2007 Deutz, William Deutz Brut

ABOUT THE WINE
One of the oldest members of Champagne's prestigious Grandes Marques houses, Champagne Deutz of Ay, France, has been making distinctive champagnes marked by finesse, elegance and complexity since 1838. The house has upheld the traditions of fine Champagne making handed down through five generations. Owning a significant portion of its own vineyards, Deutz selects only top-rated grapes from 275 acres of vineyards in the finest crus of Champagne. The wines are slowly and carefully aged in the chalk-walled cellars far beneath the historic village of Ay.

TASTING NOTES
The 2007 Brut Millesime William Deutz is a very pretty wine that is starting to show the first signs of aromatic maturity. Honey, vanilla, baked apple tart, smoke, slate, almond and spice notes add intensity to a core of orange confit and apricot fruit. The 2007 is overt and creamy, with attractive tropical overtones, and yet it very much retains the mid-weight sense of structure that is such a Deutz signature.

FOOD PAIRING
Spectacular on its own as an aperitif; also excellent with oysters.

FRIARWOOD SAYS
Mostly sourced from the Côte des Blancs, specifically the villages of Avize. Mesnil
and Qger, with 5% sourced from Viller-Marmery in the Montagne de Reims.