Montgueux

Montgueux is a single isolated hill rising out of the plain west of Troyes, in the south of the Champagne appellation. The hill stands geologically apart from the country around it: while the rest of the Aube is built on Kimmeridgian limestone shared with northern Burgundy, Montgueux is a small outcrop of belemnite chalk, closer in nature to the Côte des Blancs far to the north. Plantings are almost entirely Chardonnay, and the warmer southern position combined with the chalk produces a richer, riper, and more openly fruity expression of the grape than what comes off the cooler chalks of the Marne. Champagne came late to Montgueux. The hill was largely planted to grain and pasture for centuries, with vines reaching anything like their current scale only in the second half of the 20th century, once the area's potential as a Chardonnay source was recognised. The wines have built a strong reputation in a relatively short time, sometimes described as a southern echo of the great whites further north, and a small core of Montgueux growers now sits comfortably alongside more established names in serious blanc de blancs lists.