Gallois Bouche, Champagne, Vertus, Preface

By day, Guillaume Gallois is one of the top oenologists at Bollinger and head of their barrel program, following in the exact footsteps of his mentor and friend, Fabrice Gass. But on his own time, he is quietly crafting something special from his family’s 3.4-hectare domaine in Vertus, featuring top parcels right on the border of Le Mesnil. After shifting the estate to a full récoltant-manipulant, he started vinifying his own wines in 2013, initially just for friends, and only recently began to commercialize them.

His cellar is beautifully old-school and filled with antique tools much like Fabrice’s, including two vintage Coquard presses from 1966 that he rebuilt himself. Guillaume isn’t afraid of dosage; he embraces it in a way that makes his wines feel beautifully complete, generous, and deeply flavorful. This cuvée contains 50% reserve wines from a perpetual reserve solera Guillaume started in 2015. 70% of the vins clairs are fermented and raised in stainless steel tanks, with the balance in old barrels, and 70% of the blend went through malolactic fermentation for this bottling. The aromatics are simply delightful, wafting from the glass with fresh apple, pear, toasted hazelnut, and dried flowers, all backed by a serious chalky energy. It drinks with incredible depth and texture, yet stays perfectly crisp, driven by an energetic finish. A lovely wine that drinks drier than its dosage suggests.