The colour is medium gold with a fine, persistent mousse. On the nose, lemon zest, pear, green apple, white peach, and hazelnut. In the mouth, the attack is vibrant, driven by bright acidity and an energic mousse. Beside marked salinity in the finish, which provides freshness and gastronomic appeal, the wine is neither particularly flavourful nor especially long. Overall, it leans more towards freshness than complexity.
The blend consists of 50% Pinot Meunier, 30% Pinot Noir and 20% Chardonnay from the 2020 harvest. These wines account for 60% of the final blend, while the remaining 40% comes from the estate’s réserve perpétuelle. The wine was disgorged in March 2023 and finished with a dosage of 5.5 g/l.
Originel is the signature cuvée of Simon Rion, a family-owned grower-producer based in the village of Courmas on the western slopes of the Montagne de Reims. Unlike the grandes maisons, which source grapes from across the region, Simon Rion works primarily with estate-grown fruit, seeking to express the character of its vineyards through relatively small-scale production.
The defining feature of Originel is its use of a Vin Perpétuel. Rather than relying solely on reserve wines stored separately by vintage, a portion of the blend is retained each year and replenished with wine from the latest harvest. Similar in concept to a solera system, this perpetual reserve becomes a living archive of the domaine’s history, theoretically adding layers of texture, maturity and complexity while preserving freshness and continuity from vintage to vintage.
The concept is undeniably attractive, carrying the memory of multiple harvests in every bottle. In this particular release, however, the promise of the perpetual reserve seems more compelling than its expression in the glass. The wine is well-made, fresh and enjoyable, but to me it stops short of delivering the depth and complexity that its élevage might suggest.
For this bottle, I paid 33.00 EUR at Les Caves du Forum in Reims.
Country: France
Region: Champagne
Grapes: Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay
Type: Sparkling
Vintage: N/A
Producer: Simon Rion
Price range: Premium (30-50 US$)
Pascal’s Enjoyment Index: 3/5