Guy de Forez Rose de Riceys Brut Champagne

The nose shows deep aromas of cherry, strawberry, cranberry, orange peel, and earth / forest floor notes. The palate has a presence to it with deep fruits balanced by earth and forest floor that nicely linger on the palate. Still Rose de Riceys is known to keep for decades, but as one of our colleagues stated: she wants to have this for Thanksgiving dinner. D&M Tasting Notes

Guy De Forez, family growers founded in the 1950s that own 25 acres of vines in the Aube region of Southern Champagne. We have brought you wine from this family’s efforts in the past and wanted to see how things were going as the younger generation is starting to make their mark on the family domaine. Transition has come to Guy de Forez as Francis and Sylvie Wenner are gradually handing over the duties and operations to their sons Sebastien and Vincent  They are located in the villages of Les Riceys, which has the distinction of being both the southernmost village in Champagne as well as the largest.

Here Pinot Noir is king, and represents 97% of Guy de Forez’s hillside plantings. They care not just for their vines but the land on which they are grown, and they have been on the forefront of sustainable winegrowing in the region. Their fermentation is done in stainless steel with them hand riddling the bottles before disgorgement. This bottle is made up mostly of the 2017 vintage and after aging on its lees for just shy of four years was disgorged with a dosage of 7 grams per liter. Still rosé des Riceys has been the historic claim to fame of the region, with Sovereign Louis XIV famously a fan. The aspect that led us to this bottle is that, in many ways, the Wenner family has seemed to combine past with present– it is a deep and soulful rose of Pinot Noir that highlights the character of this Guy de Forez Rose de Riceys MV. Michael Kennel, D&M