Alongside the Maison Georges Laval, the Maison André Beaufort is one of the pioneers of organic agriculture. Due to an allergy to synthetic substances André's father, Jacques Beaufort, turned to organics as far back as 1971. Since that date, the house has stopped using chemical fertilisers opting instead for vegetable compost, produced on site, and both animal bone and blood preparations. Unsatisfied by standard organic agricultural practices (or paying for any organic certification, i.e. paradoxically, paying "not to pollute") the house employs the usage of essential oils to limit the growth of parasitic mushrooms and homeopathics inspired by biodynamics. With such a resumé one could only expect that, once the grapes have achieved maximum maturity, harvests are executed manually, that their winemaking uses indigenous yeasts and are aged for almost a year in older barrels before bottling. Thankfully, as do most houses attentive to detail, the disgorgement date is noted on each bottle. The wines of the Maison André Beaufort are reputed for their fruit, concentration and voluptuousness. Two of their most emblematic cuvées are the Champagne blanc Grand Cru Ambonnay and Polisy. The first is a structured, robust and perfumed wine precisely expressing its chalk origins via 80% Pinot noir and 20% Chardonnay. Powerful and long, the Grand Cru Ambonnay is a meditation wine. The vines producing "Polisy" can be found 40 kilometres southeast of Troyes in the Côte des Bars, a subregion under the influence of the Langres plateau whose cold and wet air currents circulate amongst its small valleys. The terroirs of Polisy can be found on clay soil rendering its upkeep slightly more demanding than elsewhere in Champagne. Historically it has benefitted from its proximity to Burgundy, culturally as well as geologically, producing a wine of tension, finesse and acidity, suggesting an ideal gustative partner of aperitif and fish dishes. Great vintages since the 1980's to be on the lookout for, not just at the Maison André Beaufort, but in Champagne in general: 1982, 1985, 1989, 1990, 1996, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2015 et 2018.
You can find Champagne wines and magnums from André Beaufort at Vins & Millésimes as well as other Champagne houses, such as Bollinger, Dom Perignon, Roederer or Charles Heidsieck, and also smaller producers of Champagne. All of our wines are always in stock and available for delivery.