Champagne Veuve Fourny & Fils
Amidst the old Champagne houses stands Champagne Veuve Fourny & Fils, a fifth generation winery in the heart of the Champagne region in France.
The knowledge of how to run it has been passed down through the generations, giving the current owners an advantage over many of the other Champagne houses in the region.
A Taste of Champagne Veuve Fourny & Fils
Champagne Veuve Fourny & Fils was founded in 1856, in the premier cru region of Vertus. In 1993, brothers Emmanuel and Charles-Henry Fourny took over the family business, having learned how to create the perfect Champagne wines at the side of their grandfather, Albert, and their father, Roger.
The two brothers inherited the old vineyards from their father, as well as the knowledge as to how to run them. One of the vineyards, of which the family is most proud, is the Clos Faubourg Notre-Dame, which has been in the family since 1930. The winery is also a monopole, which is rare in the Champagne region.
The vineyards of Champagne Veuve Fourny & Fils are located on 9 hectares of land in Vertus, which is divided into about 30 different parcels. The Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vines on the estate are around 40 years old on average.
The estate produces about 12,500 cases of wine per year.
The family is exceedingly proud of the terroir on which their estate rests, as well they should be. It has long been hailed as one of the finest terroirs in the whole region, and perhaps all of France.
The terroir in Vertus is listed as a Premier Cru, meaning that it is the top terroir that can be found. The soils are chalky and have very little clay in them, with some areas of pure chalk. There are three different types of soil in the Fourny family’s possession: brown topsoil on top of chalk, rendzine on top of chalk and brown topsoil on top of chalky gravel. The vineyards also enjoy three different sun exposures, all of which helps the grapes to ripen to their full potential.
Emmanuel and Charles-Henry also tend to the soil by composting, ploughing some vineyards when necessary and allowing grass to grow on others for better protection. While they tend to farm in an organic, bio-dynamic way, they will not sacrifice the quality of their fruit just in the name of being labelled as organic, continuing to manage their vineyards in line with what they have learned from their grandfather and father.
Their fellow growers are so impressed by their techniques that they have asked the two brothers to tend to their harvests as well.
All grapes on the estate are harvested by hand, with each plot harvested separately before being pressed. Only the best cuvees from each plot are kept for vinification. Champagne Fourny & Fils has a non-interventionist philosophy when it comes to the vinification process, allowing the wines to develop as they will.
After the first fermentation, the wines spend six months or more on the lees in vats or in small, old oak casks, depending on the variety of wine being produced. Charles-Henry and Emmanuel do not use fining methods and the wines are unfiltered.
Their Brut wines age in the cellars for 2.5 years before being released, the vintage Champagnes age for 5 years and the Clos wines for 9 years.
These methods of winemaking and ageing techniques, in combination with their meticulous vineyard management, helps contribute to their particular style and allows the wines to express their full potential. It is also what has helped the family make a name for themselves in such a prestigious region, over the past 5 generations.
Champagnes from Champagne Veuve Fourny & Fils highlight the Premier Cru terroir they come from and have a neat style that is full of elegance and freshness. Charles-Henry and Emmanuel have done their utmost to present the purest expression of the grapes they grow in their wines.
For you, we have selected the Veuve Fourny & Fils Blanc de Blancs Premier Cru Brut.
