Domaine Nowack, Cru d'Origine Oeuilly Premier Cru Extra Brut 2017

100% Meunier

Vallee de la Marne, Champagne, France

VINTAGE: 2017
DOSAGE: 0.8 g/L, extra brut
DISGORGED: March 2023

This new bottling from the single parcel Les Cayons in the village of Oeuilly represents Nowack’s curiosity about other terroirs outside of his particular home of Vandières. It’s the first vintage in the site and therefore the first-ever release of this wine. Fruit is all from harvest 2017; the parcel is on friable chalk, much closer to what exists in the Côte des Blancs (it turns out some of this exact same famous chalk exists in the eastern mouth of the Marne valley, not only in the special stretch we all know). Base wine is unfined and unfiltered; secondary fermentation is triggered with natural grape must. Aging is done in small oak barrels. Disgorged Mar ’23, so almost the full five years on lees in bottle after tirage that Flavien hopes for with all his wines.

Flavien Nowack is an 8th generation grower and visionary winemaker working in his home village of Vandières. His 10 hectares (~25 acres) of vineyards are farmed organically and biodynamically, with a focus on restoring biodiversity through trees, cover crops, and a variety of wildlife. These bubbles are fermented naturally with minimal sulfur, extended aging in oak, and often five years or more under cork/capsule before release. The result is elegant, fresh, mineral, textured, and delicate Champagne. Nowack stands out in our Champagne selection for being drier/leaner than most!