To quote co-owner and winemaker, Thierry Gobillard: “My house is ten metres away from Dom Pérignon’s grave”. You can’t get much more Champenois than that! Indeed, JM Gobillard et Fils has impeccable credentials. It is a family-owned and run Champagne house based in the heart of the region, only five kilometres from Epernay. However, the Champagne we are talking about here is not a glitzy Grande Marque with centuries of aristocratic lineage. “We come from the terroir: my first birthday present was a pair of secateurs,” explains Monsieur G.
Through decades of hard work the estate now owns 26 hectares of vines, many of which are Premier Cru and used to belong to the magnificent Benedictine Abbey of Hautvillers. Grapes from a further 125 hectares are also vinified, with growers selected for their expertise and quality. The Champagnes have an emphasis on brightness, minerality and sleek elegance: a philosophy which sees oxidation as its main enemy.
