The illustrious Tom Hill happened to be in KC this week, and, while snagging a mixed case from me today, mentioned that he hadn’t seen much of me here lately. Selling wine by day and now by night is pretty time consuming (opened a Champagne Bar here in March), but here’s a (short/boring) note for Tom!
Lilbert & Fils is one of my favorite small RM producers, and one I don’t see discussed here very often. They are based in Cremant, with holdings in several Grand Cru villages. They make a basic NV BdB, a vintage wine, and a small-production bottling of a low-pressure, old-vine NV BdB called ‘Perle.’
The Perle still has a fine mousse, though the texture here is definitely a little bit rounder and richer than the “basic” NV, which can seem painfully young near disgorgement, and while there remains a delightful mineral spine down the middle, it is much more buried in gorgeous Chardonnay/Champagne fruit. This has, for lack of a more appropriate and less over-used word, balance. Mousse, minerality, fruit (mostly tropical, but not florid, and there’s some lemon.lime citrus as well), density, richness and acid all seem to know their place and accept it like a good team. Lilbert’s Champagnes tend to have a very floral nose, and this shows white flower aromas beautifully.
Pretty limited product - less than 200 cases - but worth the hunt. Fantastic with a piece of simply seared Nairagi/Striped Marlin.