Egly-Ouriet: One Of Only Six 2008 Champagnes With 100 Parker Points Now Available

If you are one of those who see exciting potential in Champagne, who are familiar with Ambonnay and get goosebumps when you hear the name "Selosse", this is for you. This is not only the first time we have the opportunity to offer this Champagne gem for investment, but one of those Champagne options that really stands out.

Egly-Ouriet Pioneered Champagne Together With Selosse

Champagne Egly-Ouriet is a family-owned Champagne house deeply rooted in the rich soil of Ambonnay - one of the Champagne region's most famous Grand Cru villages. Egly-Ouriet was founded in 1945 by Michel Egly, but is today managed by his son, Francis Egly, who has more than 30 years of experience in leading the family's Champagne production.

The story of Egly-Ouriet is a tale of connection to the land and respect for tradition, combined with an innovative spirit. From the early days when the family grew grapes and sold them to larger Champagne houses, Egly-Ouriet took the step to become a "récoltant-manipulant", meaning they grow their own grapes and produce their own Champagne under their own name - something that today is popularly known as " Grower Champagne". This transition happened under the leadership of Francis' father, Michel Egly, in the 1960s and 1970s and has paved the way for Egly-Ouriet to become one of the most respected producers of Grower Champagne.

The Egly family was in many ways ahead of its time and has had a visionary view of Champagne production. This included a strong opposition to the use of pesticides and a choice to stick to vinification in oak barrels rather than steel tanks - pesticides and steel tanks that were and still are widely used and generally accepted. But most interestingly, Egly was one of the few producers to reject the spreading of "boues de ville" on their vineyards. In the 70s and 80s, it was common for shredded urban waste to be used in vineyards as fertilizer, which is why today, in many of the best and largest vineyards in Champagne, remnants of glass, plastic and metal from this system can be found. Michel Egly did not want any of that in his vineyards.

The strength and fame of Egly-Ouriet's wines today lies in Francis' approach, which is characterized by an almost manic attention to detail, from the careful handling of the vineyards, which are cultivated using biodynamic methods, to the precision in the cellar, where nothing is left to chance.

Egly-Ouiret is today widely recognized as one of the pioneers of the grower movement, independently but alongside Anselme Selosse, exploring and following many of the same ideas and initiatives from that time. Today, Grower Champagne from Selosse and Egly-Ouriet, for example, stand as beacons in Champagne, honoring some of the same virtues known from Burgundy, and have managed to create Champagne of the same exclusive character at a sublimely high level.

Great Recognition For The 2008 Vintage

With the first critically reviewed vintage, 1989, Egly-Ouriet's Grand Cru Millesime, the house's flagship vintage Champagne, we are not dealing with a historic cuvée, but one that has attracted attention. The 2008 vintage, the subject of this investment tip, has been awarded 95 points by Richard Juhlin, 96 by Vinous and a perfect 100 points by Wine Advocate. This was the first time Egly-Ouriet received 100 Parker points but has 2 x 99 points (2002 + 2012) under its belt, as well as another 100-point score for the most recent vintage - 2013.

The disagreement between the three main critics' opinions of the 2008 vintage is striking, but it is also striking that Wine Advocate's Champagne expert, William Kelley, has tasted and rated the 2008 vintage not just once or twice, but three times over three years - and has stuck to the 100 points all three times.

To put the format into perspective, consider this: Wine Advocate has tasted and rated 168 of the already legendary 2008 vintage Champagnes. Of these, only six have reached the perfect 100 points:

1. 2008 Salon
2. 2008 Champagne Roses de Jeanne Les Ursules
3. 2008 Bollinger Blanc de Noirs Vieilles Vignes Francaises (V.V.F)
4. 2008 Cristal Rosé
5. 2008 Jacques Selosse Extra-Brut Millésime
6. 2008 Egly-Ouriet Grand Cru Millésime

This is distinguished company and testifies to the high level of Egly-Ouriet.

A Quick Look At Returns, Selosse And Ambonnay

Looking at the British wine exchange Liv-ex's database, it quickly becomes clear that Egly-Ouriet's vintage Champagnes have seen significant price increases in recent years. As it is a smaller cuvée from a smaller house, there is by nature not a huge data set behind it, but all vintages from this millennium have increased between 200% and 800% over the last five years. The fact that the returns are SO high can, among other things, be attributed to the fact that the starting point for the price five years ago was very low, relative to the character of the wine.

To put this into perspective, we can take a look at two related wines. As mentioned, the majority of Egly-Ouriet's fruit comes from Ambonnay, which is also home to Krug's single vineyard Champagne Krug Clos d'Ambonnay. The 2008 vintage of this has not yet been released, but its sister wine, Clos du Mesnil, is historically easily half the price of a Clos d'Ambonnay. Today, a 2008 Clos du Mesnil costs around € 2,000*. If you want to get your hands on a 2008 vintage from Selosse, you should expect to pay at least double that.

Here you can invest in the 2008 Egly-Ouriet for € 750^*.

*Price per bottle, excluding duty, tax, and VAT, in full cases and perfect condition

RareWine Invest's Opinion

You may not yet be familiar with Champagne Egly-Ouriet, but if you have been following this site for a while and you are an active Champagne investor, you will be familiar with the importance of the above-mentioned characteristics of a Champagne.

Egly-Ouriet produces Grower Champagne of towering character under several virtues reminiscent of what we know from the biggest and best cuvées from, for example, Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune in Burgundy. The production is also extremely limited and only counts around 100,000 bottles per year, divided into 8-10 different Champagnes, where the flagship wine, Grand Cru Millésime, will clearly be the smallest.

With a price that has doubled several times over the recent years, it would be a lie to say that the world has not taken notice of Egly-Ouriet, but the potential remains enormous given the character of the Champagne, not to mention what related wines are trading for.

In addition, 100-point wines never go out of fashion, while the greatness of 2008 Champagne has by no means reached its peak yet.

It is hardly the last time you will meet Egly-Ouriet here, but it is doubtful that we will see quantities of 2008 Grand Cru Millésime. And here you have the opportunity to invest in both regular and magnum format.