This high-quality, small Champagne house can trace its beginnings back to 1870 when Joseph Graser came to Epernay. His son, Armand-Raphaël, started out as a wine broker before going on to produce wine under the name Champagne Graser, which was quickly renamed to AR Lenoble (AR for his initials and Lenoble as a tribute to Champagne’s noble qualities). Four generations have passed, and the brother and sister duo of Anne and Antoine Malassagne now run the estate.
2023 marks the beginning of a new chapter with Ségolène Frère-Gallienne, whose father owns half of Château Cheval Blanc, buying the estate.
One of the first major decisions was a change of name and label, set to take effect in 2025. Another significant move made in 2024 placed Julien Lardy, who previously worked at Ramonet and Vacheron, at the helm of the cellar.
They have 18 hectares of their own vines located in the grand cru of Chouilly in Côte des Blancs and premier cru vines in Bisseuil situated on the Montagne de Reims. The house tops up its own stock of grapes with those bought from the Epernay region. The three main Champagne grape varieties are planted at the domain with 13 hectares of Chardonnay and 5 hectares of Pinot (both types - 83% are Pinot Noir and 17% are Pinot Meunier). This house crafts deep and round sparkling wines with a little dosage and some cuvées are even aged in wood. All reserve wines are aged in magnums on their lees.
The estate has maintained a perpetual reserve that has contributed to all their cuvées since 2000, a unique feature in Champagne. Part of this reserve is aged in 'foudres' (large wooden tuns), while the other portion is stored in some 30,000 magnums for four years before being blended with the latest vintage. This perpetual reserve helps to structure young vintages, enhancing their complexity while preserving the freshness of their youth.