Champagne Henri Giraud, Arg̈onne Aÿ Grand Cru Brut, 2018
Champagne Henri Giraud, Arg̈onne Aÿ Grand Cru Brut, 2018
- 75cl
- 12%
- White Sparkling
- Pinot Noir, Chardonnay
- Biodynamic
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Est. delivery in September, 2026
Henri Giraud's Arg̈onne is Champagne with a maverick streak. This Aÿ Grand Cru comes from old Pinot Noir vines and gets its distinctive character from barrels made from the Argonne forest, the same wood that once sheltered French soldiers in the Great War. The result is Champagne with unusual depth and structure.
The 2018 vintage brings power and precision in equal measure.
The vineyards sit on the Grand Cru slopes of Aÿ, where chalk subsoils provide excellent drainage and mineral tension. The south-facing exposure ensures optimal ripeness for Pinot Noir, while the elevation moderates temperatures during the growing season. This terroir produces grapes with natural concentration and acidity, ideal for age-worthy Champagne that can handle the additional complexity of oak ageing.
Aÿ is one of Champagne's most prestigious Grand Cru villages, historically renowned for producing the finest Pinot Noir in the region. The appellation's reputation dates back centuries, with its wines once commanding the highest prices in Paris. Today, Aÿ remains synonymous with power and structure in Champagne, producing wines that age gracefully and reward patience with extraordinary complexity.
The 2018 growing season in Champagne arrived like a gift after several challenging years. Spring brought warm, dry conditions that encouraged healthy flowering, followed by a summer that stayed remarkably consistent without the extreme heat spikes that can shut down photosynthesis. Rain arrived precisely when the vines needed it in late summer, plumping the grapes without diluting their flavour concentration. The harvest began in late August under sunny skies, with growers reporting some of the healthiest fruit they'd seen in years.
What emerged from this kindness was a vintage that marries immediate charm with serious structure. The Chardonnay shows beautiful purity and tension without the sometimes austere backbone of cooler years, while Pinot Noir developed lovely depth of colour and ripe red fruit character that speaks clearly through the bubbles. We find these wines drinking beautifully now, offering both the fresh exuberance that makes Champagne so joyful and the underlying complexity that will reward patience. Most 2018s will hit their stride over the next five to eight years, though the finest cuvées have the backbone to age gracefully well beyond that.
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