The Paul Bara Grand Millésime 2018 is a vintage Champagne from Bouzy Grand Cru, built on Pinot Noir with a small portion of Chardonnay. Fine-boned and savoury rather than showy, it carries the red-fruited weight Bouzy is known for without losing its freshness.

Aromas run to dried pear, white peach and citrus peel, with chamomile, crushed almond and the toasty, brioche-like depth that comes with time on lees. The palate is dry and gently expansive, red apple and tangerine sitting over a chalky, faintly saline core.

Because the wine skips malolactic fermentation, the acidity stays bright and linear, holding the fruit in shape through a long, mineral finish. The mousse is fine and persistent, the texture creamy at the middle and firm at the edges, closing dry with a lingering hint of citrus oil.

Pinot Noir at this weight wants food. Try it with roast chicken and pan juices, pork cutlets, seared scallops, a plate of jamón, or a wedge of aged comté. It also handles richer autumn cooking — mushroom risotto, roast quail — better than most sparkling wine.

Drinking beautifully now and through to about 2032, with bottles cellared well likely to gain further nutty, savoury complexity along the way.