Champagne Larmandier Bernier - Vieilles Vignes du Levant - Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru - Extra Brut - 2015 Magnum

Grape

100% Chardonnay

Tasting notes

Cramant doesn't often taste this serious. The 2015 Champagne Larmandier-Bernier Vieilles Vignes du Levant Grand Cru Extra Brut is a 100% Chardonnay that trades Champagne's usual brightness for something deeper and more oxidative ,candied apricot, ginger, hazelnut, and real complexity in the glass.

The nose opens on mature, vibrant fruit, candied apricot, yellow pear, bright citrus, before ginger, hazelnut, marzipan, and spiced pastry settle in underneath. Give it time and dried flowers, cocoa, and gingerbread start to surface too. On the palate, richness and cream meet real backbone: deep chalky minerality, a streak of lemon-peel acidity, and a finish that lingers long, doughy and nutty.

The specs explain some of that depth: a low dosage of 2 g/L, fermentation in large oak casks and Austrian foudres, all built for length and aromatic weight.

More About The Winery

Larmandier-Bernier is a family grower estate with 18 hectares of biodynamically farmed vineyards in the Côte des Blancs, spanning the Grand Cru villages of Cramant, Chouilly, Oger, Avize, and the Premier Cru of Vertus. Though the Larmandier and Bernier families trace their roots back to the French Revolution, the estate was officially founded in 1971, and since 1988 has been led by Pierre and Sophie Larmandier.

Pioneers of organic viticulture since 1992 and fully biodynamic since 1999, the domaine is acclaimed for its authentic terroir-driven Champagnes. Indigenous yeasts, minimal or no dosage, vinification in large oak foudres or Burgundian barrels, and extended lees aging yield wines of striking purity, minerality, and depth.

With older Chardonnay vines averaging 35 years (and up to 70 in Cramant), the wines reflect the essence of their prestigious terroirs. A perpetual reserve started in 2004 adds further complexity to their blends. Today, Larmandier-Bernier stands as one of Champagne’s leading artisan houses, crafting cuvées that rank among the region’s finest.