Aurélien Suenen’s La Grande Vigne bottling is made entirely from ungrafted pinot meunier vines in the village of Montigny, north of Reims. These vines are now more than seventy years of age. Beginning in 2015, Aurélien has gotten his friend Alex Chartogne to tend these vines for him (as they are far closer to Alex’s village of Merfy than they are to Cramant!) and the greater hands on care during the growing season seems to have paid off, as this wine is brilliant! It is treated the same in the cellars as the lieux à dit bottlings here from Oiry, Chouilly and Cramant, with indigenous yeast fermentation, nine months cask élevage and five years on the fine lees prior to disgorgement. The finishing dosage for the 2015 La Grande Vigne was three grams per liter, which works just fine with my palate. The nose is simply gorgeous, wafting from the glass in an elegant blend of white peach, orange zest, chalky soil tones, bread dough, quite understated meunier floral tones and a touch of buttery oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and seamlessly balanced, with fine mid-palate depth, lovely soil signature, elegant mousse and a long, complex and vibrant finish. A beautiful wine.