Andre/Jacques Beaufort Champagnes

[mangosteen]

Since Jacques Beaufort does not export his wines to the U.S. I'm not sure this is the best place to post this information. Nonetheless, I am so excited about his wines I just had to share somewhere.

I first had non-vintage Andre Beaufort Brut Champagne in the summer of 2003 and instantly fell in love. It was fairly low acid, more on the fruity side than yeasty, with great length and what I would call "elegance" or balance. It was memorable enough that I searched for it afterwards and only found it again once (at Lavinia in Paris).

I finally managed to visit the winery in Champagne this past weekend. Jacques Beaufort, who has taken over the winery from his father, Andre is definitely what you would call a character. He is a passionately organic winemaker. His vineyards are all maintained without herbicides, pesticides, or synthetic fertilizers. He uses aromatherapy (essential oils) and homeopathy to control mildew rather than sulfur and copper sprays. This would be unusual in even Burgundy but in Champagne it borders on heresy.

We tasted wines from his Ambonnay (grand cru) and Polisy vineyards, Brut, Demi-Sec's and Doux's, non-vintage and vintages from 1988 to 2000. Yes, he was incredibly generous with both his wine and his time. Overall what struck me was the variability (which I had been previously warned about) and the surprising youthfulness of some of the older vintage wines. Some of the 1998's were quite oxidized in both the nose and appearance, but the 1990's could be pale colored, bright, fresh and fruity. I'm not a big fan of older Champagnes with nutty sherry-like characters but my husband enjoyed those wines. My favorite of the whole tasting was a 1990 Ambonnay Doux Rose, that had just recently been disgorged - it was so pretty and bright.

I think the main downside of the Andre/Jacques Beaufort wines is their inconsistency, both vintage to vintage and within a vintage. If you ever happen to see a bottle of the Beaufort Champagnes I would wholeheartedly recommend trying it. You might love it, you might hate it, but I guarantee you won't be bored.

Thanks for letting me share my enthusiasm!

Lisa

[jrufusj]

I'm currently waiting for the '91 André Beaufort demi sec to come in. '91 is my anniversary year and not generally a strong one for Champagne, but a merchant I trust is high on this wine.

If you are exploring Beaufort wines, do be aware of the difference between André/Jacques Beaufort and the other maisons Beauforts. Jacques is from Ambonnay. Louis César and Herbert are from Bouzy. That means both are pinot/rosé specialists, but in my limited sampling, I've found the André/Jacques wines to be far superior to the Louis César. Don't have any experience with the Herbert and not sure what the relationship between Herbert and Louis César is.

Like you, I've found the André/Jacques wines to be inconsistent but exciting, but that is part of what I enjoy about wine -- the large and small variations from terroir and vintage.

Did you actually get a chance to taste the Polisy (Côte des Bars) wine? In Tokyo, I only see the Ambonnay grand cru and blended wines that include both Polisy and Ambonnay fruit. What was the Polisy wine like?

Thanks in advance for your comments.