Champagne Brut 'Cuvée Prestige' - Francis Orban

Champagne Brut 'Cuvée Prestige' Francis Orban

Francis Orban's Champagne Brut Cuvée Prestige is a sparkling wine made from Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay grapes that appears in a light and luminous straw yellow colour, enhanced by a fine and persistent perlage. On the nose it expresses scents of freshly baked bread framed by hints of peach and pear with delicate floral details, while on the palate it is elegant and complex, with an enveloping effervescence and a fresh and harmonious finish.

DESCRIPTION OF THE CUVÉE PRESTIGE

The "Cuvée Prestige" Brut from the Francis Orban winery is an intense and enveloping Champagne produced in Leuvrigny in the Vallée de la Marne, a district of the Champagne region in France. This expression is a cuvée, which combines 50% of the wine of the latest vintage with 50% of the reserve wine of previous vintages, obtained from a blend of grapes in which the Pinot Meunier variety prevails, in a light but recognisable way, with its characteristics of softness and creaminess, over the freshness and slenderness of the Chardonnay. The ideal exposure of the vineyards, characterised by clayey-calcareous soils, makes the microclimate perfect for growing vines, especially Pinot Meunier.

The Champagne "Cuvée Prestige" Brut of Francis Orban is produced from carefully selected grapes, harvested by hand around the month of September. The bunches are brought to the cellar very quickly and pressed directly using a Coquard press before alcoholic fermentation takes place at low temperatures in stainless steel containers for several weeks. Once the cuvée has been composed, with the right blend of the base wine from the latest vintage and that of previous vintages, it is bottled with the addition of the liquer de tirage for the second fermentation in the bottle for about 36 months. The wine is then disgorged and liqueur d'expedition is added to achieve the desired degree of dosage as per the brut category.

The "Cuvée Prestige" Champagne has a brilliant straw yellow colour with a fine and persistent perlage. On the nose there are intense hints of white-fleshed fruit, including peach and pear, citrus and floral notes, buttery and honeyed hints, with light mineral puffs on the finish. On the palate, it is well-structured, elegant, mineral and fresh, with a pleasant finish based on fruity returns. The "Cuvée Prestige" from the Francis Orbas winery is a complex yet fine Champagne that integrates muscular power with carefully researched grace.

Colour Luminous straw yellow with fine and continuous perlage

Bouquet Ripe peaches and pears, flowers and honey with details of fresh bread

Taste Fresh and with an enveloping effervescence, complex and of excellent harmony

Francis and the rediscovery of Pinot Meunier in Champagne

The image of Champagne best known to the general public is that of the typical blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes. This is not the case with Francis Orban: here, the holy trinity of the region's grapes is inverted and it is Pinot Meunier that is highlighted. The Orban family, which has been in business since 1929, has always been recognised in the region as an excellent grape producer. First with grandfather Gaëtan, then with father Pol, the grapes, especially Pinot Meunier, were sold to the great Maisons of the north, with whom they had forged historic bonds of trust, always guaranteeing a raw material of excellence and quality. With the arrival in 1999 of Francis Orban, born in 1980, a graduate in oenology and representative of the fourth generation of the family, things changed and a new present was inaugurated at Recoltant Manipulant (RM). The desire to personally transform those grapes into wine was born in Francis, personally following the growth and maturation process, first in the vineyard then in the cellar, and labelling the final product with his name.

The Francis Orban maison is located in the heart of the Marne Valley, in Leuvrigny, 15 kilometres from Epernay and today has 7.5 hectares of property in an area recognised and known throughout the Champagne region for its exceptional microclimatic and territorial characteristics. The soils here are rich in clay and limestone and the southern exposures allow the grapes to receive as much sunlight as possible during the day. Pinot Meunier reigns supreme in this area and is Orban's flagship variety, whether in its pure form, in rosé versions or blended with Chardonnay.

Every year, the range of labels offered by Francis Orban manages to satisfy the palates of the most passionate wine lovers, as well as the most novices, offering a fine and elegant aromatic range and a fresh, enveloping and mineral taste, the fruit of an authentic and deeply territorial savoir-faire. In the cellar, vinification takes place mainly in 300-litre barrels and in barriques, previously used in Burgundy, and after a long rest on the lees, the final products are ready to be degorged and bottled. Still uncertain about the real value of Pinot Meunier?