Charles Ellner Seduction spotlight
The official Champagne Charles Ellner channel presents the Epernay house, 50 hectares across 15 villages, the cellar behind this 2007 Seduction millesime.
2007 Charles Ellner Seduction Brut Millesime Champagne, France (93WE)
Jean-Pierre Ellner's Chardonnay-led 2007 millesime, Wine Enthusiast 93, eight years on the lees you can open at forty-eight dollars.
The 2007 Seduction is 70 percent Chardonnay from Tauxieres and Barbonne-Fayel with 30 percent Epernay Pinot Noir: lemon, white fruit, candied fruit, pastry, and a steely mineral close after no malolactic and 2 grams of dosage, now $48.
A 2007 millesime that stayed tight instead of going soft
Charles Ellner selected the best estate fruit from Tauxieres, Barbonne-Fayel, and Epernay for Seduction. The house sheet is 70 percent Chardonnay, part aged in old oak, and 30 percent Pinot Noir, no malolactic, at least eight years on the yeast, 2 grams per liter of dosage. Wine Enthusiast 93: predominance of Chardonnay, tightly crisp, steely and mineral, tense and nervy, lemon and white fruit, finely structured, a well-balanced dosage. The house tasting is deep gold, candied and dried fruit, pastry, vinosity, freshness, and fine bubbles. This is the bottle that puts a 2007 Epernay millesime on a table at forty-eight dollars.
The house
Charles Ellner has been in Epernay since 1905. The family farms about 50 hectares in 15 Champagne villages. Jean-Pierre Ellner leads the cellar.
The wine
70% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir. No malolactic. Eight years on the lees. 2 g/L dosage. 12% ABV.
The scores
Wine Enthusiast 93: steely, mineral, lemon and white fruit, well-balanced dosage.
The drinker
Serve 45 to 48 F. No decant. Fried chicken or chilled crab.
Lemon and pastry, then chalk and a nervy close
Wine Enthusiast found a tightly crisp, steely, mineral 2007, tense and nervy, lemon and white fruit, finely structured, with dosage only to round the end. The house note is a beautiful deep gold, a mature expressive nose of candied and dried fruit with pastry behind it, then vinosity, freshness, and fine delicate bubbles. A 2007 that still has spine.
A millesime built for time: no malolactic, long lees, low dosage. Drink now while lemon, pastry, and chalk are still loud.
Lemon, white fruit, candied fruit, dried fruit, pastry, chalk.
Fine mousse, no malolactic, 8 years lees, 2 g/L, 12% ABV.
Steely, mineral, long. Serve 45 to 48 F. No decant.
No malolactic, old oak on the Chardonnay, then eight years of lees
Ellner ferments the Tauxieres and Barbonne Chardonnay with a portion in old barrels, keeps the Epernay Pinot Noir for body, blocks malolactic so the 2007 stays tight, then leaves the wine on the yeast at least eight years. Dosage is 2 grams per liter. The point is lemon, pastry, and chalk, not a sweet party bottle.
Estate fruit from 15 villages, sustainable viticulture, independent family house.
Serve 45 to 48 F in a tulip. Fried crust and brine both work.
An Epernay house that still farms its own 50 hectares
Charles Ellner set up in Epernay in 1905. Three generations still work the same villages.
The family owns about 50 hectares across 15 villages, a spread that lets Seduction pull Chardonnay from Tauxieres and Barbonne and Pinot from Epernay.
Bertrand Senecourt is part of the same Epernay picture. Seduction is the millesime cuvee, not a copper-sleeve party bottle.
The 2007 is that cellar after eight years on the lees: lemon, pastry, and a steely close.
Crunch, then brine
A tight 2007 Brut wants fried crust and a cold seafood plate. Mousse resets the crunch. Lemon and chalk meet crab and mignonette.
Two plates. One crispy fried chicken. One chilled crab cocktail. Both can take this 2007 millesime.
Serve 45 to 48 F. No decant. A tulip keeps lemon and pastry in front.
Crispy buttermilk fried chicken
The fine mousse resets the palate after each crunchy bite, while lemon and chalk handle the salt.
Why it works: Acidity and minerality cut the crust. Low dosage keeps the pairing dry.
View Recipe for crispy buttermilk fried chicken (opens in a new tab)
Chilled Dungeness Crab Cocktail
Brine and lemon mignonette for a steely 2007 Champagne.
Why it works: Chalk and citrus meet crab sweetness. Fine bubbles keep the plate lifted.
View Recipe for chilled dungeness crab cocktail (opens in a new tab)Put this 2007 Seduction in the cart
Jean-Pierre Ellner, eight years on the lees, Wine Enthusiast 93. Forty-eight dollars.
Put it in the cart. This is the Ellner millesime for a table that wants 2007 lemon and chalk, not a sweet costume Brut.
