Champagne Marguet is located in the village of Ambonnay in the Montagne de Reims, a heartland of Grand Cru Pinot Noir. The family estate was founded in 1870 and is now led by fifth-generation winemaker
Benoît Marguet-Bonnerave. Benoît converted the domaine to biodynamic viticulture in 2009, working in rhythm with natural and lunar cycles across all cuvées. Since 2010,
the vineyards have been worked by horse, rather than heavy machinery. The average vine age is around 40 years, with biodynamic preparations including
phytotherapy and essential oils.
Benoît Marguet’s vineyard work is highly regarded within the winemaker community and Krug enlisted his expertise to cultivate some of their Ambonnay Pinot Noir. Marguet’s cuvées, including single-site bottlings, are focused on expressing terroir and the character of individual plots with a "gentle touch" approach.
In the cellar, Benoît follows the same low-intervention philosophy, keeping processes simple and limiting modern interference.
Water is de-ionised before use, and electronic devices are discouraged in the winery. He also incorporates the taille, the second, firmer-pressed fraction, typically more phenolic, back into the blend, believing it is an essential part of the wine and should not be kept separate from the free-run juice. In keeping with this holistic approach,
Benoît is also known to play a handpan in the barrel room, believing its sound brings a positive energy to the wines. The handpan originated in 2000 in Bern, Switzerland. Inspired by Caribbean steel drums and the Indian ghatam, they developed the convex-shaped "Hang" to be played with hands rather than mallets. It was officially introduced at the 2001 Frankfurt Trade Fair.
Les Crayères is a Grand Cru lieu-dit in Ambonnay, named after the chalk-rich soils that underpin the site. Farmed biodynamically by Benoît, the parcel is planted on clay-limestone over deep chalk, producing wines with notable tension, minerality and structure. Bottled separately, Les Crayères is Marguet’s terroir-led expression of Ambonnay at its most precise and mineral.
Weather in 2018: Following a mild and very wet winter, spring temperatures were well above seasonal norms, allowing the vines to develop. Then, the warm, dry summer allowed the grapes to ripen quickly with extraordinary quality and quantity. The 2018 harvest came early, producing wines of remarkable fruitiness and elegance.
Technical Information:
Vineyards: 100% Grand Cru | Ambonnay
Grape Varieties: 100% Pinot Noir
Winemaker:
Benoît Marguet-Bonnerave
Lees Ageing: 4 years
Dosage: 0 g/l
Bottling Date: 18th June 2019
Disgorged: March 2023
Production: 1838 Bottles Produced
Production years: 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 & 2020
Tasting Note: Lovely rich fruit leaps out the glass, lemon, peaches and apricots get bolder on the palate, where the freshness and ripeness give a great texture. The zero dosage is rounded by the ripe fruit of the vintage, finishes long.
Champagne Marguet is located in the village of Ambonnay in the Montagne de Reims, a heartland of Grand Cru Pinot Noir. The family estate was founded in 1870 and is now led by fifth-generation winemaker
Benoît Marguet-Bonnerave. Benoît converted the domaine to biodynamic viticulture in 2009, working in rhythm with natural and lunar cycles across all cuvées. Since 2010,
the vineyards have been worked by horse, rather than heavy machinery. The average vine age is around 40 years, with biodynamic preparations including
phytotherapy and essential oils.
Benoît Marguet’s vineyard work is highly regarded within the winemaker community and Krug enlisted his expertise to cultivate some of their Ambonnay Pinot Noir. Marguet’s cuvées, including single-site bottlings, are focused on expressing terroir and the character of individual plots with a "gentle touch" approach.
In the cellar, Benoît follows the same low-intervention philosophy, keeping processes simple and limiting modern interference.
Water is de-ionised before use, and electronic devices are discouraged in the winery. He also incorporates the taille, the second, firmer-pressed fraction, typically more phenolic, back into the blend, believing it is an essential part of the wine and should not be kept separate from the free-run juice. In keeping with this holistic approach,
Benoît is also known to play a handpan in the barrel room, believing its sound brings a positive energy to the wines.
Cellar Master:
Benoît Marguet-Bonnerave
Winery Location: Ambonnay | Champagne, France
Champagne Region:
Montagne de Reims
Chef de Cave History at Champagne Marguet:
Benoît Marguet-Bonnerave - 1999 - Current
Emilien studied at the School of Agronomy in Montpellier, focusing on both viticulture and enology. Early in his career he worked in quite a variety of winegrowing regions beyond Champagne: for example in the Rhône, Bordeaux and abroad in New Zealand, California, Chile, South Africa. He first worked for several harvests at houses like Cattier and Armand de Brignac before joining Piper‑Heidsieck in October 2018 as the chef de cave for the House. At the time of his appointment with Piper-Heidsieck in 2018 he was “the youngest chef de caves” at a large Maison in Champagne.