Louise Brison

I have always thought of Champagne as something special. On your worst day, Champagne can remind you that life is not so bad. On your best day, Champagne makes everything perfect. Yes, some Champagnes are better than others, and like everything, it’s also a matter of taste and preference. 

But the Champagne produced by Louise Brison is like no other. They specialize in vintage Champagne. Yes, as in every vintage that they make is vintage Champagne. And what happens when there is a bad vintage? Simple, they sell the grapes to other Champagne houses. Which ones? Well, I don’t want to start any fights here, but I can say that the Champagne houses that buy the extra grapes from Louise Brison are well known and well liked. So what does that mean? It means that Louise Brison Champagne is of an outstandingly high quality.

Now, a little history about Louise Brison. Champagne Louise Brison is father and daughter duo Francis and Delphine Brûlez and have been producing Champagne since 1991. This family operation has about 13 hectares of vines in the Champagne appellation, Aube. The name, Louise Brison, is the name of the grandmother of Francis and for who the Champagne house is named.

Organic farming is practiced, but the Champagne house is not certified organic as they reserve the right to use to use sulphur dioxide, when necessary. So let’s back up a bit and quickly talk about sulphur dioxide.

When harvest takes place, the grapes skins are covered with tons of microscopic organisms and bacteria and maybe some other stuff. These tiny guys are not always good for great tasting wine. So winemakers add a bit of sulphur to control or eliminate them. Organic certification usually limits the amount of sulphur that is permitted for use. This is sometimes unfortunate for winemakers because it results in wine that doesn’t taste so great. Enough said.

The soil is made up of clay and limestone. The vineyards are made up of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. When the grapes are harvested, assuming that the vintage is good, they are pressed with a traditional 4000kg wine press. Louise Brison is the only Champagne house in the region still using this traditional type of press. And what the press lacks in convenience, it makes up for in quality. The juice is left to ferment naturally in stainless steel vats where it is transformed by yeast into alcohol.

The wine is vinified and matured in oak barrels for six to eight months imparting flavor, maturity, and aromatic complexity. The wine is bottled and a dosage (yeast and sugar) is added which starts a secondary fermentation, and about a month later the wine will have its bubbles. The wine is then aged for a minimum of five years. This extra long ageing allows the yeasts in the wine to break down even more, deepening the flavors in the Champagne.

Before the Champagne is ready to be sold it must be disgorged. Disgorging is the process of expelling the sediment from yeasts breaking down inside the bottle. After disgorging a liquor (made of sugar and wine) is added to balance the Champagne’s sweetness with its acidity.

The environment is important to Francis and Delphine. They may not have the official organic certification but they still follow all of the values of organic winemaking. As members of a group of winegrowers who take an ecologically balanced approach to pest and disease control, Francis and Delphine do not use insecticides or chemical protection against rot. The soil is tilled, allowing the vines to draw minerals from the subsoil and also improving the vines metabolism. The vineyards are fertilized with manure instead of chemical fertilizer. Maintaining biodiversity is also important to Francis and Delphine. They employ farming practices to ensure the flora and fauna of natural ecosystems found within the vineyards, and they even collect and reuse their wastewater.

Still skeptical? Then you must go for a visit and ask Delphine for a vineyard tour. Perhaps she will even pick you up in her electric car.

I do, however, believe that my day instantly improves every time I am lucky enough to sip their wonderful vintage Champagne.