Vin Champagne Billecart-Salmon

Billecart-Salmon is one of the few remaining Champagne houses owned by the original family and was established in 1818 by Nicolas-François Billecart. Concerning harvest, one of the most distinctive aspects of Billecart-Salmon is their philosophy that an early harvest yields more elegant and delicate champagnes. They look for an elegant and strong acid structure rather than alcohol as a preservative and, therefore, never harvest at higher than 10 degrees of potential alcohol. Another defining characteristic of Billecart-Salmon is their practice of double cold settling, which they began in 1952. This practice eliminates wild yeasts and additional heavy elements without enzymes, filtering, or a centrifuge. As of 2001, Billecart-Salmon moved their winemaking into a new facility they believe to be the most technically advanced in Champagne. Francois Domi's intricate and precise winemaking nature demanded that the family use every available resource to create the perfect environment to produce these truly stellar champagnes. The ability to perform as many as 75 micro-fermentations simultaneously allows M. Domi to keep many parcels separate until the blending phase. Most of Billecart-Salmon's fruit comes from a small vineyard holding. However, this is supplemented with grapes from the Marne Valley and the Montagne de Reims.