Alexandre Filaine Cuvée Spéciale
Base 2020 I think? Red apple, other orchard fruit, background of citrus fruits, quality on show, this wine has bright acidity and persistence. Bit of toasty character arrives in the mid palate before a medium plus finish. Rock solid champagne.
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Thanks for adding the notes, Astrid. Lackluster? No!
To clarify, since it might not be, my comment about the L-P seeming like Vilmart was to convey the fruit profile of the wine reminded me of what the Les Blanches Voies site yields in its flavors. I put Coeur de Cuvee as a reference but even Grand Cellier d’Or. Richness, some tropical, orange flavors, citrus, plus the soil aspect. That kind of thing. I just want my reference to make sense.
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Some recent Champagnes:
not pictured is a 2006 Philipponnat Clos de Goisses. Bold & voluptuous, without being too much. Just enough acidity to keep it all in balance. Probably at its peak for my tastes, with a little caramel/ox peeking through as it warmed.
2012 Piper Time to drink up, which is a bit unusual for 2012. Many have been very tight, but not this one. Definitely a big house profile with the dosage being evident, but it was OK. Guests seemed to enjoy it.
Camille Savès Rosé Yum. Red berries and red apple, good acidity, short finish. Made the Piper seem clunky in comparison. Perfect pairing with carrot soup.
Vilmart Rubis Round strawberry. Very good, but seemed like it could have used a hint more acidity. Forgot to write down disgorgement
Angelique Lacroix Rosé Inexpensive and cheerful. A prior bottle was corked. Light strawberry and raspberry, a bit of lemon in the mid palate. Would repurchase if the bottle fit into standard racking.
Jean Laurent BdB Griffe de L’Ource
Disg 2022, dosage 5g/L. Powerful BdB, carries the dosage pretty well. This is not a delicate BdB - if you’re looking for elegance, move on. If I had a criticism is that just a hint more acidity would have taken it to the next level. Shockingly (for me), I prefer Jean Laurent’s BdB over his BdN Griffe de l’Ource. The BdN was so big and combined w/ oak, it came across as heavy and clumsy.
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I feel like I really need to meet @AstridKG
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This thread has slowed down, much like driving the 405 here in LA. Let me help with a new note.
I received all of my Benoit Lahaye that I had bought in the last offer from Lopa so I have been working through some of the wines. Of note recently was the 2018 Violaine which I found to be a fatter, bigger shouldered version of the wine, and I find this vintage of the Millesime to be similar.
- 2018 Benoît Lahaye Champagne Grand Cru Brut Millésimé - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru (4/16/2025)
Disgorged October 2023. 3 grams of dosage, 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Chardonnay from a single parcel (located in Bouzy) called Le Mont de Tauxieres, which is in the western most part of the village boundary. Opened yesterday. This pours with a modest level of gold for color. When I had the glass yesterday, the wine started off with a big cut of red apple. Today, the apple takes on a more bronzy aspect, exhibiting a chalky and lightly oxidative apple with a rounded off note of savory citrus. The Pinot Noir fruit is prominent today, wrapped in the same savory jacket--strawberry, and blueberry. There is weight here, a plumpness that I like. When the wine warms up then some pear comes through from the Chardonnay, along with some citrus peel (which may feel bitter for some). Where I land on this vintage is fatter, and it drinks with some shoulders on it.
Posted from CellarTracker
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Enjoying my first bottle of this wine now, the NV (not sure if yours was vintage or not, I have both, new producer for me so I opened the NV) - love your note on the underripe raspberry, the magic of Pinot Meunier in a ‘white’ sparkling wine! Rich yet delicate, lively and interesting wine. Great buy at $45
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On our old reliable tonight with a 2018 disgorgement (laid in caves in 2011) of NV Charles Heidsieck Brut. Delicious as usual with some fresh orchard fruit remaining and maturing Maillard and nut flavors. Concentrated and long.
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I think this had to do with @ToddFrench menacing to tariff international TNs. I know it got me scared.
