Champagne Armand de Brignac

Operating vineyards for thirteen generations and producing Champagne for four generations, the Cattier family is at the origin of the Armand de Brignac brand. Located on the Montagne de Reims, it owns more than 30 hectares of vines among the most renowned Premiers and Grands Crus in Champagne, including the villages of Ludes, Chigny-les-Roses and Rilly-la-Montagne. Run by Alexandre Cattier, with the support of his father Jean-Jacques Cattier, this Champagne House set aside lots of reserve wines at the beginning of the 21st century with the ambition of creating an exceptional Champagne.

In 2006, the family produced the first bottles of Armand Brignac. Distributed by Sovereign Brands, a distributor of luxury spirits, the brand was bought in 2014 by the American rapper Jay-Z. This prestigious Champagne became a worldwide success, particularly in Europe, North America and Asia. Since then, Moët Hennessy has owned 50% of the brand.

Armand de Brignac Champagnes are made from the finest grapes from terroirs classified as Premier Cru and Grand Cru. For the creation of the cuvées, the teams at Cattier select the plots of land with the most characterful grapes from the vineyards, which are certified as High Environmental Value level 3. A team of no more than 20 passionate and highly qualified people work on the development of Armand de Brignac Champagne. Each stage of production is carried out in a spirit of craftsmanship. The grapes are carefully selected by hand before pressing using a traditional Coquart press. Unlike membrane presses, this guarantees a slow, gentle and qualitative pressing. Armand de Brignac Champagnes are made only from the finest juice, known as the "cuvée", without any volume requirements and with a yield lower than that allowed.

This allows the family to maintain its winemaking traditions and to showcase its craftsmanship in every bottle. Each blend is made with only the best juice from each harvest. The intense and meticulous work carried out at each stage guarantees a vibrant character, a beautiful complexity and a great delicacy at the end of the ageing process, signatures of a unique cuvée. Armand de Brignac Champagne also owes its unique and sensational taste profile to its ageing in the second basement of the Cattier cellars. The Cattier cellars are among the oldest and deepest in Champagne. The Armand de Brignac cuvées are aged in a special closed section in the deepest part.

Thanks to the exceptional quality of its top-of-the-range cuvées, Armand de Brignac has become one of the most popular Champagne brands. Today, lovers of exceptional Champagnes can taste the House's cuvées in nearly 40 countries. Thanks to the Cattier family's traditional know-how combined with modern and sophisticated production techniques, the quality of Armand de Brignac Champagnes is often praised by the international gastronomic press and wine critics.

In 2009, the Armand de Brignac Ace of Spades Brut Gold was voted best Champagne in the world in a blind tasting of 1,000 brands. In 2015, this Champagne was awarded a gold medal at the San Francisco International Wine Competition. In the same year, the Blanc de Blancs cuvée won a double gold medal at the same competition.

The Armand de Brignac range of champagnes includes different cuvées, each composed of three vintages. These bottles are perfect for celebrating special moments or for giving a prestigious gift:

• Champagne Armand de Brignac Brut Gold: the flagship product of the Cattier House, this cuvée, with its lovely golden yellow colour, is a blend of 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier. Revealing a rich and flowery nose, this Champagne combines peach and apricot aromas with notes of red fruits. The aromatic bouquet then reveals scents of crystallised citrus fruits, orange blossom and hints of brioche. Pleasantly fruity on the palate, it reveals the same brioche notes as on the nose.
• Champagne Armand de Brignac Brut Rosé: this Champagne is composed of 50% Pinot Noir, 40% Pinot Meunier and 10% Chardonnay. With its beautiful salmon colour, this cuvée offers an intense aromatic palette marked by notes of red fruits, delicately smoked and toasted. On the palate, aromas of strawberry and blackcurrant fill the mouth. The tasting ends on a great aromatic persistence.

• Champagne Armand de Brignac Blanc de Blancs: with its pale gold colour, this 100% Chardonnay cuvée develops ripe pear fragrances mixed with aromas of toasted hazelnuts and pastry notes, reminiscent of gingerbread. On the palate, fruity and spicy aromas, combined with a smooth minerality and a beautiful freshness, are revealed.
• Champagne Armand de Brignac Demi-Sec: this cuvée is made from a blend of 40% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir and 20% Pinot Meunier.
• Champagne Armand de Brignac Blanc de Noirs: this cuvée, the rarest of the Armand de Brignac brand and 100% Pinot Noir, blends notes of black currant, blackberry, violet and spices. The palate is marked by intense aromas of red fruits, progressing to subtle touches of mint and tannins.

One of the particularities of Armand de Brignac Champagnes is their original bottle design. Designed by the famous fashion house André Courrèges, each bottle is covered in metal, the colour of which varies according to the cuvée (gold, pink, silver).

Each case is also adorned with a tin label depicting an ace of spades, which is applied by hand before being polished. This means that only about twenty bottles are made by hand each day, each with its own unique character.

Of all the prestigious Champagne Houses, Armand de Brignac has the greatest collection of large format bottles. In addition to the standard bottle format, the vintages are also available in magnum format.

These Champagnes can also be bottled in 30l Midas format, by special order only.