A small Champagne house with a great big reputation, Philipponnat is the thinking person’s fizz. A formidable reputation has earnt Philipponnat some brownie points; the fortuitous situation of one of its single vineyards is considered simply one of the best in the region - and therefore the whole of the sparkling wine world. Named Clos des Goisses, if you only invest in one bottle of bubbly this year; let this be it.

As more and more Champagne houses get sold to big-name corporations, it is nice to know that a Philipponnat (in this case, Charles) is still running things at his eponymous brand. Three decades of checkered history led to the house being sold three times, but the sale to Lanson BCC in 1997 was only authorised with the caveat that Charles would be running the show. Understandably so, as the family can trace their heritage back to 1522, so are no newcomers to the region. So proud are they of their deep roots that they have named two of their 13 cuvees 1522, in honour of the family's origins to the area. Charles’ expertise and technical skills have elevated Philipponnat to that of a connoisseur’s brand, producing 58,000 cases annually, every drop is liquid gold.

But it is their superstar product that interests us here. As defined by a 1921 regulation, a “Clos” must be an area enclosed by walls unable to be “jumped by a horse and rider”. Currently, there is only a handful of Clos that can compete on a quality level (Krug’s Le Clos du Mesnil perhaps the only contender), and of these, Champagne Philipponnat Clos des Goisses soars above its competitors. Just 20,000 bottles are produced annually and are of such rare quality that, despite the 10-year ageing prior to release, should age comfortably for decades to come.

Because of its low production, Clos des Goisses in understandably in high demand. Its latest stellar offering, the 2008, had already risen significantly in value 12 months after its release in 2018, and if history is to be believed, will undoubtedly show a rise over the next three years, with prices more than doubling over ten years.