2015 Egly-Ouriet Grand Cru Millesime, Champagne

The 2015 Champagne Millésime is a bright straw color and is ripe and fruity on the nose, with aromas of black cherries, fresh violets, savory saline, and a hint of umami richness. The palate is full-bodied, with no phenolic bitterness, and never feels overtly savory. Pure, juicy, and inviting, it’s lovely and long on the palate, with a very pretty finish and a refined mousse that just frames the wine. It has a delicate note of toast that it needs time to harmonize, but I love what they have done with this vintage. Drink 2025-2045.

96 points Audrey Frick jebdunnuck.com

From a sunny vintage in which the harvest—commencing relatively late, on September 20—proved ultimately rewarding, Egly’s 2015 Grand Cru Millésime has turned out remarkably elegant. A classic blend of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay from Ambonnay, it was disgorged in October 2024 with a dosage of one gram per liter—significantly lower than the 2008 edition, when Egly needed to temper the pronounced acidity. The wine bursts from the glass with an evocative bouquet of pear, red plum and fresh bread, mingling with vibrant citrus nuances. On the palate, it is deep, full-bodied and layered, showcasing remarkable concentration and a crystalline core of fruit. A bright spine of acidity and abundant chalky extract provide both structure and sensation of freshness, culminating in a persistent, reverberating finish. While this vintage is occasionally marked by subtle vegetal tones—attributable to incomplete ripening under hydric stress—this cuvée exhibits none of those elements. As Francis Egly notes, “It was all about the harvest date, and we certainly didn’t rush to pick the grapes.” Fine-boned and effortlessly graceful, this small release possesses all the attributes necessary for a long evolution.

97+ points robertparker.com

Far from resting on the considerable and well-deserved laurels that Francis Egly has accrued over a 35-year career, this 20-hectare domaine continues to refine and improve, producing wines of intensity and power without the weight—something that has become scarcer in the hot years from southern slopes like those of Ambonnay and Bouzy. The devil is in the details: few winemakers in Champagne are as precise and meticulous, from vineyard to cellar. While the quality of Egly-Ouriet wines is no longer a secret, these wines number among the best in Montagne de Reims, particularly the exceptional Blanc de Noirs Les Crayères and the Millésime.

The only wine in the range that derives from a single harvest is the Grand Cru Millésime. This is often the greatest wine in the cellar, though in some years it is Les Crayères that takes this praise. As with the rest of the grand cru wines (except for Blanc de Noirs Les Crayères, of course), it is a blend of 70% Pinot Noir with 30% Chardonnay, though in this case, it is sourced entirely from Ambonnay. It is a serious, structured wine that spends the longest time on the lees in the bottle but also needs the most time to unwind.

As vinous and concentrated as they are seamless and elegant, these wines occupy an important place in the recent history of Champagne. If the region today produces wines fit to stand alongside the greatest of the world and if small growers now set the qualitative standards in a region long defined by large négociants, Francis Egly must take a considerable share of the credit

The Egly-Ouriet Grand Cru Millésime is one of the most revered vintage Champagnes, crafted by Francis Egly, a grower-producer whose wines have achieved cult status among Champagne lovers. Egly-Ouriet farms organically and biodynamically, with low yields and meticulous attention to detail, producing wines that are both powerful and terroir-driven. The Millésime is sourced entirely from grand cru vineyards in Ambonnay, Bouzy and Verzenay, planted predominantly to Pinot Noir with a smaller proportion of Chardonnay. These sites on chalk and limestone soils give the wine its signature intensity, precision and minerality.

In the glass, it shows a deep golden hue with a fine, persistent bead. The bouquet is complex and expressive, offering baked apple, citrus zest and stone fruit alongside brioche, roasted hazelnut, honey and a touch of flint. The palate is full-bodied and textural, with layers of ripe orchard fruit, lemon curd and spice balanced by vibrant acidity and a powerful chalky backbone. The finish is long, savoury and precise, combining richness with tension in a way that only top grower Champagnes achieve.

Food pairings highlight its depth and complexity: lobster with butter, roast chicken with truffle, seared scallops, or even richer dishes like foie gras. It also pairs beautifully with aged Comté or Parmigiano Reggiano. With 15 to 20 years of cellaring potential, the Millésime evolves into a wine of profound depth, gaining notes of toast, coffee, and dried fruit while retaining freshness.