Fresh face at Champagne Ayala

Julian Gout has been cellar master at Champagne Ayala since 2022. We remember him as assistant to previous cellar master Caroline Latrive. Julian was then both winemaker and vineyard manager at Ayala because ‘from grape to bottle, the team works together for the best terroir wines that go into the blends’.
Image: Alaya

This year the harvest in Champagne started early due to the warm weather, as early as the end of August. What is mid-September Julian's takeaway? ‘That our team still had patience to wait for the grapes to reach optimum ripeness.’

What does he consider important as a winemaker?

‘I favour organic cultivation and emphasise freshness, purity and low dosage in our style.’ Dosage is the amount of sugar in the liqueur d'expédition, the liquor added to champagne at the end, and this low dosage is unique at Ayala. Julian: ‘Our founder Edmond de Ayala pioneered the introduction of a drier style and had the guts to launch champagne in 1865 with just 21 grams per litre. That was daring at the time, as the traditional French dosage was more than 150 grams.’ 

Dry

The 36-year-old Julian is a scion of a local winemaking family and ‘born in the vineyard’, he says himself. He had already worked at grandes marques as Bollinger, Taittinger and Selosse. From Ayala's cellar we taste his brut, the flagship of this boutique winery. The super fine mousse stands out, as does a harmonious bouquet of aromas: floral, brioche, almond, apple and lime. How much sugar is in this? Julian: ‘Only 7 grams per litre, whereas for a champagne brut nowadays 13 grams is usual. This low sugar content makes it fresh, clean and pure.’ 

Ayala is located at the edge of the champagne village of Aÿ right next to the vineyards on a chalky soil with limestone and clay. Over a four-hour drive from Utrecht, it's a lovely place for a lightning visit, to see the historic cellars, taste champagne and fill up the boot.

Ayala Brut Majeur NV / WINECIRCLE.CO.UK / € 47.95

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