“A lovely note of fresh Viennoiserie is as fragrant of butter as it is of lemon. Beneath that is a fresher, cooler note of green apple and wet chalk. The palate picks up that rich pastry note and adds lively lemon zest and a sense of creaminess. This is elegant, concentrated and vivid with very fine mousse. Lovely depth adds extra dimension and gives much length to the fresh, bright finish.”

“This Amazone de Palmer is a blend of 2012, 2010 and 2009, with an 18% addition from the house's perpetual reserve. The developing lemon colour speaks of the age. The nose also shows development in the form of soft, vanilla-laden fruitiness, opulent toastiness and spicy whiffs. There is also the lightest hint of oxidative development. Soft and cushiony on the palate, it is silky and concentrated, with the bubbles tiny and perfectly integrated with the wine's sumptuous richness. Long, lingering, juicy-fresh finish. A ready-to-drink prestige cuvée. Dosage 6g/l”

“The NV Brut (Gold) opens with lovely matured brioche, toast and ripe fruit flavors. Fresh, pure and elegant on the palate, with beautifully matured flavors and an elegant creaminess I don't find in the other cuvées, the "Gold" is a blend of 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier as well as the vintages of 2009, 2010 and 2012. The wine reveals good grip and mineral tension and drinks well as an aperitif or with seafood and fish.”

“The NV Brut (Gold) opens with lovely matured brioche, toast and ripe fruit flavors. Fresh, pure and elegant on the palate, with beautifully matured flavors and an elegant creaminess I don't find in the other cuvées, the "Gold" is a blend of 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier as well as the vintages of 2009, 2010 and 2012. The wine reveals good grip and mineral tension and drinks well as an aperitif or with seafood and fish.”

“Medium-deep lemon colour. Fresh, gently toasty, strongly lemony nose. Cream, roasted nuts and white flowers. Zesty, linear palate. Balanced, energisingly sharp but comes with innate charm.”

“Based on the 2015 vintage and disgorged with nine grams per liter dosage, the latest release of Billecart's NV Brut Réserve contains fully 55% reserve wines and is showing very well, offering up complex aromas of warm bread, crisp green orchard fruit and citrus oil. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied and charming but lively, with an elegantly textural attack, a fleshy core of fruit and lively balancing acids.”

“Fragrantly floral Meunier fruit comes across strongly on the bright, expressive nose here. There's a complex melange of red and white fruit, with attractive toastiness and sweet pastry tones. A similar sense of skilful crafting continues on the lightweight palate, which is harmonious and perfectly fresh. The vast 50-60% of reserve wines increase the complexity of the blend. This is smooth-textured, with an appetising sweetness at the finish. Dosage 8g/l”

“(40% pinot meunier, 30% pinot noir and 30% chardonnay; L200352): Light, bright gold. Fresh red berries, orange zest and white flowers on the perfumed nose. Juicy and precise, offering energetic redcurrant and blood orange flavors that show good concentration and a supple texture. A mineral nuance adds bite to the finish, with the floral note echoing.”

“There is a QR code but it doesn’t tell people how old the cuvée is. ‘I don’t have the marketing resources to do this’, says Mathieu Billecart. They update it once a year – ‘though we’re not as precise as Krug’. 55% reserve wines. 40% Pinot Meunier, 30% Pinot Noir, 20% Chardonnay. For the last five years there has been a little bit of oak fermentation for 3 to 5% of the wine. The base is 2014, 2013 and 2012 and some solera. Dosage 9 g/l.
Nicely melded nose even if the whole impression is on the fruity side. Tight and fresh. But with very frank fruit aromas. Slightly drying on the end but brisk and fresh, even if dominantly fruity.”

“Based on the 2018 vintage, Billecart's new NV Brut Rosé incorporates 40% reserve wines and some 6% still red wine. Bursting with scents of sweet red berries, peonies, stone fruits, white cherries, freshly baked bread and spices, it's medium to full-bodied, pillowy and charming, with a seamless and enveloping core of fruit and a lively, fine-boned profile.”

“(45% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir and 25% Pinot Meunier; 8 g/l dosage; L206454 17741): Pale orange. High-pitched red berry, orange zest and jasmine aromas, with suave mineral and smoky lees notes adding complexity. Spicy and precise on the palate, showing very good punch to its strawberry and bitter cherry flavors. Opens up smoothly with air and picks up a bitter rhubarb quality that lingers onto the long, tightly focused finish. This bottling showed more brawny character than many past renditions of this cuvée, but with no lack of vivacity.”

“Tasted blind. Very pale greyish salmon. Rich rose-petal aroma with quite a bit of voluptuous sweetness. Crisp acidity. Brisk but satisfying. Slightly astringent end.
Drink 2018-2024”

“Created in the 1960s, an era when rosés were not en vogue, this cuvée was envisaged 'not to look or taste too much like a rosé'. With its genius recipe, today this wine belongs among Champagne's most emblematic rosés. It comes with a hallmark delicate peachy colour and a pristine nose of delicious peach fruit. Its further charms include a whiff of roses, soft spiciness, apple compote, pencil shavings and apricot marmalade. The ethereal lightness of the palate suits the delicacy of the whole. Silky, dynamic and vibrantly fruity, it all comes together in a finish of perfect purity and suitably dry deliciousness. Disgorged 1/22; dosage 9g/l”

“Very pale onion skin, and aroms that only whisper at red fruit. Spicy, delicate, bright. (RH)”

“A wonderfully open nose immediately presents ripe red currant framed by notions as various as fresh gingerbread, iron oxide, berry sherbet, orange peel, candied tangerine and caramel: richness and freshness united. The palate is smooth with fine, vivid effervescence that propels the wine’s inherent freshness continually to the surface, both countering and complementing a certain roundness, a certain gourmandise that shimmers with red fruit, ripe, aromatic citrus and stony spice. A most gastronomic Champagne that will evolve beautifully.”

“Copper-orange color with aromas of grapefruit pith, cherry stones, dried roses, white pepper, pastries, walnuts and oyster shells. Refined and elegant with pretty, dried red and citrus fruit, layered with subtle spice and toast. Fine bubbles. Dry. 55% pinot noir from Mareuil-sur-Ay and Ay, and 45% Grand Cru chardonnay from Cote des Blancs, with 10% of pinot noir red wine. Dosage 7g/L. Disgorged in July 2021. Drink or hold.”

“An elegant rosé Champagne that seamlessly knits juicy acidity and fine-grained texture with a subtle, smoke-laced underpinning and a delicate mesh of wild strawberry, kirsch, mandarin orange peel and toasted brioche flavors. Harmonious, with an open-knit, spiced finish. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Disgorged July 2021. Drink now through 2029.”

“An incredibly fragrant nose shines with ripe, red-cheeked Mirabelle plum and even has an overtone of Kirsch. The palate is creamy and has a wonderful spine of freshness that only helps to underscore the generosity and roundness. The mousse is superfine, the autolysis is restrained yet profound, there is a textured mid-palate of concentrated red apple fruit with an edge of candlewax and a delicious reverberation of pepper. Exquisite.”

“In 1995, Billecart-Salmon joined the club of single-vineyard Champagne producers and went for a big, bold and super-ripe blanc de noirs style from the family clos in their home village Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, planted with Pinot Noir in 1964. Deep, lemon-gold colour. The sweet, ripely fruity nose comes with obvious oaky whiffs, with spice, vanilla and even coconut. Sun-kissed, for sure, but the super-ripe profile fits the generously oaky style. Full-on, rich and round, the palate-filling volume of this wine is cut by its brisk acidity. On the palate, the velvety tropical sumptuousness turns into something more earthy-mineral towards the almost bone-dry finish. Disgorged 11/20; dosage 2g/l”

“Rich nose, yeasty and so alive. The oak shows even more as the wine opens up, giving a cedar spice. Such underlying depth and richness with such a surprising mineral and acidic backbone with a verbena note, mandarin – the most citric of the lot. There is a subtler nuttiness here that is almost creamy, like a Belgian chocolate, almost oily on the finish yet with such direction.”

“Disgorged in November 2020 with two grams per liter dosage, Billecart-Salmon's newly released 2006 Brut Le Clos Saint-Hilaire is showing well, unwinding in the glass with aromas of pear, mirabelle plum, dried fruits, walnuts, bee pollen and spices. Full-bodied, layered and vinous, it's a concentrated, muscular young wine, allying maturing flavors with broad structural shoulders and racy acids and concluding with a long, resonant and slightly mordant finish. From a parcel planted in 1964 and vinified entirely in oak, this is a powerful Champagne of considerable presence that needs some more time on cork to unwind and round out.”

“From a one-hectare parcel of pinot noir, planted in 1964. This makes such a striking impression with incredible freshness and purity, married with such intensity and length. The aromas of fresh, toasted almond are striking. Fresh forest mushrooms, too. The palate has intensity that is truly bracing and delivers such power and length. Exceptional! Drink or hold.”

“Entirely vinified in oak and disgorged in May 2018, after 15 years on the lees in bottle, the 2002 Millésime Brut Le Clos Saint-Hilaire is a single-plot Blanc de Noirs from Pinot Noir vines planted in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ in 1964. Highly fine and pure on the deep, elegant and spicy nose, with intense mirabelle and apricot flavors, this is a pure, salty, very finessed yet tensioned, complex, mineral and refreshing Pinot with intense and well-concentrated fruit, a juicy texture and persistent structure. The finish is very long but pure, fresh, salty and, in any case, highly stimulating! Total production: 3,700 bottles. Tasted November 2018.”

“The 2002 Le Clos Saint-Hilaire is rich, unctuous and exuberant, but it also needs time to be at its best. I have seen that with previous releases, and have no doubt that will be the case here as well. At nearly twenty years of age, the 2002 remains very young. To be sure, the low dosage of 1 gram per liter adds to a feeling of austerity that suggests the wine requires further cellaring. Ash, graphite, menthol and mineral notes complement a core of rich Pinot fruit nicely.”

