Very sorry to hear about your dog passing. Can’t imagine how we’ll cope when of ours passes. I’d strongly recommend the krug 164. Drinking brilliantly.
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A few recent bubbles:
- mag of krug 161 (05 base). Absolutely fantastic. Such joy in a bottle. Vivacious, sexy, sweet and spicy lemons.
- 08 bolly rd - initially a very weird palate. Completely flat in the mouth (despite bubbles being present) and tasted really sour, like angostura bitters. Left it for half an hour and it transformed itself. Surprisingly focused/linear for a bolly rd. Almost elegant in its precision.
02 dp - nasty oxidised element to the nose and palate which didn’t improve and somewhat killed the wine. Not from my stash so hopefully this isn’t representative.
We just put our Aussie who is almost 14 down a couple weeks ago. Miss Millie immensely, and still see “shadows” of her around the house having been so used to her lying down in high foot traffic areas to get attention, I still instinctually step over her, or how she hated the vacuum, I reached in closet today and instinctively grabbed the broom to keep her blood pressure down.
Sorry for your loss.
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Thanks everyone, will post a pic at some point of the winner.
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Very nice, Buzz. The good life. We were in HMB this time last year. Love it.
Charles Coquet ‘Dandy’ Grand Cru Brut
This is Winery Direct at Total Wine
50% Chard, 50% PN from Grand Cru vineyards in the Montagne de Reims. Barrel aged, then 4-5 years on lees. Dosage unknown. Disgorgement unknown, but it’s been in my wine fridge for about a year. Approximately $50 with coupons.
Lighter gold color. Large-ish and vibrant bead. Nose of spiced apple and brioche. Red apple initially and some sweet citrus; then ginger/cinnamon/ slightly artificial spicing, nutty flavors, and oxidizing red apple. I kept thinking that the oak wasn’t as harmoniously balanced as it could be and the very vivid bubbles interfered at the beginning. As it warmed out of the fridge, it got a bit flabby.
Charles Coquet’s website states (paraphrasing here) that technical analysis & discussions too often overshadow enjoyment, and their line is made for enjoyment and accessibility. While enjoyment and analysis are not mutually exclusive, the website signals that these are not remotely geeky wines (it’s TW WD…) and they are targeting a different consumer segment. I think the wine achieves this fairly well, in that it echoes the profile of a big house’s entry level offering and is best closer to fridge temp.
This grower brand was revived a few years ago after going dormant in the 1920’s, so perhaps this bottle is not representative of future releases. Not a repurchase for me, but nothing too objectionable (or exciting, for that matter) with this champagne.
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I fell behind posting, so here’s a few:
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2004 Charles Heidsieck Champagne Blanc des Millénaires
I'm liking a lot of Côte des Blancs from 2004. This bottle was very elegant, yet moderately dense. Lemon, apple, saline, a crème brûlée note, and some yeasty autolytic scents. Buzz and FMlll recently posting less glowing reports, but I liked this bottle. -
NV Guiborat Fils Champagne Grand Cru Prisme 15
Our friends' bottle. It's fresh and focused, zingy and delicious. It needs food and a little less time in the ice bucket. -
NV André Clouet Champagne Un jour de 1911...
Our friends' bottle. Ironically, my last TN stated "I've never had an off bottle". While this wasn't off, it was atypical of previous experiences. I always like the interplay of freshness and maturity in this cuvée. This bottle had some nice tangerine going on, but was dominated by savory, creamy mushrooms and spice. It might be bottle variation or the fact that our friend stores it in a closet. It was still fun, but not a representative bottle -
NV Ployez-Jacquemart Champagne Cuvée Granite 90eme Anniversaire
The density, lushness and mature notes of this contrasted the crystalline crisp freshness Guiborat Prisme 15 that preceded it. This is a great bottle; amazing complexity. Without a chance to focus on it, it's easy to miss all of the flavors, textures and aromas. Fresh and dried orchard and citrus; dizzying florals, spice, pastry, cashew, honey...
According to the label: This unique cuvée is the memory of our house, with the union of 12 great vintages. 41% of this cuvée is vinified in barrels without malolactic fermentation with a balanced, elegant, powerful blend and carried by a beautiful freshness of 61% Chardonnay, 8% Meunier and 31% Pinot Noir.
40% 2013; 20% 2000, and the rest from reserves of 2012, 2011, 2004, 1999, 1996, 1995, 1990, 1988, 1983, 1982 and 1976.
