Pierre Gerbais

The History of Champagne Pierre Gerbais

The Gerbais family has grown grapes in Celles-sur-Ource for eight generations. The estate as it exists today, however, bears the name of the grandfather, Pierre Gerbais, who organized the operation in the first half of the 20th century and gave it its identity as a grower-producer, at a time when nearly all of the Aube’s harvest went to the major houses in the north of the region.

Pascal Gerbais then took over and set the vineyard on a path toward environmentally conscious viticulture early on: in 1996, the estate earned Ampelos certification, one of Champagne’s first environmental standards, and has never used the chemical treatments that the standard nevertheless permits when necessary. The decisive turning point came in 2011 with the arrival of Aurélien, the eighth generation. Trained in Beaune rather than Reims—a meaningful choice, since the Côte des Bar is closer to Burgundy than to the rest of Champagne—he worked at the domaine of Olivier Lamy in Saint-Aubin before returning to the village. He describes himself as more Burgundian than Champenois. As soon as he arrived, he began a series of perpetual reserves, one for each parcel, which would give rise a few years later to the cuvées that established the estate’s international reputation. Today he works alongside his wife, Audrey.

The Terroirs and Vines of Champagne Pierre Gerbais

The vineyard covers around eighteen hectares on the sunny slopes of the Ource Valley, with some twenty parcels around Celles-sur-Ource. This is the far south of Champagne, where Kimmeridgian soils of marl and limestone are almost identical to those of Chablis and Sancerre, alongside a few areas of Portlandian soil. This geology, very different from the chalk of the region’s north, produces generous, ripe wines with immediately recognizable salinity and depth.

The vineyard includes around ten hectares of pinot noir, four of chardonnay and four of pinot blanc, a rare variety the family has grown for decades even though almost no one plants it in Champagne anymore. Several named sites are now vinified separately: Champ Viole, a historic parcel identified by Cistercian monks, facing due south and bordered at the top by dense woodland, with fifty-year-old vines on Kimmeridgian clay-limestone soil; La Loge, an old-vine pinot blanc terroir; Bochot, devoted to meunier; Les Grandes Côtes, planted in the 1970s on a cool, north-facing slope beside the famous Creux d’Enfer; and Beauregard, isolated at the top of a windy, north-facing slope. The soils are worked mechanically, without herbicides or synthetic pesticides, and the grapes are harvested by hand.

Winemaking at Champagne Pierre Gerbais

The winery takes a restrained approach that respects the grapes. Fermentation starts with indigenous yeasts alone, in tanks or barrels depending on the cuvée, with sulfur additions kept to a strict minimum or omitted entirely for some wines. The wines are aged on fine lees, without fining or filtration, and dosage remains low, generally around three grams per liter, placing most of the range in the extra-brut category.

The estate’s defining feature is its perpetual reserves, started by Aurélien Gerbais in 2011, one for each parcel and grape variety. Each year, a portion is drawn off for bottling before the second fermentation and replaced with wine from the new vintage, so the single-parcel cuvées bring together around ten years. Releasing these bottles is the culmination of long, meticulous work: the wines express their terroir more than the character of any single year. Grains de Celles is the exception, remaining a single-vintage cuvée. It is aged in tanks on fine lees, then spends around thirty months on racks before disgorgement six months ahead of release. The still wines are fermented without added sulfur, with a portion of whole clusters used for the red.

The Cuvées of Champagne Pierre Gerbais

Grains de Celles Extra Brut: the estate’s signature cuvée, bringing together all the parcels farmed by the family to offer a complete portrait of the village. The blend combines 50% pinot noir, 25% chardonnay and 25% pinot blanc—an unusual proportion that gives it much of its charm. Aged in tanks on fine lees without fining or filtration, with thirty months on racks and a dosage of 3 grams, it reveals notes of white flowers, pear, yellow fruit and spice, a juicy, creamy texture and a refined limestone finish. Superb as an aperitif or with shellfish and fish in sauce.

Grains de Celles Rosé Extra Brut: a blended rosé made from a similar base, supplemented with the estate’s red wine. The style remains lively and bright, with fresh red berry notes, the same mineral backbone and the same low dosage. An easy-drinking grower rosé to serve chilled with tapas, grilled fish or a lightly sweetened red berry tart.

Champ Viole Extra Brut: a single-parcel blanc de blancs made from 100% chardonnay grown on a historic plot identified as early as the Cistercian era. Facing due south, it has vines around fifty years old rooted in Kimmeridgian clay-limestone soils. Built on a perpetual reserve begun in 2011, the cuvée offers aromas of pear, apple, hazelnut and fresh bread, a broad, vinous palate with a silky texture, perfectly integrated acidity and a long mineral finish. One of the estate’s finest achievements.

La Loge Extra Brut: the cuvée that made the house’s reputation, made entirely from pinot blanc grown on a terroir of old vines—an exceptionally rare expression of this grape in Champagne. It succeeds the historic L’Originale cuvée, made from vines planted at the very beginning of the 20th century. The palate is lush, with a textured, saline finish and a roundness and fragrance unique to pinot blanc. A real favorite for enthusiasts of unusual grape varieties.

Bochot Extra Brut: a single-parcel wine devoted to meunier, with a perpetual reserve started a little later, in 2016. Here, the grape sheds its supporting-role image to produce a deep, spicy, full-bodied wine with a lovely, lingering saline finish. An unexpected and compelling expression of meunier from the Côte des Bar.

Les Grandes Côtes Extra Brut: a single-parcel blanc de noirs made entirely from pinot noir planted in the 1970s on a cool, north-facing slope spanning two soil types. This gives the wine remarkable complexity: powerful yet precise, it unfolds into a long, savory finish. The parcel adjoins the famous Creux d’Enfer lieu-dit. Dosage is 3 grams per liter.

Beauregard Rosé de Saignée Extra Brut: a single-parcel rosé made by macerating pinot noir from the Beauregard parcel, isolated at the top of a windy, north-facing slope. It has a deep color, vibrant red fruit and a vinous structure, with the freshness imparted by its northerly exposure. Like the other single-parcel wines, it is built on a perpetual reserve and produced in very small quantities.

Cuvées Expérimentales N°: a limited, numbered series in which Aurélien Gerbais explores different vessels, blends and aging periods. Each number is a one-off release of a few hundred bottles, highly sought after by enthusiasts who follow the estate’s evolution.

Coteaux Champenois Blanc: a still wine made from Champ Viole chardonnay, grown halfway up a south-facing slope where Kimmeridgian soil reaches the surface. Without bubbles, the parcel reveals its tension and salinity with striking clarity, in a style reminiscent of Burgundy’s great white wines. A rare bottle, produced only in favorable vintages.

Coteaux Champenois Rouge: a still pinot noir from the Beauregard parcel, fermented and aged without added sulfur. It is made with 50% whole clusters layered in the tank, fermented with indigenous yeasts and aged for ten months. Both intense and irresistibly fruity, it holds its own against some excellent Burgundies and recalls that Champagne was first a land of still wines.

L’Osmose, L’Audace and L’Originale: the estate’s historic cuvées, still available from earlier disgorgements. L’Osmose is the house’s blanc de blancs, clear and vibrantly fresh. L’Audace, made entirely from pinot noir, is distinctly more vinous than the rest of the range, yet easy-drinking and remarkably fresh despite its power. L’Originale, made entirely from very old pinot blanc vines, remains one of the most fascinating expressions of this overlooked grape in Champagne.