Agreed, I would jump on the emotion at that price
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Honestly, I was distracted trying to follow the non-wine related girlfriend/wife commentary
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I think the 2008 BS Elisabeth Salmon at $180 is a no brainer. I’m not sure it’s “sharper” but it’s a truly world-class rose from a vintage with pretty good acids. The Vilmart has a slightl higher dosage (by 1 gram). I just think that the 08 BS ES is a better wine and by a pretty decent margin.
Disclosure - I’m admittedly not a big rose fan, though I somehow manage to drink it with some frequency
We got the Champagne gang together again last night, had been a minute (since we last met in May). @Viet_Ly was in the host role and he did a thoughtful job of creating the contrasts that follow. Just 6 of us last night, around his kitchen table, going through these blind with some Persian-like foods and some laughs and conversation. At the end, Viet pulled out the Chartreuse VEP that he had lugged back from France this summer. Man, that is a good spirit, smooth and unique. And then being Viet, fashioned up some cappuccinos for a few of us, on the fly and by hand–amazing. I can’t even accurately describe the coffee machine he used to do these, what I think were 2 machines and both well out of my cognitive pay grade. Viet’s thinking–precise, thoughtful and creatively tuned in. You can see it in the choices for the flights, and then with the finishing touches of the beverages for the group. Bravo, Viet. PS…we didn’t do the Doritos spirit, although @Chris_Seiber was fascinated (and rightly so) with the thought of it!
CHAMPAGNE BOOKCLUB (SERVED BLIND)--VIET - Viet's Crib (8/29/2024)
As the host, Viet curated the 3 flights, offering pairs with a unifying theme within each. The Bichery Rose was added at the very end as a spontaneous choice to help showcase the producer.
- 2002 Vincent Couche Champagne Sensation - France, Champagne
May 2022 disgorgement. The real deal here leaving this stuff laying down for 20 years before disgorging it. Much respect. 50/50 - Pinot Noir/Chard. No dosage. When first opened, this smelled like crushed rock and then later it gave me a note of toffee. The palate showed lemon peel with tart apple and a bronzy flavor. When cooler in temp, this shows a concentrated and mineral-laden finish, which then loosens as it warms to show pear and a mineral citrus. At more than 20 years old, this remains in very good shape. - 2002 Thienot Champagne Cuvée Alain Thiénot Vinotheque - France, Champagne
Didn't see any disgorge info, was told too that this is 70/30 - Chard/Pinot Noir with 6 grams of dosage. This showed a very fresh profile, both when it was first opened and throughout the evening. Initially an intense red apple, with saline and a gingery spice with a coiled finish. In sum, this was a lot about the cooler cellar temp impacting the wine when we first tasted it. With air, it filled showing orange flesh and tangerine, yet still lively. While I enjoyed this, I preferred the 2002 Couche Sensation we had paired with it.
- NV Laherte Frères Petit Meslier Champagne Extra Brut - France, Champagne
Another bottle of the December 2021 disgorgement. 100% Petit Meslier with 2 grams of dosage. I found white pepper and some bruised apple on the aromatics this time. The palate seemed softer too than past bottles (and this bottle a lot different with lower energy than the same disgorgement I had opened late last year). Spicy, kinda gingery with sour apple, and really didn't find any grapefruit in this bottle, which I found unusual as it's consistently there for me. - 2010 Tarlant Champagne BAM! - France, Champagne
February 2021 disgorgement. I like this version using the 2010 base. Round numbers, this is 50% Petit Meslier, with equal parts remaining of Arbanne and Pinot Blanc. Was paired with the Laherte Freres Petit Meslier, which was a thoughtful contrast that Viet created, and I found that the older Tarlant here was fresher and had better energy than the L-F, at least on this particular night. My notes say wonderfully fresh, with an intense citrus peel and green apple. And at one point when I was tasting it what flashed across my senses was apple pie filling, too. Grapefruit came through very well, but it needed air for that note to emerge. This bottle is in a good place for drinking and no signs of age for me.
- 2018 Domaine de Bichery Champagne La Source Extra Brut - France, Champagne
Bottle 2360, no disgorge info. 60/40 - Pinot Noir/Chard, and not sure of dosage. I found this wine kinda curious, as it has a # of things colliding inside of the palate. Blood orange, cinnamon and a similar bronzy note that was present in the 2002 Couche Sensation we also had during Viet's curated tasting. The wood here is curious to me, as it's not of the vanilla/coconut gone wild style, but more of a toasty, older barrique imprint if that makes any sense. Later I found some green banana, with a bitterness to the finish. - 2017 Domaine de Bichery Champagne Desir Noir - France, Champagne
Sheesh, no notes on the wine and no photo. Can't think there is much of this around. The group came to the conclusion that this was a 2017, although there was a hand-written indication on the back label that said R19 so go figure. This is also 100% Pinot Noir, and I think no dose, but I cannot be totally sure of that. Juicy, lots of lime, particularly lime flesh. I also found some raspberry to it, probably in part to some influence from Counselor Seiber's comment next to me (I think he called out red fruits) and also the inference from this being Pinot Noir. - 2018 Domaine de Bichery Champagne Les Fontaines Rosé Brut Nature - France, Champagne
I'm pretty sure that we had the 2018 and that it was Brut Nature so I elected to add this wine to the database under that belief. This is 100% Pinot Noir, with 15% red still Pinot Noir added. Made in a combo of old oak and stainless steel. I found glossy strawberry here, reminding me of hard strawberry candy, a slick feel to it. I also jotted down pink grapefruit, but likely more akin to a bright savory citrus with a finish of its pith to accent the wine. This was the bottle too that I decided to take the remnants home and I will be retrying this evening under different tasting conditions so we'll see how it aligns to my perceptions of last night....