This wine would perform much better over a quiet evening than amongst distractions, conversations and festivities. I had two bottles in my cellar, and bought a few more after seeing Alan Weinberg's glowing report. This was the first I've tried the Granite. I've been loving several vintages of their Liesse d'Harbonville, and the NV Rosé is always a fun bottle
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I had this last year and the oak wasn’t integrated at all. Totally undrinkable. I would be curious to try another bottle because I quite enjoyed the less expensive L’elegant. A rich, yeasty and caramel flavored easy drinker. Drank a number of bottles when I had a good coupon and it went on sale.
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Leclerc Briant Millésime 2016
Composition: 50% Pinot Noir, 35% Chardonnay, 15% Meunier
Dosage: 3g/l
Dégorgement: March 2022
This champagne evokes a classic style, characterized by its yeasty aroma and creamy texture. Initially, red fruit flavors are prominent but gradually yield to a balanced, refreshing profile marked by intense saline minerality,medium-plus acidity and in champagne these days rare to find complexity. The finish is exceptional.
As a point of reference, Egly’s Brut Grand Cru often serves as a benchmark, although its price renders it less accessible. Among champagnes of this style tasted this year, Leclerc Briant Millésime 2016 and Benoit Lahaye’s Blanc de Noirs stand out as the year’s finest.
I can write this with impunity as we have minimal stock, for me this probably the producer with the most potential to go to the top. I think the work Hervé Jestin is doing is phenomenal, wether it is mildew management, moving towards bio-dynamic production without copper or just the massive jump up in quality which he has achieved in such a short space of time.
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Laherte Freres Les Longue Voyes, disgorged 12-21, 100% pinot noir, 4 gr/l dosage. At first taste the aromatic fruit hit me, delicious, but followed by a taste that I guess is oak but is almost like diesel to me. I found it unpleasant.
Bollinger Grande Annee 2012 disgorged 7-19, had a distinctive 2012 flavor that I find with other champagnes but can’t really describe and don’t entirely love, somewhere between interesting and distracting. Does anyone have thoughts on whether it will continue to improve? Enjoyed it less than 02 and 04, still waiting for reports that the 08 is in a good place to open those.
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It’s OK with me Warren if you include the photos of the bottle with the writeup as it serves to provide a visual reminder of which bottle fits which notes for future reference/ buying. Just saying.
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Thanks for the input, @Blake_Brown. I like posts with photos as well, although I recall someone complaining (of course someone complained, it’s an online forum!). It’s an extra step to hide them and make them optional, so I don’t mind skipping that going forward.
Cheers
Warren
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Post loudly and proudly, Warren!
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When I first opened the Leclerc Briant Réserve Brut 2018, I was prepared for the richness typical of the 2018 vintage. What surprised me, however, was the amazing acidity. This blend of 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Pinot Meunier and 20% Chardonnay-with a dosage of 4.5g/l and a dégorgement in May 2022-offered rich red fruits and a pleasant undertone of cocoa. But it was the acidity, a real anomaly for such a hot year, that surprised me, adding complexity and a subtle mineral nuance.
The transformative experience that Hervé Jestin brings to Leclerc Briant is incredible.
I originally intended to enjoy this bottle over two days, but that plan was quickly scrapped; the Champagne was just too good. The balance and phenomenal acidity exceeded my expectations, surpassing even what I had previously thought was the best Brut Reserve from Bereche.
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Well, I really liked John’s suggestion to do a birth year wine, so we decided to pop the 2009 Juillet-Lallement to honor our pup’s passing. I also thought it would be good as the producer has not, to my knowledge, been discussed on these boards much, and people are always looking for that next big thing. Could this producer hit it big and blow up? Check out the bold part below…
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2009 Juillet-Lallement Champagne Grand Cru Grande Tradition Brut - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru (9/11/2023)
A small, lovely producer in Verzy that, unfortunately for us Americans, has very limited distribution in the US. A member of the Special Club, their wines are precisely made. Farming is lutte raisonnée and their 4 hectares of 40ish year old vines are situated entirely in the grand cru villages of Verzy and Sillery.
