Thanks, Brig!
This will keep me reading for awhile.
Blake, Even a weak Cristal is still a very good Champagne in my book and we did enjoy it. However, if I had a choice of any of the Cristals from this century the '07 and '05 would be the last I would reach for.
Well stated Jon. I’m happy to drink Cristal any day, anytime and any vintage.
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They are definitely better when drinking with you. 
A 2017 Ulysses Collin Maillons was ridiculously good tonight.
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I feel like this explains the duality where it is described as weak but others counter that it’s underappreciated. People read stuff like “07 is among the bottom 2 releases of this century” and people may expect the worst. Then it exceeds their low expectations.
In general with Champagne (not specifically Cristal), you can sometimes see the opposite effect with sky high expectations for the “great” years (08 and 12). There’s so much gushing in expert reviews, you can imagine something unachievable.
I had the 2016 C-T Les Couarres a few weeks ago (with a bunch of Fu’s caviar) and it was so terrific I had to buy more even though I had more in the cellar already. Haven’t had the Orizeaux, though.
Champagne has one similiarity with Burgundy, one can drink really good to very good champagnes and then one comes along that effects one at an emotional level and transcends the terms good/very good. For me the 2017 Mycorhize, (degorged 10.3.2021) from de Sousa is such a champagne. Firstly this is not a champagne about power but rather perfect balance. It needs about half an hour to open up, it has those elusive delicate creme brûlée, vanilla custard notes, the acidity is nicely integrated and although mild mannered, tremendous persisitence, the persistence that does not disappear so quickly. Perhaps as the vineyard is worked with horse, Agrapart’s Venus comes to mind, this is in fact a dead ringer. The general concensus is, 2017 is not a good vintage, in the sense of Bio-Dynamic producers I disagree. This is a fantastic champagne, I would not want to give drinking windows but think rather carpe diem. Why wait, when this champange is just so good and at a sublime level. Alongside Philippe Lancelot’s Les Hautes d’Epernay Millesime 2017 and Leclapart’s L’Aphrodisiaque 2017 this demonstrates how great champagnes can be made in challenging vintages.
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Thanks very much for this. It is a measure of the enormity of the task we undertake when exploring grower fizz that in the last 4 years I have drunk over 150 different grower champagnes, but only (at a quick first look) 5 of those also feature in this list of 250 tasting notes.
(Although I note that the list excludes wines rated by their reviewer at 87 points or below, which may just show that I have been drinking crappy wines. This would not be surprising given that only 3 of those 150 wines cost me more than US$50.)
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Back to a representative bottle last night after that compromised bottle a couple months back. Quite nice.
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So Essi Avellan MW has come down from her ivory tower and gotten her fingers dirty reviewing grower champagne. One sort of gets comfortable with the point inflation Anthony Galloni and William Kelley and with Essi Avellan we get a dose of cold reality. I am firmly footed in the grower producer scene but even I must admit the big shots like Krug and Roederer are playing in a completely different league, both Galloni’s and Kelley’s points do not really reflect this but to their credit, they are probably more at home in the grower scene than Avellan, whose magazine has basically been a mouth piece for the maisons for such a long time, this damascene conversion is way too late and not really believable.
As Essi Avellan uses the point scale properly rather than compress everthing into 90 points. It comes as a bit of a shock to see champagnes I particularly like being rated with 88 points but this probably demonstrates objectively the distance between top champagnes like Krug and grower producers. It is a shame she does not move markets as we might get a sense of realism in the present crazy price inflation beginning with the producers. I mean 90 point for Cedric Bouchard’s 2020 VV, Galloni is at 93 points and William Kelley has not published yet. Funny when one thinks a champagne, I am particularly fond of, Maillart’s Platine has also received 90 points and we had to take the big step and increase the price to above 90 points. Is she saying Platine is at the same level as Cedric Bouchard, I know this but does the world of fine wine lovers willing to splash out so much money want to hear this?
Then the drinking windows, I am with her when it comes to being sceptical of the aging potential of non sulphur champagnes, but countless low dosage champagnes with extreme ripeneness and sulphur are given ridiculously small drinking windows. I am guessing here is a lack of experience with these grower producers and better safe tham sorry.
