Bruno Palliard was founded in 1981. Still a family-run operation and now the proprietor to thirty-two hectares of land that cover the best Crus of Champagne, the Maison receives grapes from over forty carefully selected plots to blend into their cuvées. In addition the reserve wines at Bruno Paillard are kept in tanks and small oak barrels and the House uniquely uses a rare technique in Champagne: blending the reserve wines a year prior to assemblage. The multi-vintages mature in the cellars for an average of three years and the single vintage wines for between eight and twelve years.

Bruno Paillard's vintage cuvée is made exclusively from the first pressing of the grapes (the purest juice) and presents a harmonious balance between generous aromas of almonds, fresh fruits and spicy notes. After eight years ageing on the lees and twelve months post-disgorgement, this is a champagne to watch for the future. Each vintage of Bruno Paillard Assemblage features a different painting on the label, expressing the story of the year in a contemporary and visual way. The 2008 label was designed by Bang Hai Ja, illustrating the powerful vivacity of 2008 alongside the theme: "Energy". Just 1,000 magnums of Bruno Paillard Vintage Assemblage 2008 were produced.

Weather: After a rainy but mild winter without any prolonged cold spells, spring arrived with some very localised frosts. Cool weather returned in June and the infrequent sunshine prolonged the feeling of freshness. The spring to autumn weather was bright with sunny spells and the long, hot days and cool nights during September gave the grapes excellent acidity during the harvest period. The 2008 vintage is fast emerging as one of the best since the renowned and now-legendary 2002.

News Article: Bruno Paillard Vintage Assemblage 2008 placed seventh in our comprehensive blind tasting of 2008s in June 2017. Read the full write-up here.

Technical Information:
Vineyards: 100% Grand & Premier Cru | Over 10 Crus
Grape Varieties: 42% Chardonnay, 42% Pinot Noir, 16% Meunier
Ageing: 7 years on the lees
Disgorged (bottle): June 2015
Dosage: 5 g/l
Drink: 2018-2035

Tasting Note: A bright yellow golden hue with a fine bead of bubbles. The nose is very generous with aromas of cherries and hints of red fruits and citrus. The mid-palate develops to continue the red fruit and citrus theme with an abundance of wild strawberries and lemon leading to a long-lasting finish.

In 1981, entrepreneurial twenty-seven year-old Bruno Paillard sold his beloved Jaguar and started a Champagne House; the first in nearly a century. After two decades of unprecedented business development and engineering invention, he was quickly accepted as one of the best producers in the region. Now the proprietor to thirty-two hectares of land that cover the best Crus of Champagne, the Maison receives grapes from over forty carefully selected plots to blend into their cuvées.

The reserve wines at Bruno Paillard are kept in tanks and small oak barrels and the House uniquely uses a rare technique in Champagne: blending the reserve wines a year prior to assemblage. The multi-vintages mature in the cellars for an average of three years and the single vintage wines for between eight and twelve years. Since his first vintage in 1983, Bruno has displayed disgorgement dates on the back label so that wine-lovers can track the development of their champagne - a pioneering trend that other producers are only just beginning to replicate. Still a family-run operation, Bruno regularly tastes some 500 barrels and 110 cuvées in the ultra-modern Reims-based winery, alongside daughter Alice Paillard and Cellar Master Laurent Guyot.

Cellar Master: Bruno Paillard
Winery Location: Reims | Champagne, France
Champagne Region: Montagne de Reims
Annual Production (bottles): 500,000