Posted from CellarTracker
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As a f/up, @Viet_Ly shared the following video with me that Domaine de Bichery made of the artist who created the front label on the Desir Noir bottling that we had last night. Only 500 bottles were made, and each front label is uniquely different from the next. Cool video, short too.
https://youtu.be/JAnSMYtgmNE?si=9TPx9g0d-92GKmpP
And as a final comment on the Bichery Les Fontaines Rose, working through another glass tonight. My remark about glossy and hard strawberry candy is not well descriptive of the wine today. I’d say more accurate would be blood orange, both the flavor profile and the pith. Strawberry, yes, but more tangy for sure, and the pink grapefruit is right there with the blood orange as the anchor to the wine. This is a refreshing, more mineral crafted wine with a lively acidity from the two citrus fruits. I do like it more today.
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If you are finding 2013 Emotion for a buck fifteen, buy it. That wine for me is excellent, a fine example of some of the best of what Rose champagne can be. Every bottle I have had of 2013 (at least 1/2 dozen) have been banging good. And that price, you ain’t gonna do any better, ever.
The one and only true answer is…
Buy both! 
Or a mixed pack 3/3 or 4/2. 10-20 years is a long horizon and when the time comes around you’ll be saying to yourself “I should have bought more!” 
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Not had 13 emotion so can’ make a relative judgement. However, the recent 08 B-S ES was one of the best wines I’ve had in the last few years.
J. Charpentier Rose:
This is a wine club selection from an estate I have never heard of. I was expecting to dislike it; I figured it was unknown for a reason, and rose is not my favorite expression of Champagne, but this is delicious! It’s not complex or especially serious, but man, it sure is blessed with sapidity. Explosive cherry and strawberry notes on the attack which give way to licorice, cinnamon and green apple. It’s got a fairly dense palate and a respectable, if somewhat short finish. An unpretentious bottle of fizz at a an unpretentious price. 80% Meunier, 20% PN.
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In the UK.
There is no wrong answer, both are great as is the pricing. If you are looking to get the biggest bang for your buck, go with the Vilmart. However, since you prefer sharper, higher-acid, you might be better off the BSES. I really like both and I just picked up some more Emotion last week.
I am bringing the '13 Emotion to a dinner tonight to see what my dining companions think.
Another Egly Rose last night at Danbi. 2013 Base Year, 60 months on lees, disgorged in 2019. Gaining richness and complexity yet light on its feet, impeccably balanced, refreshing and a great foil for the varied Korean dishes it accompanied. I’m on a wine buying hiatus at the moment, but Egly is the exception. Today, I happily found an order acknowledgment from Envoyer for more Rose and VP that I’d forgotten I’d ordered. A good find!
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It ages so well, too. We are currently finishing up our last bottles disgorged in Nov 2014, and they are drinking completely at peak, I’d say.
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Shared the '13 Emotion last night with 3 folks who had not had it before and it was loved by all. PnP, we finished most of it before our first course and it was great on its own. If you can find it, buy it. The '12 is very good too, but a step behind the '13 for my palate.
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$10 corkage Monday at One Fifth in NYC. The '96 Ruinart was paired with '96 DP, not pictured. The Ruinart was a bit flat, more orange and ginger flavors. The '96 DP was a fresher example than other recent bottles and it would have been a perfect bottle, but it did suffer from a bit of cork-like flavor. I find this a lot in the '96 DP original and the first Oenotheque disgorgement. It is different from the shroomy, musty smell that the '90 shows a lot. Not sure what is going on here? The other Champagnes were fine, but no show stoppers this night. There was also a PP Chetillons, I believe '06. The restaurant was a breeze to work with, food and service were very good. Looking forward to going back.
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Yeah man! Jon, what is your contrast between 12 and 13? You say a step behind but can you say why?
From my view, the 13 reflects the slate and acid better, alongside the fruit, whereas the 12 is more fruit driven and probably a bit more relaxed than the 13.
This is the second of two bottles I purchased about a year ago. I enjoyed the first bottle, but it had only six months of post disgorgment age, so I left this one for a while. While I am not at all shocked that this improved over this time frame, the extent of the change is shocking - this blossomed into a wow wine - and I enjoyed this as much as any wine I’ve had all year. It’s opulent and creamy up front, delivering lemon curd/meringue and salted butterscotch type flavors, before turning dramatic with smoky soil tones, minerals and mushrooms. The texture is pure silk, and the wine is palate coating, but it’s remarkably airy. It’s also quite complex. Every sip brought new and fascinating nuance. There is a touch of bitterness on the long finish, but It doesn’t present as a flaw, at least for my tastes, so much as it feels like an extension of the many vivid fruit flavors. This is a hell of a Champagne for $53; brut nature done right.
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That’s a great find. As I’ve mentioned before, my last purchase was different than my previous ones. It had a bigger bottle, and saw 48 rather than 60 months on the lees. Like you, I try to buy the Rosé and VP. I’ve been priced out of the Crayeres.
Frank - Ironically, I find more fruit on the '13 than the '12, and I do think the '13 has a better acid profile. I was getting some sweet tarts on the finish, which also get on the Elisabeth Salmon. The first time I had the '13 was 2 years ago. We were on vacation, I picked up the bottle at Wally’s and we drank it overlooking the Pacific at Moonshadows in Malibu. Back then I thought it was too fruity and I preferred the '12, but now that it has calmed down, I have swapped my ranking. Somewhat similar to the '12/'13 Cristal rose comparison, but I think the spread between the two Vilmarts is less than the two Cristals.
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The time on lees has never been consistent, though it does seem to be generally trending down. Some of our stash 2014 disgorgement are 48mo and some are 52.