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Bereche et Fils, Champagne Ay Grand Cru, 2018

Sparkling Wine from Champagne, France
by Bereche et Fils
$299.00
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Ay is the grand cru that makes Champagne's most muscular Pinot Noir, and Bereche is the grower least likely to let muscle turn into weight. The fruit comes from two lieux-dits on the Ay slope, Froide Terre and Brise Pot, planted to vines around sixty years old, with Pinot Noir leading and Chardonnay filling in. Raphael and Vincent Bereche ferment in 350-liter barrels, block malolactic fermentation, take the wine through its second fermentation under cork rather than a crown cap, and finish with a barely-there dosage, which is why their Champagnes stay taut and chalky no matter how ripe the year. And 2018 was ripe: a hot, dry summer pushed Champagne into picking from 20 August and produced dense wines that somehow held onto their acidity. Production is tiny and the allocation is always smaller than we would like.

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Antonio Galloni

95 points

"The 2018 Extra-Brut Aÿ Grand Cru is powerful, dense and tightly wound to the core. Hints of cranberry, mint, dried herbs and citrus open gradually in the glass. The blend is 75% Pinot Noir and 25% Chardonnay, with the Chardonnay very much front and center. All of that energy flows through to the clean, salivating finish. Dosage is 4 grams per liter." —Antonio Galloni

Robert Parker

94 points

"Originating from a south-facing sector in a picture-perfect growing season, the 2018 Aÿ Grand Cru, disgorged in February 2026 with a dosage of four grams per liter, soars from the glass with aromas of pear, peach, orange oil and dried flowers. Vinous and muscular, it is built around a generous core of fruit and ripe yet racy acidity, concluding with a long, precise finish. As ever, it derives from the southwest-facing lieux-dits Froide Terre and Brise Pot." —Kristaps Karklins

More about Bereche et Fils

The great grower Champagnes that excite Champagne lovers these days tend to fall into a certain category, with low dosage, low sulphur, and a decidedly edgy vibe. We love them. But one grower has managed to gain worldwide fame—not to mention a cult-like obsession here in the U.S.—without going in that direction: Bérêche & Fils.

On paper, at least, everything about Bérêche is classical. This starts with history, as this is a domaine that was founded just before the U.S. Civil War. It continues with land. They don't farm some obscure corner of Champagne, but in its historic heart, with plots scattered around the Montagne de Reims and the Vallée de la Marne.

Traditional and classical, perhaps, and yet something sets it apart: sheer excellence. Raphaël and Vincent Bérêche's intense focus on high quality farming and precise work in the cellar is exactly the sort of hard work that was too often missing from the pre-grower Grand Marques. And it results in wines that people—no matter how geeky their Champagne tastes—just love.

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Tasting Notes & Food Pairings

Perfect Pairings

Roast chicken, lobster with drawn butter, mushroom risotto, seared duck breast, or aged Comte.

Tasting Profile

Red apple, citrus peel, toasted grain and a deep chalky minerality. Full but taut, with a fine mousse, bright acidity and a long, savory, bone-dry finish.

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Map of main subregions of the Champagne wine region.

Champagne

Champagne boasts some of the world’s greatest luxury brands with Krug, Cristal and, of course, Dom Perignon. But it’s also home to hundreds of small dynamic producers—farmers who grow their own grapes (often organically) and make (often with natural methods) tiny amounts of pure and absolutely delicious wine that reflect the individual personalities of their villages and terroirs. Toast with these wines, for sure. But also treat them like the great wines they are: taste, drink, explore!

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