The ten best Champagnes?

WINE TALK
101

There’s certainly the view that they make a shed load so it can’t be great. Which is nonsense of course!

I also think it’s not at its best young and from a small pour. The 59 Oeno my wife and I enjoyed over dinner a few years back remains a great memory.

102

The power of suggestion is very strong especially with a small pour. The 73 Dom Oeno en magnum drank over ten years ago was perhaps the best Champagne of my life along with the 71 Krug Collection and the 85 Dom Rose, both en magnum as well. The 61 from a bottle was also exceptional.

103

May I pose the question in a slightly different way so I can get some advice from the rest of you? I really like champagnes that I would describe as a bit heavy on the brioche and somewhat hedonistic. I do not like austere champagnes as I find them bitter on the back of the palate. I generally do not “get” Krug and rarely like it, although I admit to having had one delicious bottle at Posner’s infamous Ghost Horse tasting (I do not recall the specifics of that bottle). I have only had Salon once or twice and I recall them being good but not overly memorable. I have never had Selosse. I have very much enjoyed many bottles of Winston Churchill and the 1996 Dom Perignon that I had in 2011 was outstanding. So what should I look for.

PS - Gruet is a very nice bottle of bubbly - - - for $15. Would I compare it to the others mentioned above? No.

104

Tasted 14 times with consistent notes!!

105

is your list arranged from a novelty factor? certainly drinking a 1907 heidsieck would be a unique experience, but cannot in any way fathom it being better a 79 CdM. the 100 years in cold water did not make it better- quite the opposite.

106

Dan- I know you are out there somewhere. How did I not get the look for the Ghost Horse tasting after listening to Todd’s exploits at other such events? neener

As to your question Jay- my first thought is to if possible, let the wines age a bit longer (or buy older wines) and bring out more of the nuances you seem to like. I also would recommend a very long aeration. For example, I often will open a bottle early in the day, leave it in the fridge and drink in the evening- that will bring out more of the body. I mentioned upthread a wine that sounds like you 1990 Veuve Cliquot Grande Dame.

107

My opinions/comments:

  • Tait CdC, '95 seems past its prime, but was outstanding when it was younger, '96 to acidic for me, '02 has rocked since release and where else could you have bought quantity of a quality Champagne like that from magnum for under $300 and 750’s for $100? I think '04 is going to turn into the '95 eventually.
  • Krug '90 brut and CdM when on are great, I have had less success with '96 brut than most, '00 drinks very good, but way overpriced in IMO. I attended some tastings of older Krug going back into the 50’s and the older stuff if well kept is just killer.
  • Dom is consistently good, sometimes great. '95 Oeno '06 disgorgement was great for many years, '96 Oeno is now in its prime but it started off real slow, '02 Rose has finally started to put some age on, not a big fan of their '02 brut although the Warhol bottles seem to drink better for some reason. Maybe they added a little more dosage in those bottles for the club kids. I have had great success with '85 brut and I think the '04, albeit a bit light today, is going to be the next '85. Like Krug, older well kept bottles can be killer.
    -Billecart '02 Elisabeth Salmon is another fine rose, probably my favorite for current consumption. The '96 Clos St. Hilaire was on fire in the day as was the '96 Elisabeth Salmon.
  • Selosse is just not my style, in fact I prefer the Initiale bottling because I find it the least oxidative of his line-up
    -Ruinart really shined in '02 with its post '11 disgorgements. Great value as far as Tete de Cuvees go. I had a '93 at a Ruinart dinner last year and it was outstanding.
    -Piper-Heidsieck '02 Rare is drinking great, but I hate the blingy bottle design. '79 Rare from magnum was off charts a couple of years ago.
    -Charles Heidsieck '95 Blanc de Millenaires is a mature '95 that has not yet died. PnP and you will enjoy. I wonder what they are going to release next?
  • Bolly has become too oxidative for me. An '02 VVF was killer for the first 2 glasses and then it just died.
  • Cedric Bouchard makes some of the best BdN around. Since Billecart CsH is not really an option anymore, Bouchard fills that spot for me.
    -Pol Roger did a really good job with their '02 brut. I have mags and 750’s that I got from PC at a great price and are actually in my cellar (sorry Paul, couldn’t resist). I had an '02 WC recently that was just weird. Have not had a good WC since '96.
    -Salon is great, but for the price I would rather drink 3 bottles of CdC. Delamotte NV can be a great value.
    -Philipponnat is another one that has me scratching my head. Too many different disgorgements of the same wine and one is good but the rest are bad, why bother?


    Jay - If you like brioche, Salon is not going to do it for you. I would recommend you try an '02 Saves, lot’s of brioche, without the fat. You may also like '02 Rare and '02 CdC as they are a little sweeter than most.
108

I have not had the 1990 but I had the 1995 and the 1996 and I enjoyed both of them.


I served those two blind at the LRTG dinner a few months ago and I enjoyed both of them. I thought the '02 Rare was excellent.

109

Jay,

If your going to drink a younger bottle of Krug vintage or MV, pop the cork and take a sip so you know where the wine is and then let it sit for a minimum of 1-2 hours; preferably 2. The Krug MV really opens up nicely with a little patience. I do this with all MV/NV and 2000 vintage and younger but I take a few sips when I open to determine what I think is the best course to take. If its smokin out of the gate, cap it and enjoy later. I don’t like to open up Champagne too early because I like to see it open up over the course of the bottle.

110

I’ve had a bad run with Ruinart recently. A series of bottles of the 98 and 96 have been dull and as boring as can be (acknowledging the less than stellar 98 vintage but I would have expected more from the 96). They’re officially in my academy of the overrated for the moment. Waiting to open my '02s and will happily reconsider if they’re as good as I read.

FWIW, my top ten champagnes are:

Salon
Krug
Clos de Goisses
Cristal (needs age to qualify though)
Dom Perignon
Taittinger Comtes
Henriot Enchanteleurs
Peters Chetillons
Bollinger GA
Pol Roger

111

Selosse
Krug
Salon
Dom Perignon
Jacquesson
Dom Ruinart
Henriot Enchanteleurs
Vilmart

Only 8 :slight_smile: will have to find two more favorites then

112

Mine are very close to several posted above. In no particular order:

Krug vintage (Clos de Mesnil but too expensive now for it to count)
Salon (may have crossed the too expensive threshold as well)
Henriot Cuvee des Enchanteleurs
Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill
Bollinger RD
Pierre Peters Les Chetillons
Phillipponnat Clos des Goisses
Dom Perignon
Taittinger Comtes de Champagne
Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle (the multivintage)