Pierre and Sophie Larmandier excel with statuesque, vinous Champagnes built on breadth, texture and an expression of place. Old vines, maniacal attention to farming, vinification in oak, and low dosage yields Champagnes of tremendous textural depth.' - Antonio Galloni, Vinous
With both family names having their own long histories in the region of Champagne before they were joined by marriage in 1971, Larmandier-Bernier have etched for themselves a deserved reputation as one of the foundational grower names from anywhere in the region. Still completely family-operated, with power couple and long-time operators Pierre and Sophie having welcomed their sons Arthur and Georges to the fold in recent years, this team grow their fruit entirely on organic premier & grand cru vineyards in the Côte des Blancs, crafting wines with a particular emphasis towards Chardonnay and an entirely singular sense of minerality and purity. Their champagnes surge with texture and plenitude, not least due to their low dosage approach and the Campanian chalk soils on which their vines have aged (some having now reached over 80 years of age).
For Champagne Monday this week, we hone in on one of their resonant and expansive Blanc de Blancs options, the 'Latitude' NV! A name brought about due to the fruit hailing from the same specific latitude in the southern part of Vertus, the clay in these soils imparts a powerful slatey feel to the wine's shape, with plenty of bright citric muscle, chalky precision and finishing waves of saline and white pepper. Holding a new base vintage of 2022 (a hot dry season, bringing a radiant punchy structure), plus 40% of reserve wines dating back to 2004, it has the Larmandier-Bernier signature all over it, and it will stay on special at this great price over the coming week!
Pierre and Sophie Larmandier tending to their vines - a marriage that has been a truly terrific meeting of mind, heart and soul since they took the reigns of this great estate in 1988. Together, they pivoted towards organic and biodynamic viticulture in a time when it was far less popular to do so, and continue to reap the rewards of such intuition.
Larmandier-Bernier 'Latitude' Blanc de Blancs NV
$129 on special this week ($150 RRP)
// 100% Côte des Blancs Chardonnay (certified organic & biodynamic)
2022 base vintage (with 40% reserve wines dating back to 2004)
Aged on lees for over two years before disgorged March 2025
3g/L dosage
"Latitude is 100% Côte des Blancs Chardonnay from vineyards on the southern side of Vertus. These vineyards are on roughly the same latitude, hence the name, which also hints at the breadth of texture that wines from these sites—having more clay in the soil—tend to offer. In the cellar, Larmandier uses mostly large casks (almost all the wood now comes from Stockinger in Austria). Fermentation and malolactic fermentation take place naturally, and there is no filtration. Latitude matures in bottle for more than two years before disgorgement and dosage at low, extra-brut levels (in this case, 3 g/L) at least six months before release. This bottling is based on the 2022 vintage, with 40% reserve wine drawn from a ‘perpetual’ reserve started in 2004." - Importer Notes
"Very bready, smoky bouquet. Very fresh and crisp in the mouth, dry, savoury, lush flavour, low-dosage style, with superb acidity. Small flowers, subtly complex, and the aldehydes are under control." - 95 Points, Huon Hooke, The Real Review
"The NV (2022) Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs Latitude 1er Cru is stellar in this range. Broad and ample, the Latitude is so impressive. Lemon confit, marzipan, tangerine peel, mint and chalk are dialed up. More than anything else, I am so impressed with the wine's sheer palate presence. There's gorgeous density and character here." - 94 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous
"Very ethereal, pure and fresh feeling, a gentle haze to texture, a core of brittle, bright, saline minerality – around this, some soft, creamy vanilla nuance, cinnamon toast, baked apple and sweet spice. It shimmers with tiny, fine bubbles. Some palate staining, liquid spice follows on. Really beautiful." - 94 Points, Mike Bennie, The Wine Front
If you wish to purchase this champagne, please use the link above
Otherwise, if you have any questions, please contact us on (07)32521117 or email sales@thewineemporium.com.au
// Special price valid until Monday the 25th of May