I’ve learned to never bet against Comtes
I remember saying the same thing about the 2000 on release and 5ish years later someone opened one at a dinner and it was delicious
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My recent taste of #26 was shut tight. I’d hold for awhile unless you have several bottles and are super curious. Huge potential, but…
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I had the Siecle 26 on Sunday and the one I had wasn’t closed at all. It’s showing nicely, although I’d expect it to get better with age.
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This was decidedly not objectionable. I had my doubts. It was marked down from $220 to $68 and I thought maybe it was showing the rot character I heard so much about from the 2005 vintage. Not the case at all; this was really too good to be opening on a random Monday night.
No disgorgement date, but this tastes very youthful. Would guess 2-3 years post disgorgement. It is surprisingly light in body, but has plenty of flavor intensity and a silky, creamy feel in the mouth. Notes of almost every non-exotic fruit I can think of, gently dancing across the tongue, changing form as it does. Fireworks on the mid-palate with a vivid, intense tart Boysenberry explosion. Finishes very long with smoke, mineral, sweetened ricotta cheese, and nutty flavors. Tastes impressive from pop and pour directly from fridge, but needed about two hours open for the complexity to emerge. I wouldn’t pay $220 for it, but it’s a no brainer at $68. I bought three and will go back for at least a couple more.
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I have not bought any Camille Saves in a long time until I picked up a few of these recently, when I started drinking champagne this producer was my go to. Some deep red fruit blood orange and citrus,
the acidity and mineral make it seem almost dry?needless to say I’m back in the market.
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This wine benefits from bottle age, and I believe this was from an older disgorgement. It beautifully balances youthful freshness with a nuanced aged character, Generous notes of biscuit and ripe pear, followed by crisp apple, zesty lemon, and a hint of ginger and coffee bean. This is our high end house champagne.
100% Pinot Noir. Aged 6 years or more on the lees. Stainless steel and neutral oak. Dosage varies from about 6-10. No markings on the cork or bottle to help establish the iteration.
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We recently started purchasing these wines and also find them super focused and dry, which we love. Definitely needs some kind of food to go with it, IMO.
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Great value producer, IMO.
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Bought some stuff from my buddy at Roots and Water in Dallas over the past 18 months and have been just awful about going and picking up my stuff. Fun to find out what you bought more than a year ago. In the mix:
3x 2002 Rare (with 2 original disgorgements with the plastic collars)
1x 1996 Bollinger RD (I have low expectations)
3x 2012 Comtes
3x 2013 A. Bergere Champagne (which I’ve never had)
Some other odds and ends, and a 2000 Chave Hermitage I really cannot recall buying. Have to pop something good very soon!
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Be sure to pop one open now! Mostly because it’s super good!
I came across a bottle back in June and was very happy with it
Glad to hear that. The last one I tried was in February of this year and something was sketchy with the finish (bitterness and a weird artificial fruit flavor). Hopefully, this was an off bottle.
Here is my note from June:
[list][*]2013 Alain Bergère Champagne Brut Millésimé - France, Champagne (6/9/2024)
My Portugese Wine Adventure (the cities edition); 5/11/2024-6/9/2024 (Portugal): This was a pop and pour at Cellar Temperature. The nose is so balanced and elegant with flowing tones of peaches, nectarines, stone fruits, pear, apples, biscuits, smoke, vanilla bean, kumquat, yellow flowers, toast, and baking spices. The Medium bodied feel is silky and refined with tart, high acidity. Lovely schtuff. This is my first time with an Alain Bergere and I don’t want it to be the last. There is some real lovely winemaking going on and I need more of this in my life. (92 pts.)[/list]
I found it at a store in Lisbon that also happened to be the importer for Bergere in Portugal.
Garrafeira Imperial was the name of the store if you or anyone makes their way to Lisbon (they had a fantastic champagne selection amongst other things)
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I had a Roederer Collection 245 tonight that was drinking quite well, though I didn’t have a chance to take detailed notes. For drinking now I preferred it to a 2008 Laurent-Perrier (though it was very enjoyable) and a 2008 Rare. I’ll try to take notes when I enjoy the leftovers of the Roederer tomorrow.
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245 is already out? Where the hell is time going?!
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We needed something while putting lights on the tree. A half bottle of Delamotte Blanc de Blancs did the trick. Really good, but no real notes. I had my hands full…
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I just heard back from Krug. Here’s their response to my query of which iteration this was:
We are sorry for our late reply, we need to consult our archives.
Let us share with you few details about the story of Krug Grande Cuvée.
Krug Grande Cuvée is born from the dream of one man, Joseph Krug, to craft the very best Champagne he could offer, every single year, regardless of annual variations in climate. Since its foundation, the House of Krug has honoured this vision with each new Édition of Krug Grande Cuvée, the fullest expression of Champagne re-created every year since 1843.
Beyond the notion of vintage, Krug Grande Cuvée is always a blend of over 120 plots’ wines individually kept from more than 10 different years. The art of blending wines from so many different years imparts a unique fullness of flavours and aromas, impossible to express with the wines of just a single year, while a stay of around seven years in our cellars gives Krug Grande Cuvée its distinct expression and elegance.
According to the elements provided, both your bottles could correspond to the 151st Edition of Krug Grande Cuvée crafted around the harvest of 1995. This Edition of Krug Grande Cuvée corresponds to a blend of wines, different individualities, from the mid 80s and early 90s. The youngest wines are from the harvest of 1995.
For an optimal tasting, we recommend our Champagnes be served between 9 and 12°C, as colder temperatures limit the expression of their flavours and aromas. Should you wish to cellar your bottle, we recommend storing it at a constant temperature between 11 and 15°C, protected from light, shocks and vibrations – ideally in an environment with a controlled humidity of around 80%. All Krug Champagnes will continue to gain with the passage of time!
We hope you enjoy your bottles of Krug Grande Cuvée and, as we say at the House, invite you to give time to the unforgettable.
Yours sincerely,
OENOLOGIE KRUG
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Thank you for this. I’ll revisit the 2013 soon.
Disclaimer that we sell Bergères.
The BdB Solera is a crazy value.
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Noted!
Q[quote=“Mike_Evans, post:12535, topic:120338, full:true”]
I had a Roederer Collection 245 tonight that was drinking quite well, though I didn’t have a chance to take detailed notes. For drinking now I preferred it to a 2008 Laurent-Perrier (though it was very enjoyable) and a 2008 Rare. I’ll try to take notes when I enjoy the leftovers of the Roederer tomorrow.
[/quote]
Good to hear. I have one bottle waiting to be pulled from storage to try so I’m glad to get some advance news
Still wish they would have poured it at La fete.
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2013 A. Bergere Millesime 50% chard 40% meuniere and 10% pinot noir, bottled at 2g/l dosage. Nose is a bit tight at first, with citrus, a hint of stone fruit, spice, and a hint of that kumquat tang (a good call, Keith). On the palate the meunier is pretty prevalent, with a spicy, tangy apricot and citrus note with a hint of a bitter edge that I can’t really describe (not a negative). As it warms, it shows more creamy lees and yeast to give it a bit more body. Overall, a pretty solid wine. My take here is that this might be a bit more pleasurable if it was dosed something closer to 5-8 g/l. I’ll give these bottles a bit of time. 91ish for me. Solid wine.
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