“This stands out with real precision, quite incredible red fruits, subtle toast and a yeasty note, lemongrass and some Thai spice too. This has quite profound depth and concentration, it is so full in the mouth, a whiff of gun smoke, red fruits, lavender, sesame seed and the lightest toasted almond. So amazingly long and just skips along. Truly stunning and quite unlike any champagne I have ever tasted.”

“The 2008 Brut Cuvée Nicolas François Billecart is an electric, nervy Champagne that very much reflects the style of the year. Crushed rocks, mint, spice, dried herbs, hazelnut, lemon peel and marzipan are all beautifully laced together. The 2008 is just entering its first plateau of maturity, making it a fine choice for drinking now and over the next two decades, possibly more. The blend id 60% Pinot Noir (from Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, Ambonnay, Bouzy, Verzy and Verzenay) and 40% Chardonnay (from Mesnil, Chouilly and Cramant). It's a terrific effort, although I must add that a recent visit made it pretty clear that even better things lie ahead. Dosage is 4 grams per liter.”

“The 2008 Brut Cuvée Nicolas François was disgorged during the third quarter of 2022 with less than three grams per liter. It has a delicate, pure, clean bouquet with aromas of orchard fruits, spring flowers, honey and licorice, with hints of brioche and pastry with aeration. Medium to full-bodied, chiseled and crystalline, with racy acids and a chalky texture, the palate is tense and the finish is long, penetrating and salty. It exhibits perfect Billecart style, yet tension is present, a sign of the vintage. It is a blend of 60% Pinot Noir (sourced from Aÿ, Mareuil and Verzenay) and 40% Chardonnay from Mesnil, Chouilly and Cramant, and it matured 83% in tanks and 17% in old oak barrels.”

“Lovely precision and drive to this with aromas of lemon curd, brioche, praline, apricots, pomelos, mandarin zest and salted caramel. It’s held together by a sharp, citrusy backbone of acidity, balanced with a fine, silky mousse. Both structure and softness here. Citrus fruit brightness on a beautifully elegant and seamless finish. 60% pinot noir and 40% chardonnay. 150 months on lees. 2.9g/L dosage.”

“Deep gold. Very flirtatious nose soars out of the glass. Transparent and delicate. Firm and still quite structured and backward. Very immediate on the nose. Not that dense but a very confident blend.”

“The 2006 Cuvée Nicolas François Billecart is shaping up to be a jewel of a wine, but it needs time to be at its best. I am surprised by how tightly wound it is. But that only makes me think what it might develop into with time in the cellar. Lemon confit, white flowers, mint, crushed rocks and sage meld together in a bright, crystalline Champagne endowed with terrific purity.”

“100% grand and premier cru vineyards. Pinot Noir (60%) from Montagne de Reims and Vallée de la Marne. Chardonnay (40%) from Côte des Blancs. Disgorged spring 2017. Dosage 4 g/l.
Tasted blind. The deepest colour of all these wines. Mid straw and persistent bead. Not particularly intense on the nose initially; needed time to open up. Quite noticeable autolysis. Bone dry. Some evidence of oak? Absolutely not a shred of simple fruit here – almost a metallic hint on the end but great, deep undertow. Very complex and uncompromising. Dry and distinctive.
Drink 2016-2030”

“Previous vintage was 1999, which has only just sold out. Disgorged early 2016. Needs a year in bottle prior to shipment. 12-15% oak barrels. This was decanted in the famous Billecart-Salmon decanter to age this ‘baby’ a bit.
Deep gold. And with real presence. Real grip and savour. Serious stuff. A certain richness underneath. Described by Antoine Billecart as ‘still a baby’. Rich start and not that frothy. Dense and savoury. Intellectual wine! Broad and grippy.”

“Very pale. Sophisticated, very sleek, well balanced nose. A remarkably youthful 2002. Clean, brisk chalky palate with a finish that is just slightly sudden. Quite exciting. This still has quite a bit to give.”

“A mesmerizing, thrilling Champagne, the 2002 Cuvée Nicolas François Billecart is a great example of the vintage at its best. Silky and racy on the palate, yet a bit more restrained than many wines of the year, the Nicolas François Billecart remains vivid and remarkably nuanced. Brioche. apricot jam, wild flowers and honey are some of the many notes that blossom as the Cuvée Nicolas François Billecart shows off its voluptuous personality. The 2002 is 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay.”

“The Pinot feels particularly prominent in this vintage. Such a deep, rich, powerful red fruit nose with evolving characters and confectionary, nutty and perfumy tones. Not completely free of bruised notes but beautifully spicy and mellowing. Long-lasting and strong but truly refined palate.”

“Beautiful nose of ripe red apples and raw cashew nuts – stunning. The palate is fine, rich and supple with a mineral streak – a lovely streak of acidity and a chalky finish. Elegant and very fine and long. Still tightly coiled and expressive – lean, dry and overridingly attractively chalky – a floral tinge towards the finish. ”

“The 2009 Vintage is another stellar wine in this range from Billecart-Salmon. This is the first time the Vintage includes Meunier in the blend. That approach has worked out so well here. Resonant and generous, the 2009 is so expressive today. The low dosage of two grams per liter is expertly judged. The 2009 is rich, but not heavy, while offering all of the natural generosity of the year.”

“Pure and limpid but perhaps without the depth of a great champagne. Very much on the dry side. For a wine from the luscious 2009 vintage this is quite taut and demanding!”

“The 2009 Vintage is another stellar wine in this range from Billecart-Salmon. This is the first time the Vintage includes Meunier in the blend. That approach has worked out so well here. Resonant and generous, the 2009 is so expressive today. The low dosage of two grams per liter is expertly judged. The 2009 is rich, but not heavy, while offering all of the natural generosity of the year.”

“Pure and limpid but perhaps without the depth of a great champagne. Very much on the dry side. For a wine from the luscious 2009 vintage this is quite taut and demanding!”

“The 2013 La Côte aux Enfants is a rich, heady Champagne. Passion fruit, candied apricot, white flowers, vanillin, spice and tangerine oil all race across the palate. Deep and layered, with notable complexity, the 2013 is decidedly racy. Interestingly, the 2013 is much more expressive than the 2012 was at this stage. The 2013 was picked at 11.12% potential alcohol. Dosage is 4 grams per liter. In just its second release, the La Côte aux Enfants seems headed in a very positive direction. ”

“Complex aromas of pie crust, iron, chalk and hints of sweet strawberries. Some ginseng. Full-bodied with very fine bubbles that give it tension and focus. Extremely fine and polished tannins that go on and on. Dried lemons and oranges. Chalk at the end. Hints of bitterness in the finish with subtle botanicals. Made from a single vineyard monopole of pure pinot noir. Drink now.”

“An even more reserved if noticeably more complex nose reluctantly displays its aromas of cool quinine, Granny Smith apples, spice, floral and vaguely exotic tea and toasty bread. The intense and lilting medium weight flavors are supported by a moderately firm but quite fine mousse on the strikingly complex, balanced, youthfully austere and strikingly long finale. This is at once very stylish and classy while offering excellent development potential. In short, this is stunningly good.”

“The 2014 La Grande Année is stunning. In fact, it is one of the best recent editions I can remember tasting. What comes through most is the wine’s sizzling energy and tension, qualities that aren’t often associated with Bollinger, where the Champagnes tend to show more breadth and volume. In 2014, readers will find a Grande Année built on linear intensity and drive. The 2014 is a blend taken from 19 villages, 61% Pinot Noir and 39% Chardonnay instead of the more typical 70/30 mix. For the second time in two decades (the first was 2007), Verzenay takes the lead in the Pinots over Aÿ, more or less an inverse from the norm. Verzenay, a north-facing village in the Montagne de Reims that saw less rain than Aÿ and most of the Vallée de la Marne, yields Pinots of energy more than volume. That, married with Chardonnays mostly from the Côtes des Blancs (predominantly Chouilly, Vertus, Oiry and Cramant), results in a truly magical Grande Année that will delight Champagne fans for several decades. I can’t recommend the 2014 highly enough. It’s a total knock-out. Disgorged: April, 2021. Dosage: 8 grams per liter.
”

“Offering up complex aromas of crisp yellow orchard fruit, confit citrus, frangipane, walnuts, dried white flowers and subtle hints of iodine, Bollinger's 2014 Brut La Grande Année is medium to full-bodied, pillowy and vinous, with an elegantly fleshy core of fruit that's underpinned by racy acids and complemented by a pretty pinpoint mousse. Concluding with a long, chalky finish, this is a charming but precise Grande Année that's more giving and demonstrative than its immediate predecessor, the 2012, but which attains a very similar level of quality in a more challenging vintage—testimony to the serious viticulture that underpins Bollinger's contemporary excellence.”

“I belong to the group of people that believes that Bollinger above all shows its greatness in lighter and more elegant vintages as the inherent Pinot-driven masculine power they possess is always sufficient. In the grand generous vintages, one must fight hard to hold back the rumbling force and maintain freshness and sublime details. 2014 is a textbook example in the lighter category. Many champagnes from 2014 are simply too light, vague, and floral in nature, but this does not apply in any way to Bollinger La Grande Année. Here, they have beautifully navigated their way between the grains of the vintage and instead focused on its merits. The champagne is thus clearer and more elegant with a higher proportion of Chardonnay from Chouilly and Oiry than usual to include and embrace the citrusy and floral sides. The extremely intense aroma is otherwise dominated by a marked air of sea breezes, sea urchins, oyster shells, iodine and gunpowder smoke originating from Verzenay. There is also a light note of hazelnut and leather from Aÿ. The combination of these pillars and all complementary villages also gives a delicate fruit with hints of orange citrus, peach, and Mirabelle plum. The aromas come again in the fine and medium-bodied taste with an added note of the finest vanilla and fresh cep in olive oil. Overall, this is an extremely beautiful and complex Bollinger on the finer and more elegant half of the whole. I love how you find new little details in a harmonious simplicity with each new sip. Fascinating and beautiful already, grand as R.D. in 10 years or more and without a doubt one of the vintage's rare hits.”

