Jérôme Dehours is one of the OG pioneer grower-producers that everyone who considers themselves a “Champagne Lover” should know about.

Bone-dry (there is no dosage!) and super-complex, this 95-pointer is as powerful as a heavyweight boxer and just as surprising light on its feet! Today, at 50% off?! It’s a total knock-out!

Jérôme’s grandfather started the family winery in Vallée de la Marne in the 1930’s as a sort of FU to the big Champagne houses that refused to pay a living wage to growers at the time. Today, Dehours continues this spirit of championing the quality of their terrior and Meunier, the signature grape of the Marne. Krug agrees about the terroir – they’ve been quietly buying Meunier there for decades!

In 1996, Dehours was among the first to make Champagne from single vineyards. “The concept to put the name of the vineyard locale, or lieu-dit, on the label was pure Burgundian. But the Champagne governing council balked at the idea.” explains Wine Spectator.

They continue, “Inspired by Burgundy producers who were doing just that, Dehours quickly became part of a group of young producers revitalizing Champagne. One of his first moves was trying something almost unheard of in the region at the time: creating single-vineyard, vintage-dated crus to show off his old vineyards and their varied, cool terroirs of clay and sandy soils. The concept to put the name of the vineyard locale, or lieu-dit, on the label was pure Burgundian. But the Champagne governing council balked at the idea.”

Wine Advocate also highlights not just Dehours’s Burgundian approach, but his master of Meunier as the backbone of their Champagnes, “Located in Cerseuil, this 16-hectare domaine’s holdings—divided among 45 parcels—are situated on the left bank of the Marne, on one of its tributaries, encompassing a wide variety of expositions. In addition to cultivating his own estate-grown fruit, Jérôme Dehours supplements production with grapes sourced from an additional two hectares. Rich in clay mingled with sand and subject to landslides, these steep slopes are founded on limestone rather than chalk, with elevations ranging from 90 to 200 meters. This contributes to an equally varied geological profile. Pinot Meunier is king in this sector, and the village is a favored sourcing site for Maison Krug. It is in this context that Dehours crafts his complex, flavorsome, vinous Champagnes. In 1999, after studies in Beaune, Dehours introduced the domaine’s first oak barrels—initially secondhand, a practice he discontinued approximately 15 years ago in favor of new barrels, which he now reuses over long periods. Today, he cultivates under the vine mechanically (with two complete cultivations per year), with two to six passes between the rows, depending on seasonal conditions.”

It’s here that we have to remind you that, like most small producers, the don’t make enough to go around.

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95 Points – Vinous “The 2015 Extra-Brut Millésime is another fabulous wine from Dehours. Rich with tropical overtones and ripe fruit, the 2015 is wild and exotic from the first taste. More importantly, it avoids the awkward notes that afflict so many wines in this vintage. The 2015 is rich and intense but also wonderfully light on its feet. The blend is equal parts Meunier and Chardonnay. Bottled with no dosage. Disgorged: May, 2022. Drink 2023 – 2030”

94 Points – Wine Advocate “Located in Cerseuil, this 16-hectare domaine’s holdings, divided among over 40 parcels, are situated on the left bank of the Marne, on one of its tributaries, encompassing a wide variety of expositions. Rich in clay and subject to landslides, these steep slopes are founded on limestone, not chalk, with a band of sand at around 120 meters in altitude, making for similarly diverse geology. Meunier is king in this sector, and the village is a popular source for Maison Krug. It’s in this context that Jérôme Dehours crafts his complex, flavorsome, vinous Champagnes. In 1999, after studies in Beaune, Dehours introduced the domaine’s first oak barrels and began isolating single vineyards. Today, he cultivates under the vine mechanically (with one complete cultivation per year); picks late with lots of sorting when it’s required; and increasingly ferments in larger 500-liter barrels rather than their smaller counterparts, retaining lots of solids to nourish the vins clairs during their élevage. After pushing his wines in a rather more patinated, oxidative direction in the last few years, he’s reining things in: subtly increasing the use of sulfites and refreshing his solera of reserve wines to avoid falling into extremes. His latest releases are all well worth following, and the quality he achieved in the 2017 vintage, especially challenging for Meunier, is testament to the seriousness that readers can expect at this address. I’ll be hoping to catch up with his latest lieu-dit bottlings in the near future, but for now, everything reviewed here comes warmly recommended. Disgorged in May 2022 without dosage, Dehours’s 2015 Extra-Brut Millésime is a small cuvée, amounting to only some 3,000 bottles, but it has turned out beautifully. Wafting from the glass with aromas of pear, mint, white flowers and blanched almonds, it’s medium to full-bodied, racy and chiseled, with terrific depth at the core, tangy acids and chalky structuring extract. Produced every year from the estate’s best lots, its composition naturally varies from one vintage to the next. Drink 2023 – 2035”