Champagne Girard-Bonnet - Les Mussettes Grand Cru 2019

This Mussettes is concentrated and structured around racy acids and chalky extract.

Paul Girard embodies both of his parents’ ancestry and brings new life to Chardonnay through a stunning selection of Côte des Blanc Champagnes. Merging the Girard & Bonnet Estates in Mesnil sur Oger he works towards creating a grower-maker brand in honour of his origins.

The 2019 Blanc de Blancs Le Mesnil-sur-Oger Les Musettes derives from an east-facing lieu-dit in the historical part of the village, planted in 1971. Vinified in second-hand 228-liter barrels from Burgundy (60%) and stainless steel barrels, which Girard uses “to work with the lees the same way as with oak barrels, but without micro-oxygenation.” Disgorged in October 2024 with one gram per liter dosage, it has turned out very nicely, exhibiting notes of crisp orchard fruit and fresh hazelnut, mingling with tangerine zest and dried white flowers. Concentrated and structured around racy acids and chalky extract, with a long, sapid finish, this is only the second vintage from Paul Girard, but it already shows what he is aiming for. 92 points - Kristaps Karklins, Wine Advocate.