“Disgorged in July 2019, Bollinger's 2012 Brut La Grande Année is showing well, offering up an incipiently complex bouquet of crisp yellow orchard fruit, fresh peach, orange oil, toasted walnuts and dried apricot that's still quite reserved with less than a year on cork. Full-bodied, deep and muscular, the 2012 is blockier and broader-shouldered than its 2008 predecessor, with a weightier and even more concentrated palate built around a bright spine of acidity, concluding with a chalky finish that carries appreciably dry extract. This isn't quite as elegant as the exquisite 2008, but it is a superb effort and obviously built to age.”

“I love the magical moment when I get the chance, as the first journalist, to lighten the cork of the latest vintage of Bollinger La Grande Année…….The wine is made from 21 villages with Aÿ and Verzenay in the driver's seat backed by elegance from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and Oiry. The wine is characterized by vitality and energy more than depth at present. The colour has a brilliant golden glow and the mousse is almost panting in its resilient youthfulness. The scent is beautifully house typical, dominated by apricot, almond, hazelnut and a smoky sophisticated intensity as from a newly lit outdoor fire. The attack is stunningly intense and the weight in the oral cavity leaves nothing left to wish for. Resilient energy and fullness are combined with greatness. Anyone who has patience will be rewarded with truffled flavour layers,chocolate saturated complexity and added exoticism of honeysuckle in the wine's bouquet.”

“65% Pinot Noir, 35% Chardonnay. 21 crus: mainly Aÿ and Verzenay for the Pinot Noir, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and Oiry for the Chardonnay. All base wines aged in old oak and riddled and disgorged by hand. Dosage 8 g/l. Disgorged in May 2019.
Bright crème pâtissière nose with notes of Cox's orange pippin apple and lots of development. Really quite arresting. Much drier on the palate than the nose suggests, with a certain steeliness. Bone-dry finish but lots of substance on the mid palate. More recognisably Bollinger on the palate than the surprisingly rich, flirtatious nose, presumably informed by the vintage. Low-key mousse. This is clearly a long-distance runner.”

“The 2012 Grande Année is vibrant and wonderfully nuanced. Citrus peel, orchard fruit, brioche, dried flowers and chamomile are all finely knit in a Grand Année built on energy and persistence more than size. Readers will find a restrained Grand Année in 2012. There is plenty of the textural richness that is such a signature of the house style, but I am also struck by the wine's freshness. Best of all, the 2012 will drink well right out of the gate. It is quite expressive today, even in the early going.”

“Bollinger's 2008 La Grande Année is superb, wafting from the glass with aromas of crisp orchard fruit, ripe lemons, honeycomb, warm biscuits, dried white flowers and a delicate top note of walnuts and fino sherry. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied, broad and vinous, with a beautifully refined mousse, superb concentration at the tightly wound core, incisive acids and a supremely elegant intermingling of Bollinger's oxidative stylistic signatures with fresh, vibrant fruit. The finish is long, precise and chalky. This is a Grande Année built for the cellar—the real excitement will come with a bit more bottle age—but this is already a thrilling Champagne in the making. Finished with eight grams per liter dosage, it was disgorged by hand in July 2018. This is also the first vintage of Grande Année to be bottled in Bollinger's new narrower-necked 1846 bottle, which should make for a slower evolving wine.”

“Ripe fruity yet at the same time elegant nose with stylish restraint promising longevity. Golden delicious apples, biscuits and lemon alongside complex spicy tones. Lovely creaminess on the fresh and linear palate that finishes with a bite of mineral salinity. The tension and playfulness on the palate is its most attractive feature. Long and intense, yet light-weight palate finishing fresh with its 8g/l dosage (November 2018 disgorgement). Really satisfying already in the 75cl bottle, which benefits from the new bottle shape with narrower neck for “magnum effect”. But as always at Bollinger, the larger formats just sing bringing an attractive, complementary reductive toasty complexity. And of course the mousses in both magnum (96p->98p) and jeroboam (97p -> 99p) are ultra fine. This should have been a bigger quantity vintage for Bollinger and probably plenty will be held back as R.D. So prepare for a shortage of it.”

“Magnum - Dense nose with some of the really dry Bollinger savour on the palate. This is a wine, like so many Bollingers, that really needs time in the glass to open out – and indeed time in the bottle to develop to its full potential. This is an extremely dry-tasting wine, even though the dosage was 8 g/l, higher than usual because of the extremely low pH, 2.92. Very Bollinger but, for the moment, by no means a charmer. ”

“Bollinger's 2008 Grande Année is rich, ample and full-bodied, with all of the pedigree of the vintage on display. Dried pear, dried flowers, chamomile, red plum and mint develop as the 2008 shows the breadth and creaminess that are such signatures of the Bollinger house style. A whole range of brighter, more floral and chalky notes appear later, adding translucence and energy. The 2008 is 71% Pinot Noir and 29% Chardonnay taken across 18 crus, and it is the Pinot that very much informs the wine in both flavor and texture. More importantly, the 2008 is one of the best Grande Années I can remember tasting. Bollinger fans won't want to miss it. Disgorged November 2018. Dosage is 8 grams per liter.”

“Disgorged July 2018. Tasted blind.
The lightest of these, the most evanescent. Some astringency on the end. Rather loose-textured and the least developed in this blind tasting with, apparently, not that much persistence. Very embryonic. 12% ”

“Opened three weeks earlier and then re-stoppered. Disgorged June 2016. Tasted blind.
Quite complex nose and really dry and fully integrated. Hint of walnuts. Evolved yet with good fruit. This could be the RD… Complicated – requires lots of intellectual concentration. Very long.
Drink 2017-2024”

“Disgorged June 2016. Tasted blind.
Sweet and rich. I don’t think I’d guess it as Bolly on the nose. Then fairly dry on the end which might give it away. Lots of substance here. Firm and confident. Bone dry and rather demanding. Youthful. 12.5%
Drink 2016-2026”

“Deep, earthy-spicy, honeyed and nutty nose with dried fruit complexity. The oaky tones prevail underneath ample fruitiness. The evolved nose is complemented by a highly fresh, event tight palate with lovely nervosity and refreshment. The palate texture is silky smooth and vinous. Long lemony finish with notions of minerality. ”

“Bollinger's 2007 Brut La Grande Année is quite pretty. Elegant, restrained and understated in style, the 2007 is one of the more delicate young Grande Années I can remember tasting. Mid-weight structure and silky texture only reinforce that impression. Lemon oil, red berry, dried flowers and chamomile open up nicely, but it is the wine's overall feel that stands out most. Best of all, the 2007 will drink well with no cellaring. Disgorged: September 2016.”

“Magnum. Current vintage. 70% Pinot Noir, much from their own vineyards. Disgorged April 2017. Dosage 7 g/l. About 13 different villages. pH is under 3. The vintage was criticised by many people. The opening date of harvest was 20 August because of botrytis but at that stage the potential alcohol was only 9.3 or 9.4 degrees – too low! Bollinger waited until September.
Mid gold. Lots of acidity. Masses of energy and a bit more honey than some Bollingers. Apples and honey on the palate. Very fresh and even a lightly yeasty note on the palate. More refreshing than the Bolly stereotype. Maybe not that long but hugely flirtatious within the Bollinger idiom. This will definitely be an RD, I was told. Subtly mineral. Muscular.
Drink 2017-2030”

“Deep, earthy-spicy, honeyed and nutty nose with dried fruit complexity. The oaky tones prevail underneath ample fruitiness. The evolved nose is complemented by a highly fresh, event tight palate with lovely nervosity and refreshment. The palate texture is silky smooth and vinous. Long lemony finish with notions of minerality.”

“It might seem a bit surprising that Bollinger skipped the great vintage of 2006 for the more modest 2007. For me that choice is however quite logical since the Bollinger house style is much better suited to austere vintages than for fruit bombs. Here we have a classic and perfectly balanced Bollinger with deep layers and beautiful crisp apple acidity. Gorgeous balance between the dark and light as a perfect Ying and Yang marriage. Layers of dry cocoa, hazelnut fudge, dried apricots and juicy red apples dominate over a beautiful hint of forest aromas based on sous bois and mushrooms in the background. One of the three best champagnes from this vintage.”

“Already quite deep gold. Beefy and substantial with both breadth and depth but also great refreshment value. Real Bollinger character.”

“Medium-deep peach-hued colour. Strong, charred, characterful nose with a notable oxidative tone and explosive super-ripe fruitiness. Full and viscous, oily, concentrated palate. Massive and winey.”

“Pale old-gold in colour, and searching, winey scents with an amplitude which recalls mature burgundy (the apple orchard, sweet hay and soft hazels). Structured, broad and full on the palate, with ripe acidity recalling many fruits, even red ones. There have probably been Grande Années with more nerve and sinew than this, but its breadth, complexity and texture are hugely satisfying and that ‘winey’ appeal surely owes much to 100 per cent old-wood fermentation. ”

“A powerful, structured and graceful 2005, showing deft integration of the rich, chalky underpinning, firm acidity and expansive flavours of crushed back currant, spring blossom, toasted almond, crystallized honey and preserved lemon. Offers a fine, raw silk-like mousse and a long, spiced finish. Disgorged February 2015. Drink now through 2030.”

“The 2005 is an impressively fresh Champagne that has an array of grilled nuts, nougat and chalky minerals ahead of red apple, lemon and grapefruit pith, red fruits and attractive red floral perfume. The palate's supple, smoothly cut, and has a wealth of concentrated dark and red berry fruit flavor that really speaks of pinot noir. This has warmth and richness; really bold and smooth with some spice to close too. The palate has a lot of power, weight and length. Will evolve to deliver brulée, toffee and mocha. Drink now or hold for five years.”

