ETIENNE SANDRIN

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At the beginning of our (written) contact with Etienne was his congratulations to us: "We tend our vines in secret and it rarely happens that people find our email address, you're lucky!"

We had really tried hard because his champagnes are difficult to beat in terms of fineness and elegance, but unfortunately difficult to find and hard to get.

He and his partner Anne harvest just 1 hectare of his vineyards in Celles sur Ource on the Côte des Bar (where Cêdric Bouchard's masterful wine works) in order to bring small quantities of champagne to the bottle, which meets his high standards of quality and Class. Celles-sur-Ource is located southeast of Troyes, the soils are characterized by Kimmeridge limestone and clay.

In 2006, the two of them took over the small family winery from Etienne's parents and consistently switched to organic and later biodynamic farming.

In 2014 they decided to process a small part of the harvest (approx. 1 hectare) themselves in order to prepare champagne for themselves and a few friends according to their own quality requirements.

The few bottles produced are distributed among friends, fans and selected, specialized dealers.

As is usually the case on the Côte des Bar, the Pinot Noir plays the main role in the biodynamically farmed plots. The dosage is only marginal, if at all, and fermentation takes place exclusively with the active support of the vineyard's or cellar's own yeasts. In order to preserve the precise expression of the terroir, the base wines are matured in the stainless steel tank.

Respect for nature and its organic cycles is clearly in the foreground; Give things the time they need to develop their full potential.

And so it is also necessary to listen carefully and to be open to perceiving the soft tones and filigree-complex aromas of these champagnes (and of course enough large glasses to give them space). They are of ethereal elegance and, like puff pastry, finely fanned out aromas. A captivating freshness and invigorating, firm structure characterize Etienne's almost crystalline style.

Like Etienne and Anne themselves, their champagnes are sympathetically independent and sublime. There are no blenders, no vinological bodybuilders, no make-up Everyonesdarlings but subtle and delicate miracles of elegance, of great freshness and sublime, mineral depth. Champagne for connoisseurs.

Facts: R.M., Celles sur Ource, Côte des Bar