CHAMPAGNE

Krug 2006 is composed of 45% Pinot Noir, 35% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier and shows an impressive aromatic richness of white flowers, smoke and toasted hazelnuts. There’s both density and crystalline texture here, with... Read More

The NV Brut Blanc de Blancs Solera is made from Chardonnay picked in Fèrebrianges Etoges Congy and Sézanne based half on the 2020 vintage and half on a perpetual reserve started in 2013. Serene aromas of creaminess and golden... Read More

The 2019 Champagne Elevage Long is entirely Pinot Noir and is the most robust wine in the range with the base wine aged for two years in barrel. Revealing notes of fresh baked bread licorice wet stone and Amarena black cherries... Read More

The NV Extra Brut Le Cépage Grand Cru Verzy is a pure Pinot Noir. The mellow creaminess of oak is im

The NV Le Terroir a blend of equal parts Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from Verzy is a fine introduction to this range. Bright sculpted and airy Le Terroir has a lot to offer. Dried citrus peel chamomile crushed flowers and a hint... Read More

The NV Rosé Les 2 Terroirs (2020 base) is a rich, heady wine. It offers notable textural richness and volume, with terrific freshness to pull it all together. Like all the 2020s here, the Rosé is a bit vegetal, but... Read More

The 2018 Extra-Brut Blanc de Noirs Mailly-Champagne Grand Cru is powerful deep and expressive its mid-weight structure notwithstanding. Kirsch mint cedar and tobacco lend notable aromatic presence. The lighter style of the year... Read More

The 2016 Extra-Brut Avize Grand Cru is another compelling Champagne in this range from Bérêche. Exotic delicate and light on its feet this has so much to offer. Lemon confit graphite sage mint and dried herb inflections reveal... Read More

A full-bodied sparkling with sliced cooked pears and apples. Dusty chalk and some mineral and stone undertones. Full-bodied with firmness and tightness at the end. Linear and compact on the palate. Tangy finish. Drink or hold.... Read More

Attractive salmon color with aromas of dried strawberries and lemons, as well as hints of flowers. Full-bodied with tight tension from the fine phenolics that run through the palate. Hints of white pepper, peaches and sliced green... Read More

Attractive salmon color with aromas of dried strawberries and lemons, as well as hints of flowers. Full-bodied with tight tension from the fine phenolics that run through the palate. Hints of white pepper, peaches and sliced green... Read More

The 2009 Champagne Blanc De Blancs Louis Salmon Brut comes from Mesnil Cramant and Chouilly and was all fermented in stainless steel tank. Since 2009 was a warmer vintage they did not use wood as they were looking to preserve... Read More

Bollinger’s 2007 R.D. is superb but it is also a wine that reflects the nature of a unique and challenging growing season. In most vintages the R.D. is marked by the distinct creaminess and breadth of Aÿ Pinot Noir.... Read More

Raised entirely in barrel, the 2014 Champagne La Grande Année Brut is all about finesse and capturing the cool, mineral tension and floral notes of the vintage. Enhancing those qualities, a bit higher proportion of Chardonnay... Read More

There is an apparent paradox with concentration and movement vying for ascendancy. The structure of the wine is tense and assertive. Its energy almost tactile is contained for a moment before vibrating and exploding. Its opulence... Read More

The 2020 Extra-Brut Chemin de Reims is gorgeous. In 2020 the Chemin de Reims is especially airy with an explosive bouquet mid-weight structure and fabulous balance. It is perhaps less rich and concentrated than the 2019 but so... Read More

The NV (2019) Brut Cuvée Ste.-Anne is fabulous. Rich, ample and layered, the Brut Cuvée Ste.-Anne hits all the right notes. I especially admire its vinous intensity and overall resonance. Dried pear, flowers mint,... Read More

The 2020 Extra-Brut Hors Série is especially lifted and aromatic. Chalk mint citrus peel slate and white pepper all take shape in the glass. Chartogne-Taillet fans will find a Champagne of great reserve tension and nuance. Brisk... Read More

Effusive and fleshy the 2016 Champagne Millésime Brut pours a medium-golden hue and offers forward aromas of golden apple ginger and honeyed citrus. Medium to full-bodied it’s expansive on the palate with a pithy texture and... Read More

The 2015 Dom Perignon pours a bright straw/yellow color and is expressive and layered on the nose with a tropical profile in its notes of cantaloupe peach fresh pastry smokey wet stones and orange blossoms. Medium to full-bodied... Read More

