Vincent Charlot, Le Fruit de ma Passion Champagne 2018

NOTES - Vincent Charlot is among the small group (less than 1%) of biodynamic growers in Champagne, where all of his 4-hectare estate is Demeter certified. With the biodynamic tool kit, he is able to harvest grapes at perfect ripeness, using strict selection (in some vineyards only 30% of the grapes are picked) to end up with grapes that are sufficiently ripe to balance the intense acidity in the wine.  Unlike the heavily manipulated juice of the region, Vincent Charlot is pretty hands-off in every respect. Cover crops instead of plows. No ML  -- it’s cold there, and he doesn’t encourage it, preferring the raw edge of natural ripeness and acidity that remains without malolactic fermentation.  It’s a crazy beautiful wine, first hitting with a flash of lemon curd lightning, then fizzing up like a cloud of Fanta and chalky rocks.  Worth the splurge!