“Bollinger's 2005 La Grande Année is an attractive Champagne to drink now and over the next handful of years, as it is already quite forward. Burnished, slightly oxidative classic Bollinger notes meld into scents of honey, apricot jam, smoke, sage, mint and wild flowers. Open-knit and expressive, the 2005 has plenty to offer today, while it appears destined for near and medium-term drinking. Although a solid wine, the 2005 is a far cry from some of the other stronger recent editions.”

“The bouquet is exuberantly floral, the bubbles are minuscule and it is ever so slightly pink-tinged. There is classic Bollinger richness here, but it is coupled with restraint. The fruit is very ripe and it is counterbalanced with less dosage than normal – 6 g/L (as opposed to the usual level of 9/10). More detail emerges as the wine opens – spice, bark and candied orange peel notes on the finish offset the creamy, honeyed, brioche notes on the palate. There is a very definite link between this wine and the 2005 Vieilles Vignes Françaises (also reviewed on matthewjukes.com) in terms of its power and dimensions. In 2005 Bollinger went back to the ‘pillar’ of the company, Pinot Noir, with 70% of this grape used (2002 RD used only 60%). The number of Crus used in this vintage is smaller than normal, too. Normally, in LGA, Bollinger uses 20 Crus, however in 2005 they only used 13, principally in their heartland of Aÿ and Verzenay. This is because of the large size of the bunches and the rainfall in September – rot was a danger. Many other Houses suffered a lot but Bollinger’s vineyards are grassed in between the rows and this helped enormously. They also stopped using fertiliser in 2005 which resulted in a superior crop. This is definitely a more forward vintage than expected at the beginning of its life but will also keep beautifully. You could drink it now, but I expect that its peak will be 2 years and it will last until 2030.”

“Disgorged Oct 2014. Very subtle, complete nose. Hedgerows and lift. Substantial wine that is not as tight-knit as some but is certainly attention grabbing.”

“Red fruit dominant nose with pastry nuances. There is a beautifully Burgundian feel to it with an accentuated oaky note without too much of an oxidative ad-on. Dry, serious finish with its 7g/l dosage. Big and bold but not one of the most complex of vintages. ”

“Really interesting, complex nose with lots of age and development and polished autumn-leaf characters. Fascinating wine that is probably too interesting to throw back at a reception. Complete and compelling.”

“(disgorged January, 2013): Light, bright gold. Powerful orchard and pit fruit aromas are complemented by smoky lees, iodine, chamomile and buttered toast. At once fleshy and energetic, offering deeply pitched poached pear, peach pit and brioche flavors and a suave floral element. Finishes smoky and very long, with mounting spiciness and lingering floral and vanilla notes.”

“Originally this wine showed an edge of austerity and bitterness over the powerful, compressed core. The R.D. showed more charm upon launch. Tasted in magnum only in May 2016: a mild earthy-mineral oxidative note but under control. Spice, vanilla, apple, apple pie. Long and firm, zesty but laudably harmonious. Points for magnum.”

“Disgorged October 2010. Tasted blind.
Something a bit rubbery on the nose but very tense and exciting. Is this the 2008? Tense and vibrant, with lots of complexity and persistence. Impressive for its age. 12%
Drink 2012-2030”

“Since the year 1990 made vintage wines from Bollinger in a little fruitier more persikodoftande style with slightly less pronounced smokiness and nuttiness. I was always more impressed initially by the previous style, but it feels like the differences even out over time. 2002 is very fruity and a little slippery at the moment, but I am convinced that the fruitiness will be low, and that we will see a deeper beauty over time. Fantastic in magnum.”

“60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay. Pale gold. Very sumptuous nose. Inspirationally serious. Layers and dry with enormous tightness and very tiny bead. Something almost beery about the yeast element. You could definitely enjoy this already but there is also massive potential. Very dry finish. Uncompromising. You wouldn't give this to a beginner. Long, peacock's tail finish.”

“The 2002 Brut La Grande Annee is marvelous. The 2002 is an understated Grande Annee that caresses the palate with layers of effortless, weightless fruit. The mousse is exceptionally fine, which adds to the impression of total elegance. This is a relatively bright, floral Grande Annee with plenty of aromatic lift, inner perfume and no sense of heaviness at all. A rich, creamy finish adds the final note of complexity and pedigree. The 2002 is 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay, 71% from Grand Cru villages and 29% from Premier Crus. Disgorged February 2011.”

“Medium salmon pink, silver hues, fine persistent mousse. A hint of red forest berries followed by subtle smoky spice nuances, fresh cherry notes mingled with hints of white apple. Juicy and elegant on the palate, in perfect balance with enchanting fruit followed by a saline-mineral finish, displaying enormous length and a great drinking flow. An incredibly seductive rosé Champagne with great personality and real ageing potential.”

“The 2012 La Grande Année Rosé is airy, gracious and so wonderfully inviting. Crushed flowers, mint, white pepper and red berry fruit are all gracefully woven together. Today, the 2012 is naturally quite young and still shows the tension of a Champagne that was disgorged just a few months ago. Readers who prefer Champagnes with softer edges and a bit more flavor complexity will want to cellar the 2012. I have to admit, I very much like the wine today, in its youthful state, where its energy and focus are front and center. The 2012 is a blend of 67% Pinot Noir and 33% Chardonnay taken from 21 villages built around a core of Aÿ and Verzenay Pinot Noir and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and Oiry Chardonnay, crus that are quite complementary. Disgorged January 2020. Dosage is 8 grams per liter.”

“A blend of white Grande Année 2012 with some still red from Bollinger's Côte aux Enfants vineyard.
Quite intense salmon pink with a sort of bronze tinge. Tiny bead. Heady nose. Tastes a little drier than the current Bollinger NV Rosé with a little more grip on the end and more depth – also less evolution. Long and vibrant with a hint of strawberry juice and vegetables (cabbage?). Really rather explosive on the finish. I think for current drinking I might even choose the NV version.
Drink 2022 – 2029”

“Disgorged with eight grams per liter dosage, Bollinger's 2012 Brut La Grande Année Rosé is showing beautifully, wafting from the glass with aromas of raspberries, plums, orange rind, walnuts and fresh bread that only hint of the complexity to come. Full-bodied, broad and vinous, with fine depth at the core, a pinpoint mousse and racy acids, it concludes with a long and perfumed finish. The blend includes 5% red wine exclusively from Bollinger's La Côte Aux Enfants vineyard—which imparts delicate phenolic grip.”

“For the first time ever, I enjoyed the rosé edition of La Grande Année in January 2020. Mostly, LGAR has felt a little heavier than the white version. This time there is an extremely charming uplifting juiciness and fruit that makes the wine a winner. My thoughts and comparisons guides me towards historical bottles with their wonderful notes of orange fudge, nougat and white chocolate. The colour is also slightly brighter than before and the added wine from one of the foremost parcels in Aÿ, Côte aux Enfants, gives a delicious elegance and silky texture. Although the base wine is identical to LGA and only 5% red wine has been added, they are as different as night and day. The Rosé has a creaminess and charm that appeals at the moment. It is also exciting to see that the rosé has a strong element of red citrus, with blood orange and red grapefruit as clear components of the harmonic symphony. It will be an exciting journey to follow both LGA and LGAR into the future, but if I recommend a storage of at least five years in my own cellar for LGA, I will start drinking my rosé bottles with great pleasure next weekend.”

“A new premium non-vintage blanc de noirs with a sense of place. After a complex nose of spices, apple, yeast and brioche the palate surprises with its racy, saline, cool Verzenay fruitiness that is combined to generosity from Ay, Bouzy and Tauxières fruit. In the mouth it offers textured richeness from a big splash of reserve wines from Bollinger’s special, long-aged magnums. An exiting novelty that shows off with Bollinger’s Pinot Noir wealth and know-how. ”

“A brand new 100% Pinot Noir cuvée, the first new wine from Bollinger since it went into rosé in 2008. Based on the 2015 vintage with reserve wines back to 2009. The principal cru is Verzenay although there are also wines from Aÿ, Bouzy and Tauxières in the blend. Each new edition will focus on a different cru. Good information on the back label.
Very Bollinger (even more than Pinot Noir) on the nose, but livelier than the regular NV. Very fine texture and bead indeed on the palate. A little (not excessive) oaky note on the end. A very fine, elegant, well-integrated interpretation of Pinot Noir. Long peacock's-tail finish. Very accomplished. Though it's arguably too complex to be a suitable aperitif. A champagne for geeks?”

“A fabulous Champagne, the NV PN VZ 15 is a new wine from Bollinger and the first addition to the range in over a decade. As the name implies, it is a 100% Pinot Noir built on a core of fruit from Verzenay and based on the 2015 vintage. Bollinger’s most iconic wine is of course the super-rare and expensive 100% Pinot Noir Vielles Vignes Françaises. A few years ago, Bollinger set out on a path to exalt the unique characteristics of their Pinot. For this project, the four leads of the winemaking team headed by Cellar Master Gilles Descôtes and Deputy Cellar Master Denis Bunner were tasked with each creating a new cuvée. The conditions: the wine had to be non-vintage, 100% Pinot Noir and possible to offer at both an affordable price and with some scale. The four wines were tasted blind and the winner is the new PN VZ 15, the first in a series of upcoming releases that will explore the many shades of Pinot at Bollinger. I tasted it recently with Bunner and General Manager Charles-Armand de Belenet and was super impressed.

Bright and vibrant on the palate, the PN VZ 15 captures all of the Pinot richness that is such a Bollinger signature but with the freshness and verve that make Pinots from Verzenay so distinctive. Rich red fruit, mint, dried flower and spice notes play off bright acids and veins of saline-drenched minerals in a display of aromas, flavors and textures that dazzle all the senses. Think of it as a baby VVF, but with the tension of Verzenay. The blend is approximately 50% Verzenay and 50% Aÿ, Bouzy and Louvois, done about half in steel and half in oak. This release is based on the 2015 vintage (50% of the blend), with reserve wines that go back to 2009, including 20% from the reserve magnums Bollinger is so famous for. This bottle was disgorged in November 2019 and dosage is 7 grams per liter, about average for Bollinger today.