The 2012 Champagne is 51% Chardonnay and the rest Pinot Noir and has 4 grams per liter dosage. Its style is finessed and elegant, revealing a soft, smoky perfume of fresh white flowers, pear, and fresh bread dough. The palate... Read More

2015 is unusually giving and luscious at this early stage full of apricot pastry bittersweet orange citrus and bitter almond brightened by some pithy herbal characters that signal the year’s singular growing season yet also... Read More

The bouquet bursts forth with raspberries and wild strawberries. Persistent powdery notes of iris and violet immediately meld with the fruit aromas. After breathing, greener nuances arrive, evoking privet, angelica and camphor... Read More

The 2009 Dom Pérignon Rosé marks a return to a richer style of Rosé following the more ethereal 2008 Rosé. Sweet red cherry blood orange spice and pomegranate all build in a creamy sensual DP Rosé that hits all the right... Read More

The 1999 Dom Pérignon P2 is one of the most intriguing Champagnes I have tasted from Dom Pérignon in recent years. In fact it was not included in a small vertical I tasted at the estate in March but rather this is a bottle I... Read More

The P2 late-release concept does seem to work wonders with riper heavier vintages and 2006 is no exception. The sheer fruitiness of orange confit juicy stone fruit mango and roasted citrus has quietened a little into an integrated... Read More

From Mesnil sur Oger the 2017 Champagne Côte Grand Cru pours a bright straw hue and is aromatic with notes of yellow apple and chalky stones. The palate is very long with a silky chalk texture as well as notes of lemon balm.... Read More

The 2016 Champagne Cote is bright effusive and charming right out of the gate. Apricot white flowers mint tangerine oil and marzipan are nicely pushed forward in this soft open-knit Champagne from vines in Cramant. Drink it over... Read More

Only made in magnums the 2013 Champagne Montagne - Rilly La Montagne Premier Cru saw 10 years on the lees before being disgorged in 2023. A bright straw hue its nose is savory and fresh with salty earth but it’s a bit shy and... Read More

Coming exclusively from other wine growers the NV Champagne Vallée Premier Cru is 70% Pinot 20% Chardonnay and 10% Meunier with 2015 as the base. It’s expressive with ripe aromas of tangerine savory broth and ripe nectarine... Read More

The NV Champagne V.P. stands for Vieille Prolongée because it is aged longer seeing 7 years on the lees before disgorgement. A blend 70% Pinot and the rest Chardonnay based on 2016 and with reserve wine from 2015 and 2014 they... Read More

Year after year Egly’s NV Blanc de Noirs Grand Cru Les Crayères remains one of the most compelling and reliable wines from the Montagne de Reims. Sourced from a south-facing lieu-dit in Ambonnay that was planted between 1946... Read More

The 2012 Brut Millésime Grand Cru is a Champagne of tremendous finesse and nuance with the Chardonnay really driving the balance today. Chalk white pepper mint sage and dried pear are some of the notes that come alive in the... Read More

The 2015 Champagne Millésime is a bright straw color and is ripe and fruity on the nose with aromas of black cherries fresh violets savory saline and a hint of umami richness. The palate is full-bodied with no phenolic bitterness... Read More

To the best of my recollection the 2017 vintage was the first Cuvée Totum bottling from Emilien Feneuil that was crafted entirely from chardonnay. This is also the case with the beautiful new 2019 release. The wine is non-dosé... Read More

Emilien Feneuil’s single vineyard “les Ruisseaux” bottling is a Blanc de Noirs as the wine is made entirely from pinot meunier growing in this lieu à dit in Sermiers. The 2019 version was disgorged in April of 2022. It... Read More

Emilien Feneuil’s single vineyard “les Ruisseaux” bottling is a Blanc de Noirs as the wine is made entirely from pinot meunier growing in this lieu à dit in Sermiers. The 2019 version was disgorged in April of 2022. It... Read More

The 2019 vintage

I was unaware until very recently that the les Chênes vineyard in Cumières is one of the most important sites historically in all of Champagne and no less a figure than Dom Pérignon himself directed his acolytes at the Abbey... Read More

This Rosé primarily expresses the qualities of the red wines. A blend of 65% Chardonnay and 35% Pinot Noir with 8% being vinified as a red wine. To obtain the bright radiance of the chalk, the Chardonnays are selected from... Read More

The ninth time the Celebris has been produced in over 400 years the 2012 Champagne Celebris is exceptional with layered complexity in its aromas of quince fresh apple blossoms and pure honey without being oxidative. Medium to... Read More

