Lieux-dits Les Carelles Disgorged
⏳ Drinking Window & Cellar Guidance
Typically best enjoyed 10 to 25 years after its disgorgement date.
🍽️ Culinary Pairings
Pan-seared turbot, roasted veal with chanterelles, aged Comté cheese
✨ Technical Specifications
Hailing from the legendary Grand Cru village of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, 'Les Carelles' is one of Anselme Selosse's highly coveted single-vineyard (lieu-dit) Champagnes. The name 'Les Carelles' refers to the historic chalk quarries nearby, where square stones ('carreaux') were once excavated. This terroir is defined by intense, powdery chalk soils on a steep, south-facing slope, which yields Chardonnay of extraordinary tension and mineral drive. To capture the pure essence of this site across time, Selosse utilizes a solera system begun in 2003, blending multiple vintages before aging in oak casks. The resulting Champagne is a masterclass in oxidative complexity, boasting notes of toasted brioche, dried citrus, and a profound, saline minerality that defines the legendary Côte des Blancs.
🍾 About the Producer
Founded in the 1950s by Jacques Selosse and propelled to legendary status by his visionary son Anselme Selosse, Domaine Jacques Selosse is based in the Grand Cru village of Avize in the heart of Champagne's Côte des Blancs. Anselme took over the estate in 1980 after studying in Burgundy, fundamentally revolutionizing the grower Champagne movement through meticulous, non-interventionist viticulture, minimal yields, and native yeast fermentations in oak barrels. Renowned for a singular, vinous, and lightly oxidative style, the house crafts profoundly complex cuvées, including the solera-aged Substance, the precise Initial and Version Originale, and an acclaimed collection of single-parcel Lieux-dits. Today, along with Anselme's son Guillaume, the domaine continues to set the benchmark for terroir-focused, artisanal Champagne with unrivaled depth and expressive minerality.