As I have written before, many of Champagne’s big houses have embraced the ambitious spirit of grower Champagne with their recent bottlings, wines that often place more emphasis on variety and place than the flagship blended cuvées that are the core of what Champagne has represented in the past. This is yet another example. The new PN VZ 15 is superb, and sharply priced as well, something that is not often the case with new grande marque Champagnes these days. Don’t miss it. ”

“Soft, open-knit and wonderfully inviting PN VZ 16 is a worthy follow up to the sublime 2015 that launched this new Blanc de Noirs in the Bollinger range last year. Sweet red cherry, Mirabelle, spice, mint and dried flowers all grace this wonderfully translucent, expressive Blanc de Noirs. North-facing sites in Verzenay that confer tension and energy make up about half the blend, with wines from Aÿ, Bouzy and Louvois playing supporting roles. Vinification is done in equal parts steel and oak. This release is based on 2016 (50% of the blend), with reserve wines that go back to 2006, including 23% from reserve magnums. Readers who enjoy Blanc de Noirs will adore the PN VZ 16. I find the interplay of vibrancy and the creamier notes that are so typical of the house style to be incredibly appealing.”

“Very pale pink. Wonderfully pure Pinot Noir character on the nose. Very fine bead indeed. Tight in texture yet playful in flavour. A worthy successor to the 2015.”

“Magnum - Bright in colour with gold reflections, the aromatics are immediately captivating, with marzipan, acacia, apricot and patisserie all vying for attention. It’s impossibly youthful yet reassuringly mature, a bread basket of delicious contradiction. Cerebral seduction ensues on the palate, with dried fruits, bergamot and lime joining the party, then come the hazelnut notes – which have been identified as a leitmotif for the vintage – and a clean, almost chalky finish to restore rigorous harmony. Precision in no way undermines generosity, and generosity in no way undermines potential. A very fine piece of work all in all, tasted from magnum, alongside bottle and jeroboam. Disgorged: November 2022. Dosage: 3g/L.”

“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. Two thousand seven, though, was a difficult year marked by very dry weather, rain at the end of the growing season and an early harvest in August, something that was not as common as it has become. Selection was essential. For the 2007, the blend is composed of just 14 villages compared to the more typical 18-25. Verzenay is the main Pinot component while Cramant plays the leading role in the Chardonnays. For these reasons, the 2007 is an R.D. driven by more focus, energy and tension than readers are used to seeing. Lemon confit, dried flowers, sage, mint, crushed rocks, almond and ginger are some of the aromas and flavors that give the 2007 its complex, multi-faceted personality.

The 2007 can be enjoyed now, but I would prefer to cellar it for a few years. It will age effortlessly for decades as it moves through the various phases of its life. I was reminded of the way Champagne can magically traverse time by magical bottles of the 1976 R.D. and 1996 Vieilles Vignes Françaises I tasted recently. The blend is 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay, 91% Grand Cru fruit and the rest Premier Cru. Bollinger fans will notice the return of the original label, with the disgorgement date clearly visible, a tribute to Madame Bollinger, who was a pioneer in so many ways. Disgorged: July 10, 2020. Dosage is 3 grams per liter.”

“Disgorged on July 10, 2020, with three grams per liter dosage, Bollinger's eagerly awaited 2007 Extra-Brut R. D. is beautiful, unwinding in the glass with aromas of crisp orchard fruit, citrus pith and white flowers mingled with hints of honey, orange oil, buttery pastry, English walnuts and delicately spicy bass notes. Full-bodied, vibrant and incisive, it's unusually elegant and structurally fine-boned for what is routinely one of Champagne's more muscular tête de cuvées, with a bright spine of acidity that's cloaked in vibrant, concentrated fruit, complemented by a pearly pinpoint mousse and concluding with an intensely sapid finish. Long and penetrating, this is a tightly coiled R. D. that will reward bottle age.

The fruit of an early harvest, beginning on September 1st, Bollinger's superb 2007 R. D. is an unusually delicate, fine-boned rendition of this habitually muscular cuvée. An additional seven years on the lees has brought additional textural and amplitude to the acid spine that was already evident in the 2007 Grande Année, and the slight loss of pressure during aging on cork makes for a more refined, pearly mousse that complements the wine's enhanced texture and amplified sapid nuance. Fermented in used oak cooperage, with tirage under natural cork and disgorgement without added sulfur dioxide (but now with jetting to ensure consistency), it's one of the few tête de cuvée bottlings still made very much as it was 40 years ago. While I don't tend to comment on packaging, Bollinger's decision to revive the tasteful aluminum label that graced this cuvée's debut 1952 rendition, when the redoubtable Madame Lilly Bollinger still presided over this house, does underscore what is a real and not merely superficial commitment to artisanal traditions.”

“Rich and mushroomy in Bollinger style on the nose with a notably dry finish. I think I might stand a good chance of identifying this wine blind…
Drink 2020–2028”

“A hint of hazelnut praline clings to the creamy notions on the nose, aligned to a pleasant smokiness and a hint of dark peony. More air adds notions of white pepper and toasted cumin. The palate is exquisitely creamy – the Bollinger hallmark – but with 2007 this texture is presented with exquisite poise. The bright freshness that underlies all this keeps a subtle but constant presence, lending structure. Beautiful depth lends a kind of solidity that anchors this in chalky soil, a class act and a very grown-up wine that says one thing only: enduring elegance.”

“Very, very different from the usual solid, powerful, broad Bollinger style. More rapier-like in approach with none of the density and mushroom notes that I usually associate with Bollinger. An unexpected style which may broaden perceptions of what this house can do. Crisp, mineral, the immediate effect was actually 'pretty' though with time in the glass it took on more weight. This reflects a little the Bollinger PN VZ15 exclusively from Verzenay with pretty marked acidity at this stage in its life. Refined with a bone-dry finish and a touch of quinine on the end. Should have a long life. Ideally I'd wait until mid 2021 before broaching this long-distance runner. With time in the opened bottle this took on more typical Bollinger weight and character.”

“Current vintage. Late, cold harvest started 27 September because of the size of the crop. TA 7.1 g/l. Tasted from bottle.
Pale greenish straw. Interesting pungent nose. Tight but not austere. Great spread of flavours. More expressive than magnum, perhaps because it’s warmer.”

“Disgorged November 2016. Tasted blind.
Big and round and almost peachy on the nose. Then dry and Bollinger-esque on the palate. Almost dried out on the end! Very apple-skin-like. 12%
Drink 2017-2024”

“Magnum: 66% Pinot Noir, 34% Chardonnay. Disgorged 20 November 2017. Dosage 3 g/l.
Quite different to the regular bottle, with much more autolytic character and riper fruit too with a sort of orange peel fruit. Has the same slight honeyed note and generous flinty note. Not the biggest in terms of sheer weight, but certainly packed full of flavour. (RH)”

“Bottle: Disgorged 20 November 2017. 66% Pinot Noir, 34% Chardonnay. Dosage 3 g/l.
Mid gold colour. Smoky hints on the nose. Creamy texture, salty. Ripe, slightly honeyed aromas. Brioche and baked apple. Moderate intensity on the palate, but there is good persistence and a touch of savoury salinity on the finish. Lovely honeysuckle and cream on the length. Still a long way to go, but superbly open already. Seems softer in acidity than the 2002. (RH)”

“One of my most exciting wine experiences was when I first tasted 1975 Bollinger RD with my parents at their home. During yesterday's Sunday afternoon, I served them the latest edition of 2004 blindly. The 82-year-old's reaction did not allow for a wait. Mom immediately exclaimed "the same wonderful scent of chocolate and apricot like when we drank Bollinger RD in the 80's". So right she was. When Bollinger decides to launch the newest vintage of RD, the wine must have its distinctive autolytic character of freshly baked bread, chocolate, hazelnut and mushroom. That is at least the thought. I would like to say that the last vintage in 2002 did not have these features at the launch at all, but instead relied on an almost grassy elegance and refined acid structure in an remaining youthful attire. With 2004 it is different. It's precisely like this Bollinger RD should taste from the beginning. Nobody can be disappointed here. Perhaps, 2004, is not one of the most heroic vintages but on the other hand one of the most classic. The very essence of the RD concept is to try to capture a wine's optimal maturity along with maximum freshness. Unfortunately, I do not think life expectancy is as good as in the La Grande Année version, but I may be wrong. The intensity of the mature layers of dark chocolate, tobacco, black truffles from Vaucluse and a melancholy hiking in the moist autumn forest is, at least, impressive. The mousse may struggle to reach the surface of the glycerol rich essence of wine. Nevertheless, it tingles of lust on the tongue when stringency, chalk and jingling pure acids dance over the finish line.”

“Disgorged 17 May 2017. 60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay (usually more like 30%).
Incredibly intense aromas – baked apple, cinnamon, freshly baked bread. Conventional and recognisably champagne, but to a greater, more intense degree. Some creamy coffee on the palate and wonderfully savoury salinity on the finish. Very, very long persistence. Champagne to the power of ten. (RH)”

“The most remarkable thing about the 2002 Extra Brut R.D. is how tense and structured it is. Despite having been disgorged over two years ago, the 2002 is very much tightly wound. After several hours, the power and resonance of the vintage start to come through, along with the natural richness of Pinot from Aÿ. Whereas most 2002 Champagnes are quite ripe in profile, the 2002 R.D. has plenty of depth, but it is depth through concentration as opposed to elevated ripeness. The low dosage style further adds to that sensation. Hints of chamomile, sage, dried flower and red fruits emerge over time, but only with reluctance. I would prefer to cellar the 2002 for at least a few years. If that is not possible, readers should open the wine at least a few hours in advance. Even so, the 2002's best drinking lies somewhere in the future. My sense is that the 2002 will be at its best between the ages of 20 and 30. Disgorged: September 11, 2015.”

