Neither husband Maxime, nor his wife Anna, are from Champagne, or even France. They weren't winemakers, and in fact, they weren’t really that into wine. But as the obsessives among you can probably identify with,... Read More

Neither husband Maxime, nor his wife Anna, are from Champagne, or even France. They weren't winemakers, and in fact, they weren’t really that into wine. But as the obsessives among you can probably identify with, the appreciation crept in, built to an all-consuming crescendo, and changed the course of their lives.

In 2012, these Belgian natives purchased the abandoned Domaine Marzilly. As architects, they’d set out to renovate the old farmhouse and barn, but after befriending young growers like Alexandre Chartogne, in the neighboring village of Merfy, the wine bug bit. Their plans took a drastic change, and so Maxime enrolled in the Avize viticultural school.

They revived old, un-grafted (thanks to their sandy soils) Pinot Meunier vines surrounding the house. 2016 was their first vintage, cobbled together from 3 hectares of owned and rented vineyards. These sites are Champagne's most northerly, many at higher than normal elevations, meaning the fruit is full of brisk acidity — a boon in these warming years.