Jacquesson Cuvee No 742 Magnum 1500ml, Champagne

“No Champagne house today is on a trajectory as steep as Jacquesson. While many houses are on the prowl for more fruit to increase production, Jacquesson is drastically slashing its yields and its contracts to radically improve quality in spite of lowering quantity. When others set out to make a consistent blend every year, Jacquesson throws uniformity to the wind to draw the best blend out of every vintage. Each time I look, this little house in the village of Dizy appears more like a fanatical grower producer. Jacquesson has leapt from ranking among Champagne’s top 20 houses to a lofty position among its top 10.”

Based on the 2014 vintage and disgorged with 1.5 grams per liter dosage in July 2018, Jacquesson's NV Extra Brut Cuvée No. 742 continues the house's pioneering series of cuvées that employ reserve wines not in pursuit of a constant "house style" but merely with the aim of complementing each base vintage to maximize its potential. Wafting from the glass with a complex bouquet of walnut oil, dried white flowers, saffron, citrus oil and crisp orchard fruit, along with a delicate top note of fino sherry, it's medium to full-bodied, sapid and incisive, with superb concentration, racy acids and a long, resonant finish. I found it irresistible.