Why it matters
The producer
Sarah Launois designs the labels for Champagne Paul Launois. The brand takes its name from the couple's son, Paul, and grew from a Launois family vineyard owned for several generations. The family business historically sold its wine through a cooperative under Champagne Jean-Pierre Launois; Julien and Sarah now run an independent champagne house.
The house makes approximately 25,000 bottles a year and exports 90% of its production. Julien allows full malolactic fermentation, which softens acidity, and avoids over-intervention in the cellar.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
Le Mesnil-sur-Oger is the single village source for the house's Chardonnay. Monochrome carries the Grand Cru Blanc de Blanc designation from the same village. In Champagne, Grand Cru identifies the highest village classification, while Blanc de Blanc describes sparkling wine made from white grapes, here Chardonnay.
Wines to know
The range in view
Monochrome is the primary cuvée, a Grand Cru Blanc de Blanc from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger with low dosage. The Single Barrel Project sits beside it as a cellar experiment. It uses ten artisanal oak barrels, with each pair toasted to a different degree, and records different battonage levels on chalked cellar walls.