Marie Doyard
Champagne André Jacquart
Vertus, Champagne
Champagne André Jacquart was essentially reborn in 2004 with the arrival of Marie Doyard, the fifth generation of the family to take the reins. From the family's total holdings, only 12 hectares from the best sites in Le Mesnil and Vertus are used for the André Jacquart label. The vines are on average over 40 years old, considered old for the region. The wealth of these vineyards, combined with Marie’s leadership, has allowed the change in direction to establish Champagne André Jacquart as one of the region’s finest Blanc de Blancs producers.
Marie made some serious changes to the Champagne-making norm, diverging away from the typical methods used and focussing on low-intervention techniques, allowing the quality fruit from incredible sites to shine. Instead of stainless steel the André Jacquart wines are fermented and aged in Burgundy oak. Where the AOC legislates non-vintage wines are aged for a minimum of 15 months and vintage wines are aged for at least 3 years, these wines are aged for 4 years and 7 years respectively. Dosages are usually in the 3-4 g/l range, markedly lower than that of their market counterparts.
The vineyards are managed sustainably with only bio-degradable inputs, and the house is moving towards biodynamic practices. Whilst these low-intervention techniques are more popular now, Marie implemented these back in 2004, long before the market leaned this way. Her aim was to make "champagne with great personality, a strong identity”. Her vision has paid off, with award-winning wines that stand out from the crowd. There’s a reason Forbes has headlined her as “a risk-taker in a traditional region” (March 2020).
The resulting Champagnes of André Jacquart represent some of the finest wines from the Côte de Blancs today. Rich yet fine and elegant, powerful yet precise. They are the perfect blend of pure Chardonnay fruit, Côte de Blancs chalky minerality, long lees aging and oak complexity. They are delicious now but are endowed with the depth and structure to live a long time.