A bright straw/silver hue the 2015 Champagne Brut does a great job at retaining the fresher side of the vintage offering up notes of cherry blossom fresh nectarine and fresh almond. It’s medium to full-bodied and although it... Read More

The new release of Jacquesson “Cuvée 744” Extra Brut from the Chiquet family is from the base year of 2016 and was disgorged in January of 2021. It was finished with a micro dosage of .75 grams per liter. It is hard to believe... Read More

Based on the 2018 vintage, which was an early solar ripe vintage, the NV Champagne Cuvée 746 sees two grams per liter of dosage and is about 50% Chardonnay, the rest Pinot Noir and Meunier, and approximately 25% reserve... Read More

A structured and creamy-textured Jacquesson NV with a very fine-bubble texture and lovely polish. It's medium- to full-bodied with length and sophistication in a friendly and approachable way. Yet there is something that tells... Read More

The new release of Jean-Marc Sélèque’s “Solessence” non-vintage Extra Brut is from the base year of 2021. It is crafted from its customary cépages of fifty percent chardonnay forty percent pinot meunier and ten percent... Read More

This bottle spent at least 13 years in Krug’s cellars receiving its cork in spring 2016. Composed of a selection of the year’s most characterful wines Krug 2004 is the expression of the year... Read More

Krug 2006 is composed of 45% Pinot Noir, 35% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier and shows an impressive aromatic richness of white flowers, smoke and toasted hazelnuts. There’s both density and crystalline texture here, with... Read More

Because 2011 was a challenging vintage for Champagne it would be very easy to over-generalize as many readers may have had less than ideal experiences elsewhere. But Krug’s 2011 Champagne Millesime Brut is not... Read More

Clos d'Ambonnay from the 2006 vintage is drinking beautifully now flexing its muscles by combining comforting aromas of Porcini mushroom sweet hay rice and toasted buckwheat with the laser force of lemony acidity lemon jam... Read More

Singly and emphatically the greatest Champagne release of recent years. Grand malic acidity of dizzyingly heightened proportions is swept up in an immense, all-consuming tidal wave of frothing, sea-salt minerality, crashing with... Read More

The first aromatic impression is surprisingly floral in the context of such a hot vintage and then evolves to reveal elements of menthol liquorice and yellow fruit. With aeration the bouquet blossoms to reveal increasing complexity... Read More

The 2008 vintage of Clos du Mesnil is slated to be released in September of this year. I was fortunate to have a chance to preview the wine during Krug’s Cellar Master Julie Cavil’s recent visit to New York. As readers may... Read More

To the delight of Krug Lovers around the world, a very limited number of Krug Vintage bottles are kept in ideal conditions in the House’s cellars. They are tasted and appraised as they wait to blossom into a second life.... Read More

Two years on from its disgorgement, this 2015-based edition has settled beautifully, showing all the sunniness of the base year with its mandarin and apricot plushness, surprisingly smooth and silky up front before settling into... Read More

The 172ème édition based around the 2016 vintage is a delicate floral and saline Grande Cuvée at this early stage in its life. The palate it taut tightly wound gradually unfurling into toasted... Read More

Airy bright and fresh like freshly squeezed citrus and white bread. Lightly smoky apricot and mandarin with beautifully integrated pastry notes. Razor-sharp citrus and turbo-charged acidity give way to a focused balanced and confident... Read More

This iteration of Grand Siècle is almost entirely composed of two of Champagne's greatest recent vintages so expectations are high. The wine more than meets them tempering the generosity of 2012's fruit – ripe apricots... Read More

The 2016 Brut Blanc de Blancs Vintage is laced with hints of tropical fruit lime mint passionfruit and crushed rocks. Intensely aromatic and light on its feet the 2016 impresses with its gracious understated personality. Sourced... Read More

The 2016 Brut Rosé is charming. Soft and inviting the 2016 will drink beautifully right out of the gate. Readers will find a beautifully perfumed gracious Rosé. The 2016 is not the richest or most complex vintage Rosé Roederer... Read More

The 2016 Champagne Vintage Brut is the new release and is composed of 70% Pinot Noir from Verzy and the rest Chardonnay from Chouilly. A slightly richer golden straw hue it has a floral bouquet on the nose and is a very pretty... Read More

The 1997 Rosé Late Release is a fine choice for drinking now as it is fully mature. Sweet dried cherry mint spice caramel tobacco cedar and lightly honeyed notes are nicely lifted throughout. The cool year helped preserve a measure... Read More

