Who makes it
Perrier-Jouët describes its house style as floral Champagnes. It is a large Champagne house owned by Pernod Ricard and based in Épernay, with a range built around Grand Brut, Belle Époque Brut and Belle Époque Rosé.
Grand Brut is the recurring house Champagne made in a nonvintage style. Belle Époque Brut and Belle Époque Rosé are vintage cuvées, giving the range two different ways to express Champagne. The house also describes its work as a quest for perfection.
Where it grows
Épernay's Avenue de Champagne is Perrier-Jouët's home address. Champagne is a sparkling wine region and appellation where the wine undergoes a second fermentation in bottle. That process creates the bubbles, while contact with spent yeast during lees ageing can bring bread, biscuit and creamier texture.
Perrier-Jouët's wines stay within this traditional Champagne format. Grand Brut uses the nonvintage approach, while Belle Époque Brut and Belle Époque Rosé attach the bottle to a single vintage.
How it is made
The cellar
Grand Brut uses 20% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir and 40% Pinot Meunier. Chardonnay generally contributes acidity and citrus, Pinot Noir brings body and red fruit, and Pinot Meunier contributes fruit and roundness.
Champagne production begins with a base wine before the second fermentation takes place in bottle. Lees ageing follows, with the spent yeast adding texture and notes such as brioche and biscuit. The bubbles are created in the bottle, while the grape varieties set the balance between freshness, fruit and weight.
What they make
The range has three distinct roles. Grand Brut is the house Champagne made from several harvests, with a relatively soft mousse and an aperitif role. Belle Époque Brut is the vintage white cuvée, while Belle Époque Rosé is the vintage pink expression.
This progression moves from a recurring house style to wines defined by a single year and a more specific colour. The rosé adds a separate visual and aromatic register to the Belle Époque line, while the Brut keeps the focus on white Champagne.