It’s La Fete week in NYC, woo-hoo. Another chance to drink more grower, this time Prevost La Closerie. Again, I walked away thinking nice Champagnes, just not what my palate is tuned to.
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Well, there you go. I can do without Bereche as well - never made me happy, over many years and many bottles - but if you don’t like Prevost, it may be a lost cause. 
To be sure, try a bunch of Bouchard and Ulysse Collin. If you don’t like those either (and, to be clear, I only sometimes like Bouchard), you can stop trying!
Jon,
What did you think of the Une Champagne? I really like that wine and applaud Raphael and Vincent for deciding to make something which in their words is “inspired by Dom Perignon where you showcase blending as a way to achieve something where the sum is greater than the parts.” Kind of the opposite of what Bereche normally does and the last time I tasted through the range, it was my favorite by quite a bit.
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I brought these magnums to a couple of La Fete offlines on Wednesday. The first was a Roederer reception with Jean Baptiste and I figured '90 Late Roederer would be a good call. I had it from 750 about a year ago and really enjoyed it. The magnum was similar just much fresher, lot’s of fruit and great acidity. Little known fact, the cursive at the bottom of the label is actually hand-written by JB on every bottle.
Next up was a rooftop party hosted by a very well connected Champagne lover. I knew Olivier Krug was going to be in attendance, so that is why I brought the '90. This is definitely a vintage where the magnums drink much better than the 750’s in my experience. I have never seen so much great Champagne in one place at one time, outside a La Fete Gala dinner. I had a couple of geeky moments myself. The first was standing next to Jean Baptiste as he pulled a magnum of '08 Cristal from an ice bucket, opened it and poured me the first glass. The next was me opening the '90 Krug and pouring it for Jean Baptiste and Oliver Krug who then proceeded to discuss the Champagne amongst themselves in French. So I asked what they were saying and JB said it shows the vintage very well with a sweet Jammy flavor.
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I liked the Une, my 2nd favorite after the '16 La Cran and then '12 La Cran was third for me. Unfortunately, the Une will be impossible to source so I will probably only have une bottle of Une in my lifetime. We voted after each course and it was all over the place.
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I liked Bouchard 10 years ago when I could by it for $60/bottle. $200 for VV seems a bit nutty to me when I can buy back vintage of Comtes for that price. I like Vilmart a lot, probably because it does not drink like grower to me.
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Love reading about geeky moments 
. Giddy, geeky moments with overheard French & Great Champagnes.
Thanks for sharing, Jon.
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Catching up
The LB was a bit lean, needs some time to flesh out its extract probably. Was my second choice.
The Raday was very different to Lurquin, vinous styled Meunier, moving towards heavy through.
The Leclapart was also a bit heavy, candied orange peel and a bit blowsy upfront.
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Yes, as we discussed, not sure this was the lineup to convince you on Bereche (which I love) - I’d have done it with the Reflet, the le Cran and more of his newer grand crus.
You’ll have to settle for grower champagne like Cristal rose 
I thought the late release 90 you brought was great.
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Last night was one of those magically nights when the stars aline, the weather is great, the food is outstanding, I was seated a great group of people, NJ Transit is on-time and the Champagne is off the charts amazing. Even the conversation with my Uber driver on my way home was interesting. He is getting married next year in India and he told me everything he has scheduled for the entire week. Unfortunately he did not invite me, but sounds like it’s going to be great.
Anyway, back to the Champagne. Ah Cristal rosé, I don’t think there is a better rosé, although Vilmart Emotion is close. Jean Baptiste has done amazing things since taking over the winemaking at Roederer. We started the evening with Collection 242 from magnum. I think a lot of folks here will agree that this is drinking very well at the moment. I had it a month ago at a birthday party, I opened a magnum last week when my wife’s family was visiting, I had it Wednesday at the Roederer reception and again last night. Each magnum was spot on, fruity, balanced and an amazing deal for the price.
The real fireworks started as soon as we sat down. Round one was '14/'13/'12. The '14 was nice, but I soon as smelled the '13, boom, so fragrant and that is how JB likes to describe Cristal rosé. He says it is less about the fruit and more about the fragrance. I always thought the '12 was very good, but not nearly as good '13, but last night they were very close, maybe the magnum format made the difference. Round 2 was '08/'04/'02 Vinotheque. The '04 is a sleeper and it won this round for me. The '08, like many '08’s, is in a funk at the moment and needs a few more years to transition to the next drinking window. Round 3 was '99/'96/'95 Vinotheque. Along with the '02, these need more time for me. Very fresh, but they don’t yet have the depth of the original disgorgements. They will be fantastic one day. Round 4 was '88/'82/'76 and the later 2 were tied with '13/'12/'04 for my wines of the night. For me, Champagne does not get better than this.
I have to add that the food was outstanding. Arnaud Lallement and his saucier cooked an amazing meal that paired perfectly with the Champagnes. No one does sauces like the French, no one. Just a wonderful evening and I feel lucky that I was able to attend and my wife did not ask me how much it cost.
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Thanks Nick. Tonight is the Gala dinner so more geekiness to follow.
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I will gladly settle for that grower!
What vintage on L’Aphrodisiaque? I really liked the 2018 disgorged in March 2023 I think. And yeah, it’s a big wine.
I sometimes get the sense that I’m standing alone on this viewpoint.
Great notes, Jon. I couldn’t make it to La Fête this year, but next year looks promising.
Cheers,
Warren
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I think we were pretty aligned with our views; I was a bit disappointed with how the 95 showed, as I think the 95 original release I had at Roederer in July with JB was amazing and I was hoping for similar fireworks. The 96 Vinotheque continues to be great though. And yes, the 82 was, in a bit of an upset, the wine of the night for me, just a spectacular bottle of wine.
Every once in a while, there are some really OMG posts on this thread.
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Were you standing next to us at the reception when JB called Colin “the best random guy”? 
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No, but now I understand Peter’s post.
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Next year is probably LA-centric so an easy trip for you.
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