These wines are worth the search, though it appears that this cuvee is no longer being made. The Rose is outstanding and worth seeking out. Many of their higher end cuvees, including this one, see some time in neutral oak. Could we tell? In a manner, yes, but the wine is not made in an oxidative style and does not present any obvious notes of vanilla that one might associates with oak. Instead, there is an ever so faint hint of tannin and grip in the wine. This tannic structure is complemented by well proportioned acidity, to create a very sturdy, broad-shouldered, and serious wine. The wines remind me a lot of Egly Ouriet.
For those of you who like high-toned or more feminine Champagnes, do not let this scare you off. There's more than enough for everyone who loves Champagne in this bottle. The fruit profile is excellent. There are, of course, classic, punchy Pinot notes of strawberry and rhubarb, but the blend is 50% Chardonnay and this fact is evident on the palate. There are notes of apple pie, lemon meringue, and quince.
The dosage is not listed, but seems reasonable. I would guess it is in the 4-6 g/L range. As mentioned, the acidity is noticeable, but not overbearing. Mouth-watering, you might say. The finish is long, with a bit of grip.
The wine has settled down quite a bit since we tasted it at the domaine in early 2019. It has miles to go, so there's no rush to drink up, but it is a delight in its current state. Ultimately, it was a privilege to raise a glass of this in honor of our pup who recently passed and who was born in the year these grapes were harvested.
Posted from CellarTracker
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Besserat de Bellefon Cuvee 1843:
Prestige cuvées have been surprisingly difficult for me to wrap my head around. They have all been fun to drink, some resulted in profound experiences, and others, despite being immediately easy to like, seem somewhat formulaic and interchangeable - a criticism I have twice leveled at this cuvee. And yet, with any particular bottle, there is the possibility that a slight change in the frequency produces absolute magic. Such was the case with this bottle.
On opening, the wine was tightly wound, showing little in the way of fruit, but delivering a delightfully intense core of chalk, salt, and smoke. As it warmed, it took on lemon peel flavors, which gave way to more of a candied sour lemon head and sweet tart character. The complexities were trying to break through, but as they would express themselves a bit, the considerable structure of the wine seemed to swallow them. They kept fighting for dominance, however, and eventually broke through in a dramatic fashion. The power struggle evoked a violent Cronenberg like metamorphosis, but instead of some hideous monster emerging, it was pure beauty. Bright cherry fruit over whipped cream, pineapple, fruit cake, lemon curd, cinnamon, asian pear - it just kept showing me something different with each sip. It was concentrated, extroverted and powerful while remaining supremely elegant to the end. Had a nice refreshing quality to it, in spite of its full bodied power, thanks to strong back end acidity. This bottle wasn’t substantially different from the two which preceded it, and wasn’t nearly as open knit, but had that little sprinkle of fairy dust.
These experiences don’t come cheap, and I wish I didn’t have to drink multiple bottles to achieve them, but wine enthusiasm is ultimately an exercise in degenerate gambling. No regrets.
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This evening in the cheap seats, a producer that I don’t see mentioned previously in this thread: Jean-Claude Mouzon, in Verzenay. What I take to be their entry-level house wine is a very decent everyday fizz for my palate.
Click here to expand my TN
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NV Jean-Claude Mouzon Champagne Brut Et Sans Ciel? - France, Champagne (12/09/2023)
60/35/5 PN/C/PM. No disgorgement or dosage info.
This is a wine that evolves somewhat with air.
On first opening the nose is somewhat muted, and the palate has rather pleasant notes of just slightly sweet stewed fruit (apple/pear) and a slightly nutty edge.
With perhaps 20-30 minutes of air some citric (lime) crispness develops and the stewed fruit fades a bit into the background.
And then after perhaps an hour of air, the nose develops some salinity, and the palate turns more to bruised apple, still with an acidic crispness
The finish is very clean and moreish throughout.
Overall this is a rather interesting entry-level "house champagne", showing various characteristics of their grapes, and working both as an aperitif and with some slightly spicy food. At the ~US$35 that I paid I can see myself buying more of these from time to time. (89 points)
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This pas weekend I found a store with a great price on Taittinger brut reserve NV and picked up six. Had most of the first last night. I really haven’t found a grower producer that I cared to revisit whereas this and Pol Roger’s entry level wine always hit the mark. Next time I’m in that area again, I’ll get six more
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I’ve had this a handful of times over the past 6 months and it is absolutely not representative. 2002 Dom Perignon is in a fantastic spot and, were money not a consideration, I would be drinking this as often socially acceptable.
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