Which Champagne are you drinking?

[David_Bu3ker]

Me neither.

[David_Bu3ker]

I just tried to look it up in the Jancis Robinson Wine Grapes tome. It’s not even listed as an alternative name for something else.

I wonder what it is.

[Guillermo_M]

Peter Liem’s book doesn’t mention it either.

But, since the regs say that, other than Arbanne and Petit Meslier, all the varietals must be a Pinot (including Chardonnay which is an offspring), then it must be a type of Pinot.

[Tom_Won]

I think it may just be referring to still red wine made from pinot noir.

[Robert_M_yers]

Cristal

Oh, I must have been confused! That said the INO always makes a fine Mimosa!

Moved onto

Superb acid, but there is much to be discovered here. great balance of freshness with notes of apricot marmalade. Some pleasant burnt sugar notes reminds me of its MV origins. (This is mostly 08). Always a fun drink!

[Guillermo_M]

Those are very interesting Champagne glasses

[Warren_Taranow]

I really like those Clouet Un Jour de 1911. I’ve been drinking a lot of them, but just reordered so I can set some down for a while. I think they’re in an early drinking window, several years from peak.

[Robert_M_yers]

@Guillermo_M

glasses

I’m not sure they ARE champagne glasses! Found them at a Goodwill and had to give them a try though.
They seem a flute on the base and the bowl of Deco glasses…

I actually quite like them and this is my first go around with them! You can see in the pic that the CO2 is blasting up from the base, and the wide mouth gives an awesome nose.

[B_Buzzini]

@Jon_Lawrence

Warren,

If I recall correctly there were 3 '06 disgorgements of CdG and one of them drank better much better than the others, so much so that we would search it out at auction. I want to say it was the April one, but it sounds like time in the bottle has been very good for your bottle. It would be interesting to do a side by side of each of those disgorgements now.

Btw, congratulations to you and Marybeth!

Would love to know this, as I have a lone magnum of the 2/2006 DG.

[Tom_Won]

I think this might be the best bottle Andre Clouet is producing right now. Superb qpr at around $90 or so.

[Guillermo_M]

Seems close to the shape of a margarita glass, except the rim on these closes in.

Interesting observations on the nose/bubbles effect.

[Robert_M_yers]

$65! Which I agree make it an incredible value.

[Al_Osterheld]

I think the 6.5% Mareuil Rouge just refers to the portion of Pinot Noir (from Mareuil-Sur-Ay) that was vinified as red wine.

-Al

[Robert_M_yers]

Preformatted textBlockquote

emp

Classic razor sharp and quite the contrast to the 1911. Tension to burn here, for citrus freaks this is your jam. I’ve got to hang onto one of these for a decade to see what might evolve…

[Warren_Taranow]

Like @Robert_M_yers said, a steal at $65. Over the past year, I bought two cases for that price, and it might not be enough.

Cheers,
Warren

[Er_z_L]

For a while it has been the in-house bubbly (a while… until the case ran out).Very nice!

[Tom_Won]

I need to move to where all you people are living, I’ve never seen them so low

[Tom_Won]

Larmandier Bernier Longitude. Code on the bottle says LON18, so 2018 base which is a first for me.
Closed but very fresh, almost like the whole vine has been pressed into fresh juice that was just bottled. Fine beads from onset. A bit boozy. As temperature goes up lemon and unripe apricot emerge with faint nuttiness. Upfront acidity that mellows down as minerality picks up. Still somewhat creamy due to well integrated bubbles. Mouthfeel is the star here. Strangely I felt Brie cheese quite strongly as time went by.

[Guillermo_M]

@Tom_Won

Larmandier Bernier Longitude. Code on the bottle says LON18, so 2018 base…
Strangely I felt Brie cheese quite strongly as time went by.

Cheese in Champagne is typically due to full malolactic in high malic acid years. It is, sadly, not as strange as it sounds. And Larmandier-Bernier is full malo style IIRC from last time we did a Zoom with Arthur.

Explanation:

@William_Kelley

Just as an aside, it’s interesting to consider the question of malolactic in Champagne from the perspective of aromas as well as of perceptible acidity. If some of the high-malic musts of yesteryear had actually completed their malolactic fermentation, the resulting wines could easily have ended up rather “cheesy”. There are some 2008 and 2013 white Burgundies that are too overtly lactic in profile for my taste. As malic acid levels in the fruit at harvest trend lower in recent years, this is much less of a potential issue.

Examples:

@Kelly_Walker

2004 Cedric Bouchard Champagne Inflourecence “La Parcelle” Blanc de Noirs
For me this started with a distracting cheesy, malolactic nose though really pure on the palate. As time passed this cleaned up nicely. 90

@Chris_V

1996 Henri Giraud Champagne Fût de Chêne - France, Champagne
This was a really wild and unusual champagne. Clearly the deepest colour of the flight and perhaps the deepest colour of the whole evening. Rich honey with a deep golden brown core. Very rich on the nose with high complexity: mixed roasted nuts, sauteed mushrooms, chicken stock, game, wet forest, decaying wood, apple cider, applesauce, saline, light notes of sherry and a clear and distinct cave aged grueyre note. The rich, round palate certainly has some elevated dosage and a real cheesy finish. A very layered and multi-dimensional wine that clearly shows the oak ageing and oxidative leanings. (93 pts.)

@David_Lobe

1996 Henri Giraud Champagne Fût de Chêne - France, Champagne
Wow…cheese cave central! Mature gruyere, earth, mushroom, umami, beef broth, bovril, blood, and wet dog are all wrapped around citrus, honey and nutty flavours. Beguiling nose.
The palate is quite complex with pure lemon, honey, brûlée, spice, hazelnuts, caramel, apple compote, saline, gruyere and apple cider.
Thie finish is medium+ and for me the weakest part of this wine…but a captivating style of you like an umami’d edge to your bubbly. (93 pts.)

What’s interesting is that 2018 is supposed to be a low acid year. Maybe Arthur picked very early to try to keep higher acids and ended up with too much malic for full malo.

[David_Bu3ker]

Which disgorgement?