne Lallier’s Grand Rosé is made exclusively from Grand Cru parcels (from Aÿ, Verzenay, Oger and Cramant) selected for their low yield at harvest. Rather than separately vinifying and then blending Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, winemaker Francis Tribaut prefers the ‘millefeuille’ technique. By alternately layering Chardonnay and Pinot Noir during a temperature controlled maceration Francis is able to extract colour without tannin – the juice of then larger berried Chardonnay is coloured a delicate shade of rosé, and the tannins from the smaller berried Pinot Noir are tempered. The wine is aged on lees for at least 3 years; disgorged 4 months before shipping with a dosage of 8g/l of reserve wine aged in oak. The result is an elegant Pinot Noir dominated rosé Champagne that is ideal as an apéritif.
A pretty pale pink Champagne of exhilarating freshness, elegance and red subtlety, made from principally Pinot Noir and one fifth Chardonnay grapes. Matured in bottle on its lees for at least 36 months, it captures clean fresh red fruit on the nose, followed by lively fresh fruit flavours of wild strawberry and raspberry on the palate with an appealing softness. Elegant and very sippable – the perfect Champagne combination.