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I wasn’t planning on opening anything last night, but I was “forced” into it with an insane finish to the Manchester United match. I love JM Seleque and it’s been a bit since I’ve had this bottling:
NV J-M Seleque Champagne Le Quintette - France, Champagne (4/17/2025)
This was disgorged in 9/23 from a 2020 base. The nose is fresh and poised with balanced tones of red apples, nectarines, peaches, baking spices, pears, toast, biscuits, nougat, vanilla beans, and some spring florals. There is good depth and seamlessness with a deft balance. The Medium bodied feel is balanced and poised with mouthwatering, high acidity that has lovely persistence. It’s been a few years since I last had this and it’s still excellent. This could likely age further, but it’s really firing right now. (92 pts.)
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More Champagne for my soul. I feel like these days that I need to keep connecting with my soul, the stuff that helps keep me smiling and engaged, amongst other things like gardening, reading and hockey, so too does Champagne keeps my soul fed.
- 2020 Ruppert-Leroy Pinot Noir Champagne Brut Nature Les Cognaux - France, Champagne (4/18/2025)
October 2022 disgorgement. 100% Pinot Noir from their Lex Cognaux plot. I believe this is grown on the Kimmeridgian, too. No sulfur and no dose, which is the way for R-L. Opened this about 30 mins ago, and this seemed to me ready to go. Perhaps a lower pressure here, as the wine seemed to soften out the bubbles of my StandArt glass very quickly. I don't mind, as I like Champagne as much with bubbles as I do still. Lightly smoky and toasty aromatic, as if this saw some wood, just enough to pop a little seasoning through the wine. I read Ghoulardi's note (as of tonight, this is the only note in CT on the wine so far), his comments about oxidative made me pause because I don't much like doing oxidative styles, and I know the R-L wines can sometimes go there. I sense some here but for me, there isn't all that much, and it's not much of a player in the wine. Instead, some lime skin which adds a gentle citrusy note to the edges of the texture. Apple, with some slatey cherry that comes through really well. Like Ghoulardi noted in his comments, there is a softness to the wine, in a way that works great. There is just a subtle but present feel of red fruits, a moderate acid and the Kimmeridgian giving this a slatey, mineral thing in the finish. A very good bottle of R-L Les Cognaux, at least to me.
Posted from CellarTracker
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Did you catch the disg. date?
Don’t recall the exact date but it was 2023.
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Chris, this is a great choice. Glad you took a chance on it. Try Grand Cellier d’Or next.
Thanks Frank. Any particular vintage you recommend?
Carlo
You’re probably going to be limited to the current releases which depending on where you live would be 2017 or 2018. I like them both for what it’s worth.
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Verbosity and thread drift warning!!!
Yesterday I rented and rode an e-mountain bike for the first time. I enjoyed it more than I expected and left thinking I might be able to keep riding well into my eighties. I’ve started calling it “Gerovation,” a blend of “geriatric” and “innovation.” As I age and inevitably slow down, the technology seems to keep improving, allowing me to keep biking and skiing at a level that reminds me of decades past.
It felt worth celebrating. The friend I rode with, who didn’t like his bike as much as I liked mine, and unfortunately crashed and broke a rib, joined me for dinner with our wives. I brought a 2009 Guy Larmandier Signe François. It’s a rich, expressive Blanc de Blancs from old-vine Chardonnay in Cramant and Chouilly. Five years on the lees, bottled with zero dosage. Surprisingly dense and sappy for a Brut Nature, it showed citrus, yellow apple, toast, cherry (seemed odd for a BdB) and hazelnut.
It lacks the grip and cut of the 2008 but shows the generosity of the 2009 vintage. There’s good energy and a smoky, mineral edge that keeps it balanced. I liked this bottle much more than the first two I opened. I had originally bought six after picking up a several of the 2008 and regretting not buying more. The earlier bottles of '09 were fine, but not close to the 2008’s level. This one was. I’d happily drink it on its own, with a hearty meal, or to end the evening.
This view was at the top of Galbraith Mountain, on my way to a new favorite trail called “Larry’s Pizza”. If any Berserker wants to come up to Bellingham and sample our world-class trail system, LMK.
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I’m not sure how many bikers will be rushing up to Bellingham to ride trails with Warren. 
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Last night’s 2002 Dom Ruinart was an absolute joy. At 23 years of age(!), its still taut and nervy, with penetrating lemon zest and pear. It had me turning to WS looking for more (and then turning away when I saw what had happened to the price).
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