A stunningly good and airy Champagne with refinement, precision and, not least, tremendous drinkability, which is a sympathetic and consistent hallmark of all Sadi Malot wines.
Sadi Malot is a small family producer in the heart of the Montagne de Reims, with 11 hectares of vineyards in Premier Cru Villers-Marmery and Grand Cru Verzy respectively. They have farmed sustainably for 20 years, and the conversion to organic farming began in 2017, with certification underway. Today, the family’s 16 sheep help keep the ground cover under control. They are part of the wave of RM producers (récoltant manipulant = estate wines made from their own grapes) who over the past couple of decades have offered an excellent, personal alternative to the dominance of the big brands. At Sadi Malot, the fifth generation, represented by Cindy Malot and her partner Florian Villière, has with great stylistic confidence elevated already fine Champagnes to new heights.
‘Les 2 Cépages’ means ‘the two grape varieties’, here consisting of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay from Grand Cru Verzy. Half of this Champagne is based on grapes from the 2021 harvest, fermented in stainless steel, while the other half is reserve wine from a solera started in 1982. This Champagne spent 36 months sur lie and was disgorged in November 2024 as a brut nature with a residual sugar content of 1.8 g/l.
Even though there is a high proportion of both Pinot Noir and reserve wine, this is an almost weightless wine with crystal-clear, youthful energy, whose stylistic features are supported by ultra-fine, unobtrusive bubbles. The red berry fruit one often finds when black grapes are included in the blend is absent here. On the nose and palate it is effortlessly bone dry, with elegant, refined and precise aromas of green apples, limestone and yeast-derived notes. It does not taste like lavish white Burgundy with bubbles, but rather like Champagne: subtle, airy and refined.
Naturally, this is an obvious apéritif, but it is also one of the most versatile food wines imaginable. If you are serving more than one course, this will in all likelihood be the ideal solution if there is to be only one wine throughout.
93 points, Jyllands-Posten
“This house is new to me, and what a positive surprise. These are insanely refined sparkling wines from the great Pinot-loving terroir of Verzy in the Montagne de Reims. Here in the ratio of 60% Pinot and 40% Chardonnay, and it has spent three years on the lees. Sparklingly pure and clear with exactly the right body and easy-flowing juiciness. Here Pinot and Chardonnay complement each other excellently; the wine is a beautiful balance of freshness, depth and complexity. A lovely dry bite here; it does not become too heavy, sweetened or sluggish. It stands firm on a chalky springiness that makes it easy to drink, as Champagne should be, helped along by a creamy, airy mousse with small, persistent bubbles. Full of red cherries, baked pear, citrus, salted almonds and brioche. 50% reserve wine is used here, coming from a solera started back in 1982. Truly fine craftsmanship behind this delicious Champagne.”
Morten Bundgaard, 27 May 2025
