Ulysse Collin Les Enfers (L15) Blanc De Blancs Extra Brut Champagne

Olivier Collin is based in the village of Congy, and while he comes from a family of vine growers, this was not his path early on. Olivier studied law, and it was not until a visit to Burgundy during his early days of university that he caught the bug, and he began to wonder if the idea of terroir so heavily relied on in Burgundy could be exploited further in Champagne. Using his legal nouse, Olivier began the process of reclaiming the family vineyards from long held contracts with a large Champagne house, and started his journey with 4.5 hectares of Chardonnay vines in his home town of Congy. A further parcel of Pinot Noir from the Les Maillons vineyard near the town of Sezanne in the Coteaux du Sezannais followed, and has been added to with the vineyards of Les Roises and Les Enfers, two neighboring parcels of Chardonnay with different expositions in his village of Congy.

Collin’s vineyards are ploughed, and yields are controlled when required. Grass is allowed to grow naturally during the winter, no herbicides or pesticides are used and strict sorting occurs at harvest. In the Congy cellar, the grapes are pressed in a traditional 1950s Coquard press, and the juice is vinified in a growing collection of large-format casks with no added yeasts. Collin neither fines nor filters, and he ages each pressing in old barrels of varying sizes after which they are blended and bottled in July. The wines are disgorged with a tiny dosage between one and three grams per litre.

2015 base with 10% reserve wine (2014), disgorged in March 2020. Les Enfers is 100% Chardonnay from a 0.6-hectare, 40-year-old vineyard in Congy, also in the Côteaux du Petit Morin. Les Enfers and Les Roises are neighbouring parcels, with the former exposed east and the latter exposed south. The soils for both parcels are clay and chalk with flint, although Les Enfers has much less clay. This terroir often makes for a sleeker, more textural expression of Congy and the longer aging is now providing even more depth and complexity. Les Enfers is the historic name and probably refers to the reddish colour of the clay. The 2015 offered today was aged in Olivier’s cellar for 48 months on lees and disgorged with 2.4 grams dosage. It’s a deep and powerful Blanc de Blancs of tremendous class and beauty.

Other Reviews....
The NV Extra-Brut Blanc de Blancs Les Enfers (2015 base) is a gorgeous wine. Rich and resonant, the 2015 possesses terrific depth, that richness accentuated by the 48 months this edition spent on its lees. Varietal Chardonnay aromas and flavors build in an ample, vinous Champagne. Time in the glass brings out pretty floral, mineral and graphite accents to round things out. The Enfers conveys tremendous richness and yet retains so much transparency. Its a remarkable Champagne that beautifully encapsulates Olivier Collin's style.
94 points
Antonio Galloni - Vinous