The 2017 vintage, some one else pushing the narrative about this vintage being a write off, at least this narrative is good for us not wanting to pay for overhyped champagnes. Why? Up until 2017 most maisons did not really care how the grapes were cultivated, in 2017 Bio-Dynamic producers showed what was possible, they managed to harvest healthy grapes and make interesting champagnes. This was the real wake up call for maisons. Avellan like Rebecca Gibb MW at Vinous seems to be pursuing a vendetta against bio-dynamic producers and producers leaning towards natural wine.
And then the failures which are unfortunately abundant, a really god example. Clandestin’s Boreal, probably the best of the new releases, anyone ordering this champagne based on the 93 points and the 8,8g/l dosage which is indicated will get quite a shock when they discover this is Brut nature,
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NV André Clouet Champagne Rose No. 3 - France, Champagne (08/04/2023)
Four years on from my last TN, a new purchase, presumably from a new batch, although Clouet put no information on the labels.
This is a very approachable rosé: dark, slightly sweet, fruits on the nose; crisp, balanced, but slightly lightweight palate with red fruits and a nice bite; clean slightly mineral finish.
Not particularly complex, but definitely a crowd pleaser, and OK, but not great, QPR at the ~US$43 I paid for this bottle. (89 points)
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Someone say biodynamic 2017?
Rich and very meunier, lower acid, a little burly. Atypical for sure but enjoyable.
I was just now putting my new bottles of 2016 C-T Les Couarres in the cellar and I was studying the label with the detail. And then compared it to what I already had in the cellar. The “older” bottle was 60/40 pinot/chardonnay (or vice versa I already can’t remember) and was disgorged 3/21 and the newer bottles are 100% pinot with a disgorgement date of 12/21! I didn’t realize they had different cepage and bottling dates for the “same” wine.
All 2016 vintage, low dosage, etc.
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Are you positive that they are the same wines? Per Peter Liem, C-T makes Les Couarres which is 60/40 PN/Ch and Couarres Chateau which is 100% PN. I don’t know how the labels look, but that is a very confusing choice of names.
I hadn’t seen that; thanks! I just skimmed some reviews on wines I buy. Interesting he rates Vilmart’s NV Grand Cellier higher than the '18 GCd’O, the '15 CdC, and the '14 Emotion Rosé. I haven’t tasted them side by side, but have loved earlier vintages of the latter three.
On a parallel note, my buying and drinking has trended towards single vintages and single vineyards. That might not turn out to be the best strategy. There’s a lot to be said for blends of various sites and vintages, which are historically Champagne’s tradition.
Cheers,
Warren
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I haven’t opened any of my 2007 Cristal (I think I only bought a couple). However, I suddenly have a soft spot for the '07 Taittinger Comtes, which I only bought because it was a package deal with the 2008’s.
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2019 Guiborat Fils Champagne Grand Cru tethys.19 - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru (4/6/2023)
BdB disgorged March 2022, labeled extra brut. Really austere on pop and pour, very round and rich, showing loads of lemon candy. The richness hangs around even with air, as does the lemon candy. A bit of grapefruit comes into the finish too, tip-toeing the line of bitterness. This is super young, so maybe it comes around, and I’d wait if I had more.
Posted from CellarTracker
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2015 Agrapart Champagne Grand Cru Minéral Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru (4/7/2023)
nice richness up front, marzipan, brioche, finishing into candied lemon and a welcomed freshness. Air brings it more into focus, the fruit growing but keeping the nice finish and overall round mouthfeel. Initial feeling is keep holding.
Posted from CellarTracker
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2011 Roses de Jeanne / Cédric Bouchard Champagne Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs Côte de Val Vilaine - France, Champagne (4/8/2023)
in a really nice place right now. Lovely ripe fruit initially on the front of the tongue, followed in the back by a really nice toffee and brioche note. It’s really nicely balanced, still with really good acid on the finish. I can never really decide if I prefer these younger or aged, they provide very different enjoyment but delicious either way.
Posted from CellarTracker
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2012 Comtes. Good but lacking in comparison to 08 and 12 Dom, 08 Comtes. Would rather drink many less costly bubblies. Fairly open, nice fruit, solid wine but not special.
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Opened up a 1999 Charles Heidsieck Rose. Drinking really well right now. Had both the fruit and the light mature notes. Not very vinous yet. Last bottle about 6 years ago was really closed, but this was magnificent and went really good with various grilled oyster dishes, tuna tartare and grab cakes at Brine in DC.