R de Ruinart Brut

Some great businesses start by chance. This was true for Ruinart, one of the legendary maisons in Reims which, although is now the oldest house in the Champagne region, in reality its beginnings date back to the textile sector. It all began in 1728 when King Louis XV allowed wine to be sold in bottles (previously it could only be sold in barrels, making it difficult to move). This is when Nicolas Ruinart, a textile merchant and nephew of Dom Thierry Ruinart (a Benedictine monk with a passion for “sparkling wine”) saw an opportunity to present his customers with a bottle of the sparkling wine that his uncle had taught him to make. A wine that, surprisingly, was so well liked that the Ruinart family ended up leaving the fabric business completely to devote themselves to champagne.

Their R de Ruinart Brut champagne is the only one of their sparkling wines that includes the Pinot Meunier grape in its blend, as well as Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. These vineyards are cultivated by plot and harvested by hand at the optimum point of ripeness.  The vinification of course follows the champenoise method. First, a base wine is made with the three varieties and then a blend is created with wines from two previous vintages for a second fermentation in the bottle. Finally, it remains in the cellar for 3 years before disgorging and dosage.

With an iconic bottle of the house and a sparkling wine with an authentic expression of the Ruinart flavour, R de Ruinart Brut is a faithful representative of the AOC Champagne in its freshest, most versatile and, of course, glamorous form.