Restrained green apple lemon bush and lime plus light brioche and chalk. Medium to full body with fine nicely persistent bubbles and good substance on the mid-palate. Almost biting yet polished at the end with long refreshing... Read More

Millenium Edition

"The 2005 Cristal stands out for its exceptional inner perfume and elegance. Soft delicate and pretty the 2005 is a relatively immediate Cristal with all of the signatures very much in the right place. The 2005 doesn’t have... Read More

The 2009 vintage of Cristal is composed of a blend of sixty percent pinot noir and forty percent chardonnay with none of the vins clairs this year undergoing malolactic fermentation. Sixteen percent of the base wines were barrel-fermented... Read More

The 2012 Cristal is another absolutely stellar wine this flight of recent releases. Rich vinous and beautifully textured the 2012 has been nothing short of magnificent on the three occasions I have tasted it so far. In the glass... Read More

Forged by a chalky soil unlike any other and honed by time, Cristal is Louis Roederer’s flagship champagne. Created in 1876 at the special request of Tsar Alexander II, this exceptional champagne is sourced from up to 45... Read More

This is a great vintage for Cristal Rosé. The pinot noir finds a band of power and expressiveness. The power here is impressive very assertive and rich really mouth-filling and super deep. This is exceptional and has intense... Read More

A collaboration between two sommelier friends and Michel Gonet the 2016 Rajat Parr & Marco Pelletier Brut Nature Blanc de Blanc Les Compères was disgorged May 2021 and derives from old vines in Mesnil sur Oger lieu-dit Les Hautes... Read More

A collaboration with rockstar sommeliers Rajat Parr and Marco Pelletier, the 2017 Champagne Les Hautes Mottes Brut Nature lends a reflective straw appearance and is inflected with a fresh, floral perfume of fresh linen, candied... Read More

Light bright yellow. Musky pear and toasty lees on the nose and in the mouth. Fleshy and open-knit with a hint of bitter lemon pith adding back-end cut. Finishes on a gently smoky note with very good cling and focus and a hint... Read More

Made from 71% Pinot Noir and the rest Chardonnay the 2014 Champagne Clos des Goisses Extra Brut takes on a very pretty and floral profile. Pouring a bright straw hue it’s lifted with the perfume of cherry blossoms... Read More

Defined by its south-facing exposition and the warmth of the growing season Paillard's old-vine Chardonnay the 2019 Blanc de Blancs Bouzy Grand Cru Les Mottelettes is a muscular broad-shouldered and powerful expression of... Read More

The NV (2019) Extra Brut Les Terres Roses Bouzy Grand Cru is a blend of 64% Chardonnay and 36% Pinot Noir 5% of which were vinified as red wine all harvested in Bouzy and barrel-fermented. Juicy plum and red apple feature openly... Read More

The reserve wines bring a delicious, savoury sense of sourdough richness to fresh clementine, lemon and pale stone fruit, the tension of classic chalky villages still present but rounded out into a wine of impressive persistence.... Read More

Les Montjolys a single vineyard in Le Mesnil with an unusually rich silex soil tends to be a fleshier more immediate blanc de blancs than Les Chétillons highlighting just how radical the subtle changes in soil profile... Read More

A Champagne of gravitas and power, the 2014 LÉtonnant Monsieur Victor is endowed with notable resonance. Lemon confit, marzipan, white flowers, spice, licorice and graphite are amplified in a rich, vinous Champagne that... Read More

Disgorged in March 2024 with four grams per liter dosage based on the 2018 vintage (50%) and complemented by a perpetual reserve component that dates back to 1988 the NV Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Réserve Oubliée goes through... Read More

With 2019 as its base and 23% reserve wine the NV Champagne Blanc Singulier is also entirely Chardonnay but has more crispiness and freshness than the 2018. Much more forward in the glass it has fantastic structure with a more... Read More

Another citrus-forward Champagne here, playing its rosé cards close to its chest and leaning more into white territory. A soft fruity palate follows aromas of grapefruit and orange rind, switching gear as the mousse expands... Read More

Champagne Valentin Leflaive represents a unique interpretation of champagne bringing a Burgundian approach from Olivier Leflaive and his team into the champagne making emphasized the purity of the Chardonnay and the terroir of... Read More

The fruit is more pronounced and forward in the 2015 Champagne Grand Cru Le Grand Jardin Oger Brut Nature with notes of apricot and peach rings white flowers and a sunny but fresh feel. It has more pronounced larger bubbles on... Read More

A hint of a darker profile comes from the aromas in the NV Champa