Francis Egly is growing wines that offer remarkable intensity as well as transparency of site from vines that are positively ancient by Champagne standards. Like all great French growers, the Egly philosophy can be defined by one word: terroir. Very low yields, old vines, exceptional sites, perfectly ripe fruit, extended lees aging (the Brut NV can spend up to 48 months on lees), very low or no dosage and no fining or filtration: these are all decisions Egly takes because he believes they allow his terroir to speak most clearly. These practices are identical to the finest growers in Burgundy and the polar opposite of conventional Champagne production. As leading French critic Michel Bettane observes, the “larger houses cannot hope to emulate the cultivation norms” here. The resulting wines are among France's purest, terroir-driven, unmanipulated wines. To quote Andrew Jefford in The New France, they are “wines of riveting concentration and purity”.

Egly-Ouriet only produces wines from its own vines. There are close to 10 hectares of Grand Cru vineyards, mostly in Ambonnay but also in Verzenay and Bouzy. Then, there are two hectares of Pinot Meunier in the 1er Cru village of Vrigny that gives the coveted 100% Pinot Meunier Les Vignes de Vrigny. And now, there are also estate vines in the villages of Trigny (in the Massif de Saint-Thierry area just north of Reims) and Bisseuil (near Mareuil-sur-Aÿ and Aÿ, south of Ambonnay).

“These are among the purest, unmanipulated Champagnes readers will come across.” Antonio Galloni, The Wine Advocate

Francis Egly took over from his father, Michel, in 1982, after which he immediately converted the domaine to 100% estate bottling. In turn, this fastidious fourth-generation vigneron has recently been joined by his returning children, prompting the recent acquisition of new vineyards in preparation for the passing of the baton. The domaine has built a new cellar to store the extra volume generated from these sites. They have also recently installed refrigerated press pans to immediately cool the must at pressing and a peristaltic pump to handle the wines even more gently. It is not by accident that this growth in production coincides with the full-time return of the Egly children. Charles has now returned to work in the vineyards and was joined recently by his sister, Clémence, who completed her wine studies in Dijon. Some fresh vines and equipment for the next generation to sink their teeth into.

When you open and drink the wines of a great grower like Egly, as you would with any other great wine, you start to realise their incredible versatility. First of all, they go with a staggering array of dishes: any kind of bird, game, pork, veal, charcuterie, terrine, most seafood and some cheeses. You have to work pretty hard to find something that doesn’t work. And they have the added bonus of staying fresh—and even improving—for days after opening. As Peter Liem says: “If there are any Champagnes that fit the often-used description of ‘Burgundy with bubbles’, Egly-Ouriet’s would be the leading candidates.