“Current vintage. Disgorged January 2017. 40% Chardonnay (high for Bollinger). Extra Brut. Dosage 3 g/l.
Deep straw gold. Start of that woodland-mushroom Bollinger aroma. Masses of character. Not quite as tense as some 2002s – more Bollinger style with the dry overlay. Very, very Bollinger.
Drink 2017-2026”

“Disgorged October 2014. RS 4 g/l. 60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay. From Bollinger's UK agent Mentzendorff.
Tasted blind. Dark gold. Mushrooms (a mature Bollinger trademark), savour and density with a dry finish. Definitely Bollinger RD. Some refinement too. Reminds me a little of a fine sake – umami?”

“Big names do not help if you are not familiar with a certain house style, and so I can understand everyone who dislikes Bollinger's 2002 RD Extra Brut, which at first sight reveals a matured if not an old wine displaying toffee, floral (hyacinths, narcissus, sage), vegetal and spicy aromas (oak, cannabis, frankincense, black bread) -- but almost no fruit (at least no fresh fruit). This wine was disgorged in March 2014, but just needs a lot of time in the glass to develop its complexity. On the palate this is a very pure, fresh, lively, firmly structured and almost ascetic wine with complexity, but almost no sensuality. Very distinctive style.”

“Expressive and richly textured Pinot Noir. Profound.
”

“Disgorged October 2014. 60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay. RS 4 g/l.
Tasted blind. Pinkish gold. Very slightly oxidised but not dangerously so on the nose. Then great energy on the end. This is almost Krug-like in how complex and tight knit it is. Savoury. Impressive. Energetic. Unusually dry finish.”

“It has been a long wait for R.D. fans since the 1997 vintage, which was followed by only minuscule amounts of 1999 and 2000 coming in large formats only. Now there is a chance to celebrate 50 years of R.D. with the outstanding 2002 vintage. It is a bold, fresh and seamless vintage of R.D. with the higher than usual Chardonnay content bringing an extra layer of elegance. I enjoy the drive and linearity the wine has despite the huge concentration. The October 2013 disgorged bottle has been the best with super-stylish with its mineral restraint and autumnal. Apple and spice fruit profile with an under-control oxidative undertone. Perfected, super dry 3g/l dosage.”

“(Bottle) Tasted blind. Disgorged October 2014.
A little less fruity on the nose, as though it is a little evolved so seemed clearly from a bottle rather than a magnum - confirmed. Again very dry end.”

“(Magnum) Tasted blind. Disgorged October 2014.
Big and broad on the nose. With a hint of putty. Edge of cream-of-mushroom soup. Bone dry and even a little chewy on the end. It seemed as though it had to be a magnum and it was. ”

“Magnum. Lots of minerality on the nose and underlying fruit. Tense-issimo. Almost austere!”

“Light gold. Powerful, mineral-laced scents of orange zest, pear skin, iodine and chamomile, with a hint of anise in the background. On the palate, vibrant orchard and citrus fruit flavors unfurl slowly, picking up toasty lees and mace nuances that build on the back half. Sappy, tightly focused and stony, finishing with excellent thrust and building florality. This is showing an extremely youthful profile for its age and while I know that the received wisdom is that R.D. wines should be drunk soon after release, I'd let this one get some more years on it. ”

“Bollinger's 2002 R.D. is striking in its beauty. Silky and caressing on the palate, the 2002 impresses for its exceptional balance and harmony. In 2002 so many Champagnes are ripe and explosive in style, but the 2002 R.D. is quite restrained by comparison. Hints of apricot pit, smoke, almonds, spices and pears ring out on the super-finessed, inviting finish. The 2002 is going to be nearly impossible to resist in its youth, but it should also age impeccably. All the elements are in the right place.”

“Very firm, savoury nose with Bollinger's trademark fungi. Very powerfully so but with excellent acidity and lift on the palate. This is touted as a 50th anniversary offering because the first RD (Recently Disgorged) vintage released on the UK market was the 1952, in 1967 (so it was three years older than this 2002). It was launched at the same time as the 1953 on the French and Swiss markets and the 1955 on the American and Italian markets. A nod to British taste for seriously mature champagne? This wine should not be served too cool. It has real weight - though does not taste heavy. I loved it on first release as Grande Année and it is less austere now. A bit mellower and more open though still with the deep throat salve sensation on the finish.”

“Super fresh, this is striking given the 10 years in the cellars; it has a fine citrus nose - plenty of lemon, grapefruit, yellow chalky notes, some lighter floral elements too. The palate is super dry (dosage at 3-4g) and there's a silky, sherbet-like texture, smooth, fine and long. The citrus flavours give way to the driving surging acidity, thunderous acidity, really driving and powerful. The finish twists very slowly through to light-toasted cashew fruit flavours, but lemon citrus prevails. This is thrilling Champagne.”

“Deep gold. Just wonderfully complex, well-integrated nose. The very special quality of this wine just leapt out of the glass. Minerals and enormous depth. Great substance and delicacy too. Absolutely archetypal Bollinger: solid, dry, yet complex and ethereal on the nose. Masses of acidity – still tense. It would be a crime to drink this wine thoughtlessly at a reception; it really does demand concentration, and applause.
Disgorged 7 March 2011. Rainy, late season. 72% Pinot Noir. 17 villages. 66% grands crus. Yield 9,000 kg/ha, initial potential alcohol 9.2%, initial TA 9.4 g/l, pH 2.9, final TA 5.6 g/l, final alcohol 12.1%.”

“Mature and nutty in character, this 1988 exhibits a firm texture and an elegant stature, a fine backdrop for the roast coffee, hazelnut and citrus flavors. Dry style.”

“Classic Bollinger aromas of baked apple, toffee, coffee, nuts and brioche. Then superrich, highly concentrated and penetrating, with impressive chewy extract. Uncompromisingly dry and just beginning to unfold. Really saturates the palate. Remarkably young for a 12-year-old Champagne-but then the best '88s are evolving slowly. Finishes with superb length.”

“Pale to mid salmon. Light Pinot perfume. Well-managed mousse is just the right side of not-too-aggressive. Good balance of fruit and the dry finish. Serious rosé champagne but definitely not hard work to drink now.”

“The latest release of Bollinger's NV Brut Rosé is showing especially well, offering up complex aromas of sweet stone fruit, honeycomb, freshly baked bread and orange oil, followed by a medium to full-bodied, pillowy and vinous palate. Layered and concentrated, with a pretty pinpoint mousse and ripe but racy acids, it concludes with a long, expansive finish.”

“Pale to mid salmon. Light Pinot perfume. Well-managed mousse is just the right side of not-too-aggressive. Good balance of fruit and the dry finish. Serious rosé champagne but definitely not hard work to drink now.”

“The latest release of Bollinger's NV Brut Rosé is showing especially well, offering up complex aromas of sweet stone fruit, honeycomb, freshly baked bread and orange oil, followed by a medium to full-bodied, pillowy and vinous palate. Layered and concentrated, with a pretty pinpoint mousse and ripe but racy acids, it concludes with a long, expansive finish.”

“Disgorged in May 2021, the latest rendition of Bollinger's NV Brut Special Cuvée is showing beautifully, offering up aromas of ripe orchard fruit, citrus oil and peach, mingled with hints of walnuts and freshly baked bread. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and enveloping, with a generous core of fruit, lively acids and a pillowy mousse, it's seamless and complete, concluding with an expansive finish.”

“The nuanced nose delivers orchard fruits layered with spice and yeastiness, and the fine, ripe concentrated fruitiness is well protected from oxidation. The very complex Bollinger blending recipe, including the laborious and costly use of long-aged reserve wines in magnums, results in something classy and seamless; this is a wine full of character. The bold, powerful palate has a fine silky texture and a stylishly mellow mousse, leaving room for the vinosity to build in the glass. This is a non-vintage that is worth maturing and is especially recommended in magnum. Dosage 8-9g/l”

“Refined nose with stylish restraint. Richness of spicy-earthy notes carefully intertwined to the lemon, apple pie, baked pear, cinnamon and vanilla tones. Super mild oxidative character beneath the intense fruitiness. Seamless structure on the generous palate. Long, mineral, dry finish. Built to last, so deserves additional post-disgorgement ageing. ”

“60% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay, 15% Pinot Meunier. Bollinger don’t talk about which wine their non-vintage blends are based on because reserve wines constitute a good 50% of the blend. This was bottled in 2013 and disgorged in 2016 so 2012 is the youngest vintage. 150+ different wines in the blend. Maybe six or seven different vintages.
Very firm, Bollinger savoury style on the nose with a bone-dry finish and lots of chewiness. Dried apple-skin flavours. Really long. A fan of flavours on the end. Very distinctive.
Drink 2016-2020”

“A rollercoaster year in the vineyards with hopes for a quality crop only rising at harvest time. Salon initially wasn't promising a vintage, but changed its mind having come up with something instantly rewarding. Bright, sweetly fruity nose on the sweet green fruit side: lime, pear drops, licorice, jasmine and fragrant orange blossom tones. A flick of vanilla complements the whole. The palate has a silky flow of volume yet a firm backbone of brisk acidity enhancing the notion of explosive fruitiness. The chalky mineral bite comes forward on the long, intense and dry finish. This wine hasn’t moved a lot in the past year, promising longevity. Disgorged 3/21; dosage 5g/l”

“The 2012 Salon is absolutely gorgeous. It offers a beguiling mix of radiance and energy that seems to capture a little bit of elements of some of its older siblings. The expression of fruit is radiant and quite overt, but without reaching the tropical exuberance of the 2006. In shape, the 2012 recalls the mid-weight style of 2007 with the freshness of 2008, but not quite the youthful austerity of that wine. If that sounds like an appealing combination, well it is. The 2012 Salon is all harmony and class.”

