NV Champagne Roger Coulon Heri Hodie Premier Cru Extra Brut NV (Giftbox)

Deep in the Champagne world, so long dominated by large multinationals, there is a core group of producers colloquially known as the Gang of Six.

As a whole this group not only makes the world's rarest and most sought-after sparkling, but they stand as a point of difference. They make Champagne more like it's Burgundy, with the emphasis not on packaging and marketing, but on vineyards, soils and sites.

Roger Coulon is one of those six.

Like the others in this group (amongst them Selosse, Egly-Ouriet and Larmandier-Bernier) Coulon is a family-run concern. They're artisans, hand-harvesting from old vines (a rarity in Champagne) that are farmed organically, the wines then resting on lees for an extended time.

Here's the clincher though - Roger Coulon famously disgorges to order, which makes for some of the most inordinately fresh Champagne you'll ever try. Coupled with a very low dosage (3g a litre) the wines have laser-like vivacity that is unemulated.

It's a fascinating exercise to take glorious grower Champagne like this Roger Coulon Heri Hodie Premier Cru Extra Brut NV and compare it with even vintage 'big house' Champagne. It's like comparing home-grown organic, heirloom tomatoes to the typical flavourless fare you’d find in a chain supermarket.

This is a lovingly produced work of sparkling art from Roger Coulon that comes enclosed in it’s own special gift box. This one puts the ‘sparkle’ back in Champagne. The proof is in the tasting. Don’t miss out.