Gerard Bertrand, Crémant de Limoux Brut 2015, Languedoc-Roussillon, France

Tasting Note: A spritely Crémant de Limoux that presents a riper-fruit-styled sparkling wine with an understated autolytic character while delivering substance and heft.

Pale-intensity lemon in color, this wine has a nose of quince, brioche, melon, ripe pear, lemon-citrus peel, apricot and blossom.

On the palate the dry, medium-plus-bodied Crémant de Limoux is buoyed by high acidity with a mix of tart and ripe fruit flavors suggested on the nose continuing to the palate ultimately completing with a medium-plus, orange-citrus-infused finish.

The sparkling wine is creamy in texture with some chalkiness and notes of midpalate complexity.

An accessible crémant from a region you may wish to explore further.

Bottle Note: This cuvee is a tribute from Gerard Bertrand to Thomas Jefferson, the most French of American presidents. He was Limoux’s greatest admirer, and he discretely cultivated his love for France and for Limoux sparkling wine. In fact, wine from Limoux was the only sparkling wine to be found in his personal wine cellar. This wine is a blend of chardonnay (70%), chenin blanc (15%), mauzac (10%), pinot noir (5%). The grapes are grown at the highest elevation vineyards in the South of France, where hot days and cool nights ensure freshness, fruitiness and elegance in this unique sparkling wine.