IMHO, this will evolve even more than it has now and it’s already quite impressive.
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2012?! Don’t doubt it!
Over the weekend I popped a Selosse Sous le Mont, which is apparently from a site adjacent to Clos des Goisses. It was smoky and oxidative but also had a strong bitter herbacious note that was overpowering to my taste. Although the Selosse and CdG were very different overall, the overwhelming bitterness made me think back to my previous experience with CdG.
Peter Liem’s Champagne book says there’s a “characteristic bitterness from the high magnesium content in the dolomite bedrock here.” I wonder if I am just particularly sensitive to this flavor?
A new wine for me this evening. CT lists both a Brut and an Extra-Brut of this, but my perception from reading the producer’s website and the TNs on CT is that there is actually only one wine, labelled differently for different markets. I believe @Phil_T_r_o_t_t_e_r sells this producer’s wines, so maybe he can confirm?
Anyway, not my favourite to be honest, although from previous entries in this thread I guess Phil will disagree.
- NV Leclerc Briant Champagne Extra Brut Reserve - France, Champagne (07/10/2025)
40/40/20 PN/PM/C. From 2020 although vintage not declared. Tirage 7/2021; disgorgement 4/2024, dosage 4.5g/l.
The nose is rather reticent, but notes of toffee, slate-y minerality, and citrus can be teased out with much swirling. The palate follows that with the acidity to the fore and the minerality and just a hint of toffee following. The overall impression is rather straightforward and mouthfeel is somehow rather thin. The finish is just a touch drying, but with just a slightly sour citrus note.
Overall, although there's nothing actually wrong here, I don't find this a very interesting or more-ish fizz, so it's not a repeat buy for me at the ~US$47 that I paid. (86 points)
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Well I can’t disagree with which one is your favorite that’s for sure 
! But yes, I really like Leclerc-Briant and I’ve rarely been let down by their BSA.
In regards to labelling the dosage I’m not sure if they differ by country but they switched from Brut to Extra-Brut a while ago. Their Brut had been on the lower end of dosage before that but I guess at some point, with market demand, they decided to label it Extra-Brut.
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My ranking of recent vintages in the vertical we did was 169, 172, 171, 170
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That sounds about right to me. Really only had a quick glass of 170 amidst the bottles when Matt King was in town- could quibble over it or 171 at the bottom
I had the 168, 169, and 171 over the course of a few weeks last December and early this January and found them very close in quality, though the 171 just a tiny notch behind. I may have inflated the 171 a little in my excitement over nailing it blind in a flight with 2013 Salon and Grand Siecle No. 26, but it was also my clear favorite of the flight despite the pretty stout competition which cuts in its favor.
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If you can make it in November, I want to bring the 169. I feel 168 & 169 are showing incredibly well this year. With a larger gulf to their younger siblings than you, I think.
This is an ideal flight in 20 yrs time
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Thank you Frank!
I finally opened the 2020 blanc de blancs amphora bottling this week.
What a lovely wine! Soft with an appealing creaminess
It didnt have the acidity to pair well with Noreetuh’s fried chicken (an Argiles was perfect for that) but amazingly it paired perfectly with the accompanying macaroni salad 
NV Voirin-Jumel Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru (6/14/2025)
– popped and poured –
– tasted non-blind over a couple hours –
Bright pale yellow color. Bright crisp apple on the Nose, leading into a predictably crisp and dry palate, with light pear/apple fruit flavor, and a chalky mineral finish. Straightforward, but very nice – it’s higher-pitched, in the dry/crisp style – not oxidative or autolytic. Medium-light concentration of fruit. Priced attractively at $45; it earned a spot in my rotation of sub-$50 Champagne, a category which dwindles further with each passing day.
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2020 Hélène Charbaut Champagne Chardonnay La Crayère - France, Champagne (6/15/2025)
– popped and poured –
– tasted non-blind over a couple hours –
– 100% Chardonnay –
– Extra Brut designation –
NOSE: bright; hint of ginger set against very slightly autolytic apple; has a bitter edge, and I believe that’s the ginger note I’m getting — this turns to a more candied note over the course of a couple hours.
BODY: bright pale yellow color, with a fine active bead.
TASTE: Slightly autolytic and with buttery Golden Delicious apple; seems there is some oak coming through; very nice, but questionable QPR at $87 — quite frankly, I’d much rather be having Egly’s Bisseuil for a few bucks more. Very dry, but not austere. This improved over a couple of hours as it saw air and warmed from fridge temp… Miiiiight buy again, in a different vintage, just to make sure this shouldn’t be an occasional buy for me.
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Anyone checking out the Last Bubbles Fizz Fest today?
Extracted from a thread just posted: Wines tasted blind at dinner with the group: 1996 Duvall-Leroy Femme de Champagne, 2012 Guyon Corton-Charlemagne, 1986 Cos d'Estournel, 2005 Muga Prado Enea, 2020 Clos d'Argentine Malbec, 1983 Beychevelle
1996 DUVALL- LEROY FEMME de CHAMPAGNE GRAND CRU BRUT- poured blind for us; I guessed this to be a blend with more Chardonnay and it is 79% Chardonnay and 21% Pinot Noir; I also guessed the dosage to be 8 gpl, but could never find the actual amount other than it was a brut which placed it broadly between 0-12 gpl; nonetheless, this was a stellar champagne that deceived us with its more youthful yellow to gold color and fresh fruit profile that consisted mainly of kiwi, white peach and green apple; it had bright acidity which contributed to its tanginess and after 10 minters or so, a streak of white pepper and peppermint came in only to fade out; it was full bodied, had some power and richness and was very impressive; we guessed various vintages from my 2006 to others 2012-2015 and the 3 of us called it Dom Perignon. Fooled again.
