Ayala No. 14 Rosé Champagne 2014 - the latest limited edition of the Collection Series

Ayala No. 14 Rosé Champagne 2014 - the latest limited edition of the Collection Series
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Champagne Ayala Releases Third Wine in Its 'AYALA Collection'

Ayala No. 14 is a rosé Champagne from the 2014 vintage and the third release of the house's 'AYALA Collection' of limited releases.

It has become somewhat of a fashion for Champagne houses to launch small, specialised cuvées aimed at collectors and fizz lovers.

These small-scale limited editions serve two goals: allowing extra insight into the creative spirit and drive behind a brand and showcasing noteworthy expressions of single vintages, vineyard parcels, grape varieties or villages.

Creative opportunities

At Champagne Ayala, these limited editions are called Collection AYALA and the third wine of the series has just been launched – exceptionally it is a rosé wine.

Cellar master Caroline Latrive sees the series as a creative opportunity beyond the stylistic parameters of the well-known Champagne cuvées. She says: “When I see great potential just after harvest and the first fermentations, I allow myself, in specific years, to let my creativity take the lead and explore new avenues.”

Equal proportions

She says of this wine that spent six years maturing on lees and of which just 7,235 bottles were created: “With N°14 the idea was to express the backbone of all the Ayala wines, with three grands crus of Chardonnay, i.e. Cramant, Chouilly, Mesnil sur Oger and two grands crus of Pinot Noir, i.e. Aÿ and Verzy. I wanted to work these crus in equal proportions, exclusively from the 2014 vintage and for the first time in a rosé version.”

Multiple facets

“Rosé is a multifaceted wine,” Latrive says. “So complex to create, with the blending of white wines and red wines, it brings a lot of complexity. My challenge is to convey this complexity whilst making a wine that appears effortlessly vibrant, elegant and pure.” In the case of this limited edition, the pink colour was achieved by the addition of 5% of red wine made from Pinot Noir grapes in the grand cru village of Aÿ.

READ THE TASTING NOTE HERE

Anne Krebiehl MW
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