CHAMPAGNE EXTRA BRUT PREMIER CRU
GREAPE VARIETY
Chardonnay 80% Pinot Noir 20% 
TASTING NOTES
Vendemia Champagne 1er Cru Extra Brut Millésimé 2019 from Crucifix Père et Fils is an elegant signature cuvée from this family-owned house in Avenay-Val d'Or, capturing the essence of the Premier Cru terroir in the Montagne de Reims. ​ The 2019 vintage in Champagne featured a balanced climate, with warm but not excessive summers and slow maturations that produced fresh, mineral, and age-worthy wines, ideal for the minimum 72 months on lees of this Vendemia. No specific scores exist for this 2019 cuvée, but the vintage yielded high-quality Champagnes, often praised for their tension and structure. ​ Sourced from the Premier Cru of Avenay-Val d'Or in the Montagne de Reims, this wine benefits from clay-limestone soils with deep chalk acting as a natural water reservoir, imparting unique minerality and freshness; the wooded promontory between Reims and Épernay favours Pinot Noir dominance, yet Chardonnay prevails here. It comprises 80% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Noir from 35-year-old average vines, hand-harvested and vinified from the heart of the press; it ferments and matures 6-8 months in champenois oak barrels (205-600 litres) with bâtonnage, without deliberate malolactic fermentation, no filtration nor cold stabilisation, for an Extra Brut dosage of 2-3 g/L, delivering an authentic, tense terroir expression. Visually, it displays a fine golden hue with fine, persistent perlage. The nose reveals notes of ripe yellow apple, pâtisserie, almond, and discreet woody nuances. On the palate, it offers a juicy, saline attack, balanced freshness, mineral tension, and good density, with cellaring potential up to 5-15 years. ​ Founded in the 1940s by André Gabriel and now in its fifth generation under Sébastien Crucifix (since 2005), Maison Crucifix Père et Fils farms 5 hectares of Premier Cru vines with HVE (Haute Valeur Environnementale) certification, eschewing herbicides and insecticides for over 10 years to honour terroir and family tradition. Sébastien and his wife Carole have crafted unique cuvées while preserving the "Pierre Crucifix" label as heritage.