Prompted by a recent visit to the Champagne region by one of our wine group members, 6 of us enjoyed a fun and fabulous evening while tasting through 6 champagnes from the 2006 vintage.
Our highly esteemed member had purchased 2 bottles from the 2006 vintage when visiting Champagne Pommery and decided to share them with some friends. It was hosted by another wine group member in his magnificent home that features amazing ocean and mountain views and the timing was such, we got to catch a sunset and experience the stellar after glow which just added more class and sophistication to our experience.
Our generous host provided a starter bubbly to prepare our palates along with an assortment of delectable appetizers including an 8.8 oz tin of Plaza Osetra Farmed Russian Sturgeon Caviar served with the appropriate warmed blinis and toppings.
The starter champagne was:
NV RUINART BLANC de BLANC BRUT- this was a good choice as it definitely served to clean and prepare our palates for the bigger boys to come with its bright citrus laden acidity that included lemon, lime and grapefruit notes that were joined by pineapple and nectarine once tasted; it became more congealed with time as it balanced out while being delivered in an oily like texture.
After the sun had set and the appetizers had been sampled, we moved into the dining room and poured the first 4 and then the last 2 champagnes:
2006 CHAMPAGNE POMMERY CUVEE LOUISE BRUT NATURE- purchased at the winery, this is comprised of 65% Chardonnay from Avize and Cramant, plus 35% Pinot Noir from Ay with only 420 cases made and 20 cases imported; the house’s website alludes to this as being “a confidential cuvee” and only insinuates it being NO dosage.
Initially, the nose was terrible with musty, dusty and grassy weird aromas that also had some apricot and pear fruit in the background; I moved on to allow whatever compounds were being released to dissipate and when I returned 10 minutes later and after much swirling, it became approachable and definitely was getting better; after 30 minutes, it had moved into a more pleasant and still different profile that included mineral driven green apple, yellow apple and lemon zest along with a creamy mouthfeel.
2006 CHAMPAGNE POMMERY CUVEE LOUISE BRUT- 65% Chardonnay and 35% Pinot Noir and comes from 3 Grand Cru villages; Avize, Ay and Cramant; again, I failed to obtain the specific dosage and disgorgement dates, but the one who bought it stated it was dowsed at about 7 gpl; following its medium yellow color came aromas of fresh citrus fruit; the taste profile consisted of mineral and vanilla accented lemon grass, lime, apple sauce and pear; it had a lot of finesse and charm enhanced by its super smooth and creamy mouthfeel; it gained momentum and became more flavorful over time.
2006 BILLECART-SALMON CUVVE NICHOLAS FRANCOIS BRUT- this was comprised of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay, derived from Verzenay, Ambonnay, Ay and Mareuil-sur-Ay, as well as the Grands Crus of the CĂ´te de Blancs, emphasizing Mesnil and dosed at 5.5 gpl; the color was yellow to gold and the noise offered splendid aromas of fresh citrus fruit and yellow apple; the taste profile included more of the same plus some lovely white peach, pear and baked cherry pastry; it was high on the acid meter, rich and complex and yet had lots of elegance.
2006 TAITTINGER COMTES de CHAMPAGNE BLANC de BLANC- I’ve had more of this champagne than any other wine maybe to the extent of being 5x more than any other and this bottle was as good as any IMHO; as with a recent bottle, it had the buttered toasty brioche aroma and taste that I so enjoy plus all of the other goodies that included spicy citrus and yellow apple, hazelnut and chalky minerality; it was full bodied, extremely rich with layered complexity and its hallmark was its impeccable balance; as good as it was out of the gate, it got better and heavily challenged the others for the WOTN.
2006 LOUIS ROEDERER CRISTAL BRUT- 55% Pinot Noir, 45% Chardonnay; dosage near 9 gpl; 20% of the wine was aged in oak; no ML; this was my bring and one that I’ve had 5 bottles of this year, the last being last week when I took it to share with friends I visited out of state and before I knew the 2006 theme for this event; 4 of the bottles were great after being poured, but one was slow to open up and it took 45 minutes to do so before it reached stellar status as was the case with this bottle; the eventual notes expressed included ginger and slightly toasty yellow apple with orange marmalade and lemon meringue pie; it was creamy smooth, perfectly balanced and exuded class and royalty throughout.
2006 KRUG BRUT- coming from a very hot vintage, this is made of 48% Pinot Noir, the majority of which comes from Montagne de Reims Nord, Sud and Les Riceys, 35% Chardonnay and 17% Pinot Meunier which was sourced from Leuvrigny and Saint Gemme; the bottle spent 13 years in the cellar before receiving its cork in the Spring of 2019; it was dosed at 4 gpl; of all of the champagnes we had on this night, this was outstanding from the first taste on and held a steady course for well over an hour; highlights included its signature freshly toasted bread with red and yellow apple fruit in the nose and then the taste where it got covered with honey and Asian spices; a creamy mouthfeel perfectly complimented the taste profile and served to lengthen the finish as it coated the entire oral cavity with a pleasant film of goodness; there was no doubt in my mind this was going to be the winner, but after a lot of time and evolution by the Cristal, it peeked ahead by a hair when it came time to vote. If tie votes were allowed, I would have had 3 #1s.
The final vote was 3 for the Krug and 3 for the Cristal with the Comtes a very close 3rd and the Billecart-Salmon a close 4th.
One thing we learned and are getting more reminders of, wines change dramatically over an hour or so and what we get initially is not usually representative of what the wine will be after more air exposure. On this night, every bottle, save the Krug, went through significant changes and fortunately, all for the better. Had we had a 2006 Salon, it might have taken days for it to evolve as experienced with a 1996 with some of the same people at this same venue over a year ago.
How wonderful it is to share outstanding fine wines with others and on this night, we enjoyed a grand evening for sure.
Cheers,
Blake
