NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Edition 164eme - France, Champagne (3/6/2023)
This might just be my ALL TIME favorite Krug...period! I think the blending is masterful here...48%PN,35%Chard, 17%PM base from 2008 with reserves back to 1990...this bottle DG spring 2016...it continues to gain and gain in complexity and richness, while still showing HUGE citrus cut and energy...such a mouthful of freshness, lemon tarts, ginger shots...totally chiseled with saline minerality, yet with perfect balance of yeasty nuanced ox, and white honey butter creme...complexed with dried fruits, nuts, honey...some white truffle...a wet chalky slate and sour tart finish for days! GOAT? +pts (98 points)
Holy moly, sounds awesome. Love Krug, but I’m relatively new to NV lot watching — I drank a bunch through the years but never paid the lot any mind until the 168eme lot got a bunch of love.
I just loaded up on the 170eme at a great price, so hopefully these later lots show like the 164 in time!
LOL. Good luck! '14 and '08 base vintages are mighty different. Had the 170 last month and it’s an enjoyable drink now, but very limited in depth and definition.
Luckily I was able to get a bunch of mags; there were some insane sales 2-3 Black Fridays ago; i think WHWC and HDH both had the 164 mags for ~300 and I think I bought almost all of them.
absolutely. Ambonnay once, Clos du Mesnil a few times, vintage a lot, and lots of MV, 1/2 bottles and full. Love it. Will open one soon—I’m about to be a grandpa . . .
Too bad. I read a couple very favorable notes from fellow berserkers on the 170eme specifically and that (plus the price, basically $122 a 750ml bottle) was all the encouragement I needed.
Sort of. 170 felt very disjointed all the times I’ve had it. That’s not really a quality I associate with recent release Krug Grand Cuvées. They feel young, sure—and with plenty of upside to be had by ageing it in the cellar, but ultimately they still feel like complete wines on release. 170 didn’t really feel like that and felt like it was missing something. Certainly some of the classic notes of the house style, but not particularly compelling, especially at the price point. Cellaring it will round out and fill in some of those features, but so far I have not felt it a particularly compelling version of Krug to chase down and stock up on. At the current prices, I’d rather chase down more 168 and 169. Though at the price you paid, buying it and cellaring it is a very different conversation.
Meh. I paid not that much more this year for the '12 CdC which is one of the best bubbles I’ve ever tasted. Maybe not at the level of Salon, CdM, P3, etc but that’s rarified air at 10-20x price. Subpar wine at any price isn’t a good deal, IMO.
I agree with Andrew. '12 Comtes is the Champagne to buy at the moment. Better than any recent releases of DP and Krug GC for my palate. Get it while it is still available.
