Michel Gonet Ratafia 1996

The Gonets have been producing wine in Champagne since 1802. Today they farm 40ha, mostly around Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, arguably the most important Grand Cru village of the Côte des Blancs.

Great strides have been made at Gonet since Michel's daughter Sophie took over and enlisted the help of Marco Pelletier, owner of Paris' celebrated Vantre restaurant and current vigneron at Bordeaux's idiosyncratic Domaine de Galouchey.

The modern era began in 1973, when Michel oversaw a major update of the winery. Under winemaker Antoine Gomérieux and Marco, the range has become more focused. Having friends such as Jean-Marc Roulot certainly helps – the Burgundian legend now sends them up old Meursault barrels.

While many of Gonet's vineyards are around Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, they also own Chardonnay plantings around Vindey in the Côte de Sézanne and on the chalk hill of Montgueux in the Aube, from which they make the excellent value non-vintage cuvée 'Vindey-Montgueux'. From Pinot Noir vineyards further south in the Côtes de Bar comes 'Fravaux', a gastronomic and spicy Blanc de Noirs.

From Gonet's main holdings come two vintage Blanc de Blancs: '3 Terroirs' – a toasty blend of Chardonnay from three sites – and 'Le Mesnil' Grand Cru – a combination of pure fruit and lacy autolysis made from a single parcel in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. These elegant grower Champagnes combine weight, texture and verve better than many much more expensive Grandes Marques.

For his latest project, Marco and his Champagne-obsessed pal Raj Parr have isolated the best fruit in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger – a chalk-rich terroir famed for sublime bottles such as Salon 'Le Mesnil', Krug 'Clos du Mesnil', and Pierre Peters's 'Les Chétillons' – to create 'Les Hautes Mottes'. Spending 60 months on the lees, it is akin to white Burgundy with bubbles and crackles with vibrant energy.