Gosset, founded in 1584, is the oldest wine house in

Champagne Champagne (; ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, which demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...

. In 1584, Pierre Gosset, alderman of

Aÿ Aÿ ( ; also Ay) is a former communes of France, commune in the Marne (department), Marne Departments of France, department in northeastern France. On 1 January 2016 it was merged into the new commune Aÿ-Champagne. Champagne Aÿ is most famous a ...

and wine-grower, made still, mostly red, wines from the grapes he harvested from his own vines. In those days, two wines vied for pride of place at the table to the

Kings of France France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions. Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I, king of the Fra ...

: the wine of Aÿ and, from some hundreds of leagues further South, the wine of Beaune. Then, in the 18th century the wine made in around Aÿ began to bubble and the Gosset family turned naturally to the production of champagne.

History

In 1994, the house was sold to the Renaud-Cointreau group (family owned and also the owners of Cognac Frapin). Under the new management, Gosset succeeded in increasing its production to one million bottles in 2005. The house is now successfully headed by Jean-Pierre Cointreau and exports 65% of its production to more than 70 countries. In 2009, as he prepared to celebrate Gosset’s 425th birthday, Jean-Pierre Cointreau took the decision to buy new premises in Epernay: 2 hectares of parkland with buildings dating back to the 19th century, 1.7 km of cellars with a storage capacity of 2,5 million bottles and a cuverie of 26.000 hectoliters. Part of the production is still in Aÿ which remains Gosset’s registered office. Today the US importer is

Napa Valley Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) in Napa County, California. The area was established by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) on February 27, 1981, after a 1978 petition submitted by the Napa Valley Vin ...

-based Wilson Daniels.

Wines

Gosset wines are made from a blend of

Pinot noir Pinot noir (), also known as Pinot nero, is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name also refers to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French language, French words fo ...

Chardonnay Chardonnay (, ; ) is a green-skinned grape variety used in the production of white wine. The variety originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern France, but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand. For new a ...

and

Pinot Meunier Pinot Meunier (), also known as Meunier or Schwarzriesling (), is a variety of red wine grape most noted for being one of the three main varieties used in the production of Champagne (the other two are the red variety Pinot noir and the white ...

. The house is known for its slightly sweet ''Brut Excellence'' and its

vintage In winemaking, vintage is the process of picking grapes to create wine. A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In certain wines, it can denote quality, as in Port wine ...

prestige

cuvée ''Cuvée''Or Cuvee on some English-language labels. () is a French wine term that derives from ''cuve'', meaning vat or tank.J. Robinson (ed), ''"The Oxford Companion to Wine"'', Third Edition, p. 218, Oxford University Press 2006, winepros.com. ...

''Célebris'' and ''Grand Millésime''. The house also produced a commemorative wine the ''Quatrième Centenaire''. K. Gargett, P. Forrestal, & C. Fallis ''The Encyclopedic Atlas of Wine'' pg 165 Global Book Publishing 2004 *''Grande Réserve Brut'' (Non-vintage). A blend of 46%

, 39%

, and 15%

. 12% reserve wines with an average age of 2 years.The Wine Doctor: Gosset
/ref> In the 1980s, the blend had been 65% Pinot noir and 35% Chardonnay.

Tom Stevenson Tom Stevenson (born 1951) is a British wine writer and critic. Stevenson is regarded as an expert on Champagne and Alsace wine. He has written 23 books. Career Stevenson began writing for Decanter magazine in 1981, and during the mid-1980s ...

, Champagne, Sotheby's Publications 1986 at p. 214. Also available in magnum and in

jeroboam Jeroboam I (; Hebrew language, Hebrew: ''Yārŏḇʿām''; ), frequently cited Jeroboam son of Nebat, was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first king of the northern Kingdom of Israel (Samaria), Kingdom of Israel following a Jeroboam's Revol ...

(fully bottled in jeroboam from the beginning of the making) *''Grand Rosé Brut'' (Non-vintage). 56% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot noir Grand Cru and 9% red wines from

Bouzy Bouzy () is a commune of the Marne department in northeastern France, the Montagne de Reims subregion of Champagne. Population Champagne The village's vineyards are located in the Montagne de Reims subregion of Champagne, and are classified ...

and

Ambonnay Ambonnay () is a commune in the Marne department in northeastern France. Population Champagne The village's vineyards are located in the Montagne de Reims subregion of Champagne, and are classified as Grand Cru (100%) in the Champagne vin ...

. Also available in magnum and half bottle *''Grand Millésime Brut'' (Vintage, latest is 2012). 56% Chardonnay and 44% Pinot noir from grand and premier cru vineyards. In the 1980s, the blend was 60% Pinot noir and 40% Chardonnay. *''Grand Blanc de Blancs Brut'' (Non-vintage). Also available in magnum *''Celebris Vintage Extra Brut'' (latest is 2007). 64% Chardonnay and 36% Pinot noir. Vintages produced, 2007, 2002, 1998, 1995, 1990 and 1988. *''Celebris Rosé Extra Brut'' (Vintage, latest is 2007) *''Petite Douceur Rosé Extra Dry'' (Non-vintage) *''Extra Brut'' (Non-vintage)

Previous wines

* ''Cuvée Quatrième Centenaire'' (Non-vintage Prestige Cuvée). This wine was produced in 1984 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the foundation of Gosset and contained some wine from the 1971 vintage. It was a blend of 36% Pinot noir and 63% Chardonnay. Less than 2,500 cases were produced. Bottles were numbered. Numbers 1-200 were for the use of the Gosset family, 201-1,500 were magnums and numbers 1,501 to 2,500 were other sizes.

History

Wines

Previous wines

See also