“Pinot Noir was the king of this climatically challenging vintage. Thus early on Salon wasn’t promising us a vintage. However, they changed their mind having come up with something instantly rewarding and generous. Bright, sweetly fruity nose on the tropical side with lemon, jasmine and orange blossom. The palate has volume yet a firm backbone of brisk acidity. The chalky mineral notions come forward on the long, intense and dry finish. ”

“This bottle of the 1996 Blanc de Blancs Le Mesnil Brut was drinking superbly and represents the apotheosis of Blanc de Blancs, unfurling over the course of three hours with a stunningly complex bouquet of citrus oil, confit lemon, dried white flowers and oyster shell, with hints of praline and pastry cream becoming more pronounced as the wine opens up in the glass. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, deep and multidimensional, defined by the incisive spine so typical of the vintage that, here, is cloaked in layers of crisp fleshy and chalky extract. The finish is long, penetrating and saline. Unfortunately, since the 1996 Salon has been traded so zealously over the last decade, finding a bottle that hasn't travelled too far can be a challenge. But from a perfectly stored bottle, this is just the beginning.”

“The combination of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger’s raw power, Salon’s inox-fermented non-maloed winemaking and the extremities of the 1996 vintage suggest a masochistic experience. But miraculously the result is one of all times finest Salons (given that you love the sensation of acidity, a prerequisite of any Salon fan). This is truly razor-shard and driven, aging painfully slow for the impatient. ”

“The 1996 Salon is just beginning to enter the early part of its plateau of maturity. Time in bottle has softened some of the razor-sharp focus the 1996 had when it was first released, but all of the energy it had as a young Champagne remains. A host of candied lemon, almonds and wild flowers punctuate the sculpted, persistent finish. Readers who own the 1996 can look forward to another two decades or more of exceptional drinking. This is the ultimate expression of Champagne as wine.”

“100% Chardonnay from the Côte des Blancs, Montagne de Reims and Montgueux. The 2016 base is refined and persistent, showing tart mirabelle plum and citrus confit on one hand, but also a more extroverted green mango/lime side. An invigorating, marine/salt-spray finish. The volume, the padding of pastry and nougat, will show with more time on cork – I would give this at least 2 years on cork.”

“Base 2016 | Pale lemon in colour, with an instantly charming nose that has a layered sweet toastiness. There are pristine vanilla-laden aromas, with orchard fruit, lemon, lime and even tropical nuances. The palate is youthful with vibrancy yet also age-mellowed, with reserve-wine richness contributing velvety sensations. This is a beautiful recipe, in which the steely, mineral wines of the Côte des Blancs gain gravitas from spicy Montgueux Chardonnay and tropical tones from Villers-Marmery and Trépail on the Montagne de Reims. This Mis en Cave 2017 is based largely on 2016 fruit and has a particularly pure and perky fruitiness. Disgorged 2021; dosage 10g/l”

“Launched in 2018. Based on 2012. 25% Reserve and aged 5–6 years on lees. Mainly Vertus and Oger. Renewal of what they did before Remy Cointreau took over the company. Very small volume: 20,000 bottles. Now available in magnum.
Pretty powerful nose. Putty nose and then quite rich on the palate. Really firm and fine. Broader than the average blanc de blancs but very well made and pleasing. Ambitious.”

“Based on the 2012 vintage and disgorged in 2019, Heidsieck's NV Blanc de Blancs continues to show nicely, exhibiting aromas of lemon oil, dried white flowers, green apple and walnuts. It's medium to full-bodied, taut and chiseled. If anything it exhibits a more reserved, austere profile than it did last year. Based on this showing, it's evolving more slowly than I anticipated, and I'd be inclined to counsel readers to wait another year or two before popping corks.”

“Based on the 2017 vintage, complemented by some 25% reserve wines, Heidsieck's new NV Blanc de Blancs was disgorged in January 2021 with only two grams per liter dosage. Sourced from the Côte de Blancs, along with Montgueux (historically a stalking ground for this house), Villers-Marmery and the Sézannais, it offers up aromas of crisp orchard fruit, white flowers and freshly baked bread, followed by a medium to full-bodied, ample and lively palate that's bright and layered, concluding with a chalky finish.”

“Base 2016 | Attractive white-flower and ripe-lemon aromas are married to an elegant, medium-bodied palate, where the creaminess is neatly underlined by the mousse, the lively acidity making the chalky and saline finish very clean and straight.
”

“Recently disgorged with seven grams per liter dosage, the 2006 Brut Blanc de Blancs Blanc des Millénaires is expressive and charming, in keeping with the sunny, demonstrative style of the vintage. Offering up aromas of toasted brioche, honeycomb, yellow apples and preserved citrus, it's full-bodied, fleshy and textural, with a rich core of fruit, ripe acids and an attractive pinpoint mousse. It's already drinking well, and I'd be inclined to approach it sooner than the more tightly wound 2004 rendition.”

“An amazing bouquet of gunpowder, coffee and toasted almonds. The palate is a super refined balance of nutmeg, white chocolate & mocca with an acidity that delineates it all beautifully with its flintiness. Great purity and length!”

“Vivid gold. Heady aromas of candied citrus fruits, flowers, truffle, gingerbread and iodine, with an intensely smoky overtone. Deep, pungent and palate-staining, with the orchard and pit fruit flavors reaching every corner of the palate and showing impressive power without any excess weight. Even more extroverted than last year's release, finishing with excellent cling and lingering smokiness.”

“Deep, pure and fresh on the fruit-intense and complex nose, the 1995 Blanc des Millenaires is still young and incredibly fresh on the palate. This is refreshingly pure, concentrated, fruity and perfectly round Champagne that reveals a great tension and mineral complexity. It also has a long and salty finish. Keep it for ten or 20 years.”

“Aged for 15 years on the lees. Very rich and broad.”

“Stunning, come-hither toast, vanilla and coffee nose with white and tropical fruit richness. Powerful, mellow, mature palate with oily smoothness and the softest texture. Long and dense. Fully mature and impossible not to like.”

“A mouthwatering Champagne, refined and satiny in texture, with a citrusy overtone to the flavours of apricot preserves, toasted hazelnut and brioche, crystallized honey and fleur de sel. Presents a lasting, smoke-and spice-finish.”

“Both intense and discreet. Extremely tightly woven. Not as dry as some but certainly not simple. Tastes more youthful than many 2012s. Subtle and not flamboyant. You feel you could drink this in quantity!”

“There is fruity power beyond the reserved nose. This is a complex blend from 10 villages in which toasty coffee notes meet hay, wax, yellow apple and pear-pie notes. There is something appealingly crystalline about the fruit, but the lemony backbone of tightness seems a little austere on the palate. Structured and slowly ageing, this will rewards one's patience; however, it is currently missing some of the voluptuous sweet charm we are used to. Disgorged 2020; dosage 9.7g/l”

“Disgorged in 2019 with eight grams per liter dosage, the 2012 Brut Millésimé offers up aromas of crisp orchard fruit, white flowers and clear honey, complemented by hints of toasted bread, citrus zest and linden. Medium to full-bodied, elegantly fleshy and nicely concentrated, with lively acids and a pinpoint mousse, it's more generous and demonstrative than the 2008, but it will nonetheless reward a bit of bottle age.”

“Soon to be released in magnum, the 2012 Brut Millésimé continues to show well, delivering aromas of citrus zest, crisp orchard fruit, freshly baked bread, buttery pastry and beeswax and framed by a deft touch of smoky reduction. Medium to full-bodied, racy and chiselled, with fine depth at the core and a long, penetrating finish, this bottle was disgorged in summer 2021.”

“60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay, from a season that until August was very challenging for a wide range of reasons. The wine has apparently gone down well enough in the UK to provoke a second order from importer Liberty Wines. They have shipped some to the US but there is still some 2008 to work its way through the distribution channel there. Cyril Brun sees 2012 as having the richness of 2006 and the austerity of 2008 and is very keen on the increasing levels of ‘noble bitterness’ on which he is banking to balance wines now that acid levels are plummeting in Champagne. It had six years on lees and was disgorged in May 2019. The back label promises it will drink well until 2035! This wine was made by his predecessor Thierry Roset (Brun joined in time for the 2015 vintage). He imagines that Roset deliberately chose some Pinot from north-facing vineyards on the Montagne de Reims to combat warmer summers. Dosage 8 g/l; experiments continue to show that a fairly high dosage suits the Charles Heidsieck house style.
A very savoury Charles Heidsieck champagne at the moment – extremely tight and youthful with some smoky reductive notes as well as one of lime cordial. Real undertow; an exciting combination of producer and vintage with real potential.”

“'A dangerously drinkable wine' according to chef de cave Cyril Brun, and I wouldn't contest that. I adore it for its inviting approachability, pure fruitiness, vibrancy and impeccable balance. The colour is intense with golden tones. The nose is not short of nuances: stunning smoky toastiness and rich biscuit notes are complemented by generosity of fresh and dried fruits ranging from apricots to tropical fruits and zesty lemony layers. It sits between reductive and oxidative styles, leaning safely towards the former. On the palate, the marriage of Charles’ hallmark velvety texture, the invigorating tension and the tiniest bubbles is disarming. Highly creamy and generous but ending on a fresh note of stylish bitterness at the back palate, probably partly due to the drier than usual style, dosed perfectly at 8g/l. A classic blend of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay with Grand & Premier Cru sourcing from the Montagne de Reims and Côte de Blancs. The key villages are Aÿ, Oger, Vertus, Chouilly, Ludes and Cuis for Chardonnay and Ambonnay, Tauxieres and Avenay for Pinot Noir. ”

“Very lemony (blossoms, zest and candied peel), with some red-berry and fresh tobacco-leaf notes. Impressive richness and concentration, the creaminess from lees beautifully matched by the fine mousse and mineral freshness. The latter also powers the structured and saline finish that makes a serious statement.
”

“Deep golden colour. Highly creamy nose with emerging toasty opulence. Full of luscious, ripe fruit. Opens beautifully in the glass. There is impressive generosity on the mouth-filling, oily palate, boosted by concentrated, age-mellowed fruitiness. Long, almost chewy but appropriately fresh finish. Finely balanced at 10g/l dosage. ”

“This seems to have been around a long time! Deep gold. Very fine persistent bead. Lots of autolysis and substance on the nose. Real lift on the finish. This tastes like wine, with all its complexity, rather than a constructed champagne. Still quite a bit of grip on the end. Very satisfying indeed.”

