Winston Churchill famously consumed a bottle of Champagne Pol-Roger every day throughout World War II, which is sometimes hard to believe, given the scarcity of availability of champagne during the war, but it's a good story. And it's one I was reminded of this week for more reasons than one but the key reason was the late, great man's famous words "In victory I deserve it and in defeat I need it" - or something alone those lines. A visiting friend delivered a champagne to my doorstep to taste and review. I hadn't heard of Champagne Charles Hubert before but am suitably impressed, so much so that it's my wine of the week. 

The first shipment of Champagne Charles Hubert arrived in New Zealand prior to  2021 but it has remained under the radar (and still does). In 2021, Auckland-based Kate Woodward and her mother decided to take the plunge into sparkling wine importation when this champagne was introduced to them by Ash Longburg, who formerly imported champagne into New Zealand and has since moved to Europe. 

There are six champagnes in the Charles Hubert stable, three currently available in New Zealand, including this wine of the week, which is available purely online at this stage.

The Hubert family has been producing champagne for over 80 years and is now onto its third generation of winemakers.

Wine of the week

2018 Champagne Charles Hubert RRP $165

This wine's inviting flavours taste like walking past a bakery whose doors have been flung open early in the morning, enticing customers in with irresistible flavours of freshly baked, apple pastry and sourdough, only this wine is dry and full bodied. Its complex fresh bakery flavours combine with  freshly toasted hazelnuts, oatmeal and layers of crisp citrus notes, which adds balancing acidity and brings length to each sip. Equal proportions of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are grown in an eight hectare vineyard in the Grand Cru village of Ambonnay.  The price tells us this is a special occasion wine but then again, life is short. Seize the day.  
Available from champagnecru.co.nz