Region
Chouilly
Grand Cru village in the northern Côte des Blancs, 522 hectares, 98.7 percent Chardonnay. Clay in the topsoil gives a rounder, fuller character. Home of Nicolas Feuillatte.
What it is
Chouilly is the northernmost Grand Cru village of the Côte des Blancs and, at 522 hectares, the largest of the six (bigger than Le Mesnil, Avize, Cramant or Oger). Plantings: 98.7 percent Chardonnay, with 4.5 hectares of Pinot Noir and 1.9 hectares of Meunier. Promoted to Grand Cru in 1985.
For black grapes Chouilly held a 95 percent Premier Cru status until 1985; for white grapes it had been Grand Cru for longer. In 1985 the rating was levelled to 100 percent for all varieties.
Soil and aspect
Chouilly has the most mixed soil of the six Côte des Blancs Grand Crus. The northern section carries more clay than other CdB villages, mixed with chalk. The eastern section has a high density of soft chalk. That heterogeneity gives Chouilly its own profile: fuller, rounder, sometimes buttery Chardonnay, with tropical fruit notes.
It lies just southeast of Épernay, on the transition from the city to the slopes. Flatter terrain than Cramant or Avize. That makes it less photogenic but viticulturally valuable.
Nicolas Feuillatte
The headquarters of Nicolas Feuillatte (officially Centre Vinicole-Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte, CV-CNF) sit in Chouilly. It is the largest cooperative in all of Champagne: 82 affiliated co-ops with over 5,000 members, together farming 2,110 hectares. Grapes come in from 13 of the 17 Grand Cru villages and 33 of the 42 Premier Cru villages.
The Chouilly facility is industrial in scale: 350 presses distributed across member locations, with central assemblage and bottling in Chouilly. Not artisanal, but a major volume player in Champagne.
Other producers
Beyond Nicolas Feuillatte:
- Vazart-Coquart: smaller grower, exclusively Chouilly
- Pierre Legras: long-established grower family
- Legras & Haas: respected grower house
- Roland Champion: smaller independent
- Guiborat: rising name
- Pertois-Lebrun: Chouilly and Cramant
- Michel Genet and Claude Genet: small family operations
- Simart-Moreau: 4.7 hectares, Chouilly + Cramant
In the glass
A young Chouilly Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs: white florals, lemon, pear, a hint of green apple. On the palate: rounder and more buttery than Cramant or Le Mesnil, with more yellow stone fruit and occasional tropical notes. Chalky finish persists but less verticalmineral than the southern Côte des Blancs villages.
Place in the hierarchy
Among connoisseurs Chouilly is traditionally considered the “least prestigious” of the six CdB Grand Crus, mostly because the clay component softens the signature minerality. But the style has its own value: more accessible, earlier-drinking, rounder. Not every occasion calls for Le Mesnil steel.
Signature grape