Ruinart presents Blanc Singulier, a unique cuvée revealed by climate variations

Ruinart has engaged with the challenges of an evolving climate while maintaining the excellence of the Maison’s champagnes. With a resolutely contemporary and future-facing vision, Ruinart has transitioned from traditional savoir-faire to Savoir Re-Faire, (re)crafting new aromatic profiles of chardonnay and adapting winemaking practices for its new Blanc Singulier cuvée.

Ruinart recognizes the major changes that are impacting its vineyards, notably higher average temperatures and increasingly early harvests. Cellar Master Frédéric Panaïotis and his teams have identified the emergence of new aromatic profiles linked to this new climate paradigm. These differences have in particular led to new balances between the aromatic profiles – fruity, floral, vegetal, spice – coupled with an intense expression and particularly powerful texture. Now Ruinart is revealing these new characteristics, adapting its savoir-faire while retaining the Maison’s distinctive signature, culminating in the creation of a cuvée named Blanc Singulier.

Like the iconic Ruinart Blanc de Blancs, the new Blanc Singulier is a 100% chardonnay cuvée. The atypical climate profile of the year will thus shape a distinctive aromatic expression. For example, wines from 2018,– an especially warm year with an early harvest in August – have notes of juicy white fruit and candied citrus, along with honeyed floral scents and smoky spice notes. The wines, sourced from some 20 different crus, were harvested in 2018, the “reference” year that lends its name to the name of the cuvée. ‘Blanc Singulier, Edition 2018’ is thus the first edition in a series.

Edition 2018 is an assemblage of that comprises 80% base wines from the year’s harvest and 20% reserve wines from a ‘perpetual’ reserve that was begun in 2017. This reserve contains the different assemblages of Blanc Singulier that will subsequently contribute to the assemblages of future editions of the cuvée. Half of the wines are aged in oak, the other half in stainless steel. Ruinart has also decided to extend the ageing of Blanc Singulier in the cellars to three years and to adjust the dosage (added liqueur). Edition 2018 is a Brut Nature champagne, with no dosage.

Ruinart Blanc Singulier is a collection of singular Editions that will succeed one another at the rhythm of years marked by an atypical climate. Ruinart shares its taste for centuries-old savoir-faire and a passion for sustainable viticulture with a community of chefs committed to sustainable gastronomy, including Cybèle Idelot (Ruche – Domaine de Bruyères), Claire Vallée (ONA), Grégory Garimbay (Auberge Nicolas Flamel), Arnaud Donckele (Cheval Blanc Paris, La Vague d’Or, Cheval Blanc Saint-Tropez), Julien Diaz (Saisons), Marie-Victorine Manoa (Aux Lyonnais), Gil Nogueira and Sayaka Sawaguchi (formerly at Garde Champêtre), along with Juliette Busetto, Samuel Victori and Pierre-Jean Arpurt (Les Agitateurs).