“The nose is surprisingly reminiscent of the Bollinger 2005 tasted immediately before. Solid and complex with a wild floral note. Bone dry and with a bit more focus and lift than the Bollinger.”

“The 2005 Vintage Brut – a classic mix of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay – is a very ripe and concentrated Champagne with a bit of bitterness in the finish. "2005 was austere as a young wine, but since 2015, it shows very well and promises a very good aging potential," finds chef de cave Régis Camus. The wine opens deep, pure and fresh on the nose, with very clear white fruit aromas, spiced bread and a very clear definition. Light, fresh and finesse-full on the silky-textured palate, but also round and intense, this is a very elegant and refined vintage Champagne. It has a pure and fresh finish, and a long and intense aftertaste.”

“The 2005 Brut Vintage is an excellent choice for drinking now and over the next few years. Brioche, pastry, baked apple and apricot are some of the notes that flesh out in the glass. Supple, expressive and inviting, the 2005 offers lovely balance, especially for the year. Warm, toasty notes meld into the resonant, enveloping finish. This is quite lovely. Disgorged: May 6, 2014.”

“Still very young, this holds great potential. Rich, full-bodied and densely structured, it is a wine first, sparkling second. Ripe apple and peach flavors partner with a strongly mineral texture.”

“Striking nose of candied orange, dipped in bitter chocolate and tobacco leaf. Powerful and mouth-filling, with impressive textural richness. Now at its best, the dry finish fully mature, but complex and spicy.”

“Remarkable depth of mature aromas - tons of candied lemon peel, dried pear and brioche - plus wonderful textural richness on the palate make this stand out amongst the regular Brut NVs. Then comes the intense and very long, mineral finish to crown this prince of the category.”

“Based on the 2017 vintage, complemented by 50% reserve wines (emphasising Pinot, which was in short supply in the base vintage), Heidsieck's NV Brut Réserve exhibits aromas of sweet citrus fruit, buttery pastry, dried white flowers, bee pollen, crisp orchard fruit and praline. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and seamless, with a pretty core of fruit, lively acids and chalky structure, it's a giving, charming wine that will offer a broad drinking window.”

“The Charles Heidsieck NV Brut Réserve is elaborated with 150 different wines from most of 60 crus. This is a blend of 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier with 50% of reserve wines. Disgorged in 2022 with a dosage of nine grams per litre, it has a delicate bouquet with aromas of orchard fruit, apricot, warm biscuits, praline, pastry and lemon hints. Medium to full-bodied, creamy and fleshy, the palate is charming with lively acids and a chalky finish. It’s approachable now but also evolving with grace.”

“Base 2017 - Bright pale copper colour. Youthful nose promises further evolution. (An earlier cuvée of this wine served at the end of the Tolpuddle vertical was notably deeper-flavoured.) Everything's in balance but I'd put this away for a year or two so that you can celebrate 201 or 202 years of Liberty in style.
Drink 2024–2030”

“Remarkable depth of mature aromas - tons of candied lemon peel, dried pear and brioche - plus wonderful textural richness on the palate make this stand out amongst the regular Brut NVs. Then comes the intense and very long, mineral finish to crown this prince of the category.”

“Based on the 2017 vintage, complemented by 50% reserve wines (emphasising Pinot, which was in short supply in the base vintage), Heidsieck's NV Brut Réserve exhibits aromas of sweet citrus fruit, buttery pastry, dried white flowers, bee pollen, crisp orchard fruit and praline. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and seamless, with a pretty core of fruit, lively acids and chalky structure, it's a giving, charming wine that will offer a broad drinking window.”

“The Charles Heidsieck NV Brut Réserve is elaborated with 150 different wines from most of 60 crus. This is a blend of 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier with 50% of reserve wines. Disgorged in 2022 with a dosage of nine grams per litre, it has a delicate bouquet with aromas of orchard fruit, apricot, warm biscuits, praline, pastry and lemon hints. Medium to full-bodied, creamy and fleshy, the palate is charming with lively acids and a chalky finish. It’s approachable now but also evolving with grace.”

“Base 2017 - Bright pale copper colour. Youthful nose promises further evolution. (An earlier cuvée of this wine served at the end of the Tolpuddle vertical was notably deeper-flavoured.) Everything's in balance but I'd put this away for a year or two so that you can celebrate 201 or 202 years of Liberty in style.
Drink 2024–2030”

“A blend of 36% Chardonnay, 36% Pinot Noir and 28% Pinot Meunier is based on fruit bought regularly from the same growers in Riceys, Ambonnay and Aÿ. After the first fermentation in stainless steel, each tank undergoes malolactic conversion. After blending with a base of 20% red and white reserve wines, 5–6% of still red Pinot Noir is added. The non-vintage is aged for three years before disgorgement, after which residual sugar is a relatively high 11.2 g/l. They have experimented with lower dosage levels but apparently it just doesn't do the trick.
Pale orangey bronze that positively glows in the glass. Shades of Lucozade? Beautifully integrated nose with many a nuance. Now this is a romantic pink champagne! Creamy texture, seductive fruit that finishes very clean and dry – as in not sweet (despite all that dosage!). Delicate, stereotypically 'feminine', but not wimpy. With an admirable undertow that goes on and on on the palate. A wine that would mend a sore throat?
Drink 2020 – 2024”

“Vinified in stainless steel vats in the Charles fashion, this wine sees a 5-6% red-wine component, to give it its pale peachy colour and red-berry charm. This Mis en Cave 2019 was released particularly young, and even though it is delightfully succulent and pristinely fruity, it is lacking some hallmark qualities of the cuvée. The fruitiness is flawlessly pure and joyful, with wild strawberries and ripe peaches, but missing the toasty 'wow'. On the palate, the fruitiness is equally impressive, but some of that age-mellowed sumptuousness is still not there. Finely crafted and harmonious, but it needs time. Disgorged 2022; dosage 6.28g/l”

“The NV Rosé Réserve is an attractive, aperitif-styled Rosé to drink now and over the next handful of years, while the flavors remain bright. This release is based on 2012. Now with two years on the cork, the Rosé Réserve offers lovely complexity in its slightly burnished dried cherry, crushed flower and spice nuances. Disgorged in 2017.”

“The new release of Heidsick's NV Rosé Réserve is based on the 2012 vintage, with the usual 20% of reserve wines and some 6% still red wine from Les Riceys in the Aube. Already exhibiting considerable complexity, it wafts from the glass with scents of orange rind, red plums, gingerbread and red berries. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied, satiny textured and fleshy, with lively acids and an attractively vinous profile. It was disgorged a few months ago with 11 grams per liter dosage.”

“Pale peachy colour with onionskin hues. Lovely autolytic, toasty yet flirtingly fruity nose. Very clean and fresh, beautifully crafted. Balanced and charming with juicy, succulent nature. Long and invigorating but a little tight for the timebeing.”

“A slew of red-berry, candied-orange and leaf-tea aromas welcomes you to this well-structured rosé Champagne. Bright acidity that’s quite pronounced at the slightly vegetal finish, but this also provides some tension.
”

“Grilled almonds, sweet acacia honey, fruits compote and vanilla on the complex, beguiling nose. It is only the light mushroomy note that deducts from the appeal. Rich and vinous on the palate with the finish slightly drying out. I have encountered encountered better bottles, less troubled by the mushroomy note. ”

“Charles Heidsieck 2000 - This wine is a serial winner, having conquered nearly every pedestal in the wine world, amongst them FINE Champagne '100 Best' winner in 2013 and Gold at 2014 CSWWC. Super luscious, sweet apricot, coffee with cream, wheat, brown butter, ginger and honeycomb nose with toasty richness in opulence. So deep, complex and soft. Caressingly smooth, even velvety palate with plenty of fruit and leesy richness. Power but comes with elegance. Matured to perfection. Ready to drink but there is no hurry. Note for 2012 disgorgement.”

“MeC 2001 - Based on 2000. 37% Pinot Noir, 21% Pinot Meunier, 42% Chardonnay. Dosage 11 g/l. Lower percentage of Pinot Noir than in most MEC. 2000 was a great year in which the vintage wine was considered one of the best they had made. 34% reserve wine. Disgorged 2006.
Mid gold, super-fine mousse. Remarkable at this age. Less toasty than the 2008, still ripe in its fruit profile, a little more toasty with air and remains surprisingly delicate – at least it gives that impression but it is powerful underneath. A hint of torrefaction. Just a tiny hint of mushrooms. And with marked reductive struck match on the palate. Tastes incredibly youthful and has amazing length. Still so sharply defined, great balance between the richness and freshness. Very impressive. ”

“52% Chardonnay, 48% Pinot Noir. The return of Charles Heidsieck's true Prestige Cuvée is remarkable not only for the quality of the wine (and perhaps the price), but for the admirable choice of not simply going 'big' in terms of style. The youngest wine is from 2016 (20% Aÿ Pinot Noir), the rest composed of reserves back to 1998. What is striking is the harmony, purity and resolution of flavour here, with fragrant tropical fruits, brightness of starfruit and orange peel and fine apricot tart flavours, all sitting under gentle praline richness. Nothing steps out of line - a real sense of assemblage. Luxurious enough on the palate to enjoy now, but subtly-built for further ageing in bottle, this will be a fascinating cuvée to follow.”

“Based on the 2016 vintage, this wine builds on its magnificent wealth of reserve wines. There is already high expression upon release, a super complex nose with vanilla, burned sugar, caramel and