Benoît Lahaye may not be well known, but he is making some of our favorite Champagnes.
His Violaine is one of the standouts of his line-up.
Many of Champagne's cutting edge winemakers have experimented with non-sulphured Champagnes, but for us Benoît Lahaye's Violaine sets the standard for the category.
I'm very happy to offer Benoît Lahaye Violaine for $97.95 on bottles and $92.95 in 3-packs, the lowest price around by a healthy margin.
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Benoît Lahaye is simply working very, very hard in the vineyards (and the cellar) and the Violaine highlights this back-breaking work in the vineyard and the fantastic quality that it yields.
Making Champagne without added sulphur is incredibly demanding, requiring perfect grapes and very careful winemaking. Benoît Lahaye just nails it with his Violaine. Winemakers in Champagne who are experimenting with sans soufre cuvées are seeking a more immediate and purer expression than they are able to achieve with their conventional Champagnes. Violaine highlights the vibrancy and fascination that working without sulphur can bring to Champagne. There's a crystal clear minerality, complex orchard fruits and mouthfeel that present themselves differently than his other cuvées.
Violaine is equal parts Chardonnay and Pinot Noir sourced from two choice parcels. The Pinot comes from a lieu-dit called Les Monts des Tours in Bouzy and the Chardonnay comes from a lieu-dit called Les Argentières in Tauxièresa, just over the border from Bouzy.
Violaine is dazzlingly clear, delivering a fascinating textural complexity and incisive chalky energy. There seems to be endless nuance aligned with a magical finesse. Like all of Benoît Lahaye's Champagnes, Violaine brilliantly mends power and intensity with elegance and subtlety.
Benoît Lahaye is a small domaine and Violaine is the hardest of his Champagnes to land in quantity. Violiane is one of the most intriguing wines in all of Champagne. I'm very happy to be able to offer at such a sharp price.
To order, please email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Joe Salamone
Wine Buyer
Crush Wine & Spirits
Benoit Lahaye Violaine