Top quality in a small bottle

A small bottle like this is handy to take along. The Champagne Moutardier Carte d’Or Brut (half bottle) appears brilliantly golden yellow in the glass and offers the nose fresh, sweet, and fruity aromas of great personality. On the palate, it is medium-bodied with rich scents of spices, ginger, and dried fruit. You clearly taste apples, citrus fruit, and minerality. Consequently, the finish is full of lovely fresh acidity and minerals. Highly recommended, top quality at a nice price.

Champagne House Jean Moutardier

The champagne house is located over 100 km east of Paris in the village of Le Breuil, in the Surmelin valley. Here at this family business, far away from the typical wine routes, a magnificent range of wines of true top quality and great personality is produced. Eighty percent of this champagne house's vineyards are planted with the Pinot Meunier grape, and the Moutardier family is known as undisputed connoisseurs of this grape variety.

The history of the Moutardier family in Le Breuil dates back centuries. In 1450, a member of the family even served as mayor of Le Breuil, and the family is therefore considered one of the oldest families of grape growers. Jean Moutardier's father began making and selling champagne himself in 1920, and his son Jean succeeded him in 1946. Jean purchased several hectares of neglected plots and made them suitable for grape cultivation. The Moutardier family now owns 18 hectares of vineyards, favorably situated on first-class south-facing slopes with the calcareous soil of the valley.

With the grapes sourced from this vineyard, the family produces three pure Meunier champagnes: the Carte d’Or Brut, the Millésimé, and the Cuvée Rosée. In all three, you can taste how the Pinot Meunier grape expresses itself in a velvety, intense champagne with a perfect balance of fruit and freshness.

Pinot Meunier grape

In the Vallée de la Marne is the Pinot Meunier grape the most widely planted grape. This late bloomer tolerates the cold clay and limestone soils of the valley well and is more resistant to frost than the Pinot Noir grape. By some, the Pinot Meunier grape is considered an inferior variant of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay due to its alleged lack of refinement. Nevertheless, this grape can be found in many prestigious champagnes, although their makers will not always admit this. There are also a number of very loyal fans of this grape, and certainly not the least, such as Alfred Gratien, Bollinger, Gosset, and Krug. They all use Pinot Meunier for its freshness, fruitiness, and ability to ripen quickly.

Tastiest with

The Carte d’Or Brut stands perfectly well on its own but is also delicious paired with guinea fowl fillet braised in champagne, fruit, aged cheeses, or grilled fresh fish.

Jean Moutardier Carte d’Or Brut Champagne available in various bottle sizes at Wijnclub Amsterdam:

• Normal bottle of Carte d'Or Brut Champagne (0.75 liters)
• Magnum bottle of Carte d'Or Brut Champagne (1.5 liters)
• Jeroboam bottle of Carte d'Or Brut Champagne (3.0 liters)
• Half bottle of Carte d'Or Brut Champagne 0.375 liters

View all wines from Champagne Moutardier