Cheers,
Blake
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Compilation of sparklers from the last couple of months - finally going through my pictures, but don’t have formal notes, just brief impressions:
Champagne Demoiselle Vranken from Magnum
Tasted at the Demoiselle Vranken Art Deco/Nouveau house in Reims back in July. The house has been gloriously and lovingly restored. Every part of the house, gazebo, and grounds were stunning; the only blemish was this champagne. I took two horrified sips. I then tried to choke down some more, telling myself “Don’t be a snob. Look around you - so many guests are enjoying the Demoiselle Vranken in the garden and gazebo. Can’t you just try to like it?” I did like its pretty look in the glass, but that was about it: unbalanced heavy dosage, flavors of stale nuts competing (and winning) against sweet citrus fruit punch. Left the glass nearly full.
Simonnet Febvre Cremant de Bourgogne Brut Cuvee S2014
Purchased at the tasting room in Chablis & brought home. The people working at the tasting room were fun, nice and knowledgeable.
70% chard, 30% PN, 6g/L dosage, 36 months on lees. Richer in style than most champagnes I gravitate to, but this was really pleasant. Despite the dosage and richness, it had good acidity. Age has been kind to it. Also, the value was unbeatable. I paid around $16-17 - unbelievable.
2015 Alexandre Le Brun Rose Dilection Brut Nature
Bottle 2 of 2. It was better than the 1st bottle, but I still got the same tinned tomato paste notes towards the midpalate that I did not like. Beautiful color. Unlikely to repurchase from this producer, since the other bottling (2019) also had a tomato paste profile.
2008 Duval Leroy BdB 1er Cru
Opened for a friend’s visit. 100% Chard (not really my jam), but 2008 is my favorite year. 3g/L dosage. Good balance overall and it was nice. I probably won’t repurchase unless my father (fan of BdB) comes to visit.
2017 Mas Candi Indomable Brut Nature Corpinnat Spain
It’s not going to give “champagne” vibes, but I enjoyed this bottle. Corpinnat prices have been creeping up in the US, unfortunately.
Recaredo Serral del Vele BN 2016 Corpinnat Spain
Disg. 04/23. Again, this is not at all a ringer for Champagne, but it was really enjoyable. I preferred it to the Mas Candi, but the Recaredo is more $$.
Clos Henri Solange BdN Marborough NZ
Didn’t enjoy this much, but I can’t recall specifics.
2016 Tognetti BdB Carnernos, Napa Valley
I did not like this - tasted odd. I can’t recall specifics except pouring it down the drain. Perhaps it was a bad bottle.
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I had the 2015 Tognetti BdB Carneros, Napa Valley bubbly last week. Not Champagne and could have used a bump of acidity, but certainly drinkable.
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I opened another bottle of the Ulysse Collin Les Maillons, 2016 base on Friday. I’ve had 3 of these in the last 4 months or so, more than normal because a funny thing happened and I needed to keep checking. Here’s my experience - a bottle opened in April 2025 (and all bottles before that since 2023) showed very youthful, bright straw in color, and even a little tight. But starting in August of this year - BAM, total change, seemingly all of a sudden and all at once. They are now showing fully mature, and have changed to a deeper golden color, and softer mousse. The three bottles since Aug have all been that way, with very little variation among them. I’ve never experienced this before, where the wine appears to have transformed all at once, every bottle in the case. I am not complaining as they are still delicious and I like mature notes in champagne, but I wanted to share it as the champagne lovers here are still getting a handle on how these low dosage growers age.
The Kikuhime in the background is the BY Daiginjo 2008, which was picture perfect, unlke the fuzzy photo.
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Extracted from a thread just posted: Dinner party wines: NV {2006} Fallet-Dart les Haut des Clos du Mont, 2006 Au Bon Climat Sanford & Benedict Chardonnay, 2020 Lucien le Moine MS PM, 2010 Arnoux-Lachaux Clos de Vougeot
NV FALLET-DART les HAUT des CLOS du MONT- although stated to be non vintage on the label, it is 100% from 2006 with 80% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Noir, bottled in 2007 and aged 15+ years on the lees and disgorged 4/23; I first tasted this a couple of months ago and loved it enough to buy some; this is the 3rd bottle I’ve had and all have been different from the others which I assume is to be expected from a champagne with this much lees exposure and time in the bottle; our bottle on this night was in really good form and actually seemed somewhat more youthful and less advanced than the other 2; the color was yellow gold and the nose was replete with honey coated yellow peach, mango, yellow apple and ginger which continued on once tasted to be joined by some orange marmalade and a streak of minerality while being delivered in a nice, oily feel good texture; I thought this was the best bottle yet and am intrigued as to how the remaining bottles will show.
Cheers,
Blake
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Thanks for this, Sarah. Do you think prudence suggests drinking up given this current trajectory? For example, a worry that “drinks well now” turns into “cracking up”.
I am pondering this very question, as I have more bottles. There is nothing at all over-the-hill about it currently, but the distinct and sudden change does make me wonder if another, sadder, precipitous shift could occur. I will probably drink them faster than I might have otherwise.
Edited to add that this is okay with me. The point of aging wine, for me, is to get it to a place where it is special, developed, on another level, than when it began. If it gets there a little faster than I might have expected, so long as it doesn’t suffer for it, that’s fine. It’s easy to get scared by the thought that it might not last that much longer, but I try and reassure myelf that there are plenty of other things in my cellar that will. Part of the fun is playing the game of what’s drinking well now~!
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