Description & elaboration
The Tuilerie 2014 cuvée from Nowack is a champagne born from the terroir of Vandières, in the Vallée de la Marne. It is a champagne with notes of yellow stone fruits, dried fruits and gentle spices — an atypical profile for the area. On the palate, the attack is structured and the absence of dosage yields a pure champagne, well suited to subtle food pairings. This single-plot Blanc de Blancs is crafted by Flavien Nowack and produced in very small quantities.
This cuvée has a resolutely vinous identity, underpinned by extended ageing in wood and on laths.
The Terroir
The Vandières vineyard stretches along the right bank of the Vallée de la Marne. The Tuilerie plot rests on sedimentary clay-sandy soil structured in several horizons. The upper sandy layer captures daytime solar radiation and releases it back to the vine roots at night. Its draining capacity quickly evacuates rainwater, keeping the grapes healthy through to harvest.
In the subsoil, the clay stratum acts as a water reservoir: during periods of summer drought, the root system draws on the moisture and minerals it needs. Flavien Nowack carries out mechanical soil work with controlled cover cropping, using no synthetic herbicides. This approach strengthens microbial activity and promotes nutrient uptake by the Chardonnay.
Winemaking
The winemaker limits oenological interventions in order to faithfully reflect the vintage. After a manual harvest at peak ripeness, pressing is carried out slowly. Alcoholic fermentation starts spontaneously thanks to indigenous yeasts. To preserve the initial acidic tension, malolactic fermentation is deliberately blocked.
Wood ageing brings volume to this single-plot Blanc de blancs. The base wine rests on its fine lees, benefiting from gradual oxygenation through the barrel staves. This method rounds out the texture while preserving the minerality of the subsoil. The cuvée then rests on laths for a period of around ten years. This long autolysis (the degradation of dead yeasts, releasing aromas of brioche and almond) considerably enriches the aromatic palette. Late disgorgement completes a winemaking process conducted without filtration or fining. The cuvée is unbosted.
The 2014 Vintage
The 2014 growing year presents a climatic profile split into two distinct periods. After an early spring, the summer recorded significantly above-average rainfall, slowing ripening. On the Vandières terroir, the Chardonnay benefited from anticyclonic conditions to accumulate sugars while maintaining a low pH, favoured by cool nights. This balance resulted in a concentrated base wine with pronounced saline tension, ideal for long ageing.
Tasting Notes
Colour
The Tuilerie 2014 cuvée displays a golden hue with luminous highlights.
Nose
On the nose, the expression leans towards notes of ripe and dried fruits. Aeration in the glass allows toasted brioche, fresh butter and almond to emerge.
Palate
On the palate, this vintage develops a broad yet structured texture. The volume brought by the oak barrel is immediately counterbalanced by the tension of the blocked malolactic, leading to a long, saline finish.
Food Pairing Suggestions
- Iberian ham
- Pan-fried veal sweetbreads
- Comté cheese puffs
- Chicken with morels
- Roasted turbot
- Fillet of sea bass
- Aged Parmesan
- Comté aged 36 months
- Thin quince tart
The Plus de Bulles Expert's Opinion
Why I love it
What moves me is the saline energy of this Blanc de blancs. Its palate, driven by chalky minerality and notes of candied citrus, offers remarkable length and texture. This is a champagne of rare purity — at once refined and vibrant.
My recommendation
Serve this champagne at 10–12 °C in a wine glass. Its precision and iodine-tinged finish will pair ideally with roasted turbot or grilled lobster.
Advice
How to store this champagne?
Plus de Bulles ships this bottle (75 cl) in reinforced packaging specially designed for champagne. Upon receipt, we recommend storing the bottle horizontally, away from light, to keep the cork in constant contact with the wine. Ideally in a cellar; alternatively, in a cool, not too dry place with a stable temperature.
Ageing Potential
The Tuilerie 2014 from Nowack benefits from a significant acid reserve, inherited from the blocked malolactic and late disgorgement. It offers a cellaring potential of 10 to 15 years.
- Until 2027: the cuvée will assert its acidic backbone around tertiary notes of roasting and dried fruits.
- From 2028: the wine will fully express the maturity acquired during the long lath ageing, enriching itself with toasted almond and spice.
- Around 2029: over time, the saline minerality will integrate into a fully accomplished texture.
Serving Advice
The wine should be brought to a temperature of 10–12 °C. This thermal threshold limits the perception of alcohol while respecting the roundness imparted by the oak barrels. The flared shape of a tulip glass will facilitate oxygenation. Decanting is recommended to lift any initial reduction.
An Anecdote About This Cuvée
The estate has overhauled its entire range under the impetus of Flavien Nowack, an advocate of single-plot winemaking. In Vandières, the geological fragmentation led to the abandonment of inter-village blending in favour of bottling each individual soil identity separately. The name "Tuilerie" refers directly to the cadastral lieu-dit. This topographical approach guides other productions from the house, as when he crafts a single-plot champagne from Flavien Nowack dedicated solely to Meunier on calcareous marls.
Barrel ageing and the systematic absence of dosage are the founding pillars of the Nowack style. To get to grips with this style before diving into the individual plots, tasters turn to the Extra Brut signature of the Nowack estate. These auteur wines, bottled in small volumes without fining or filtration, target a discerning audience and the world of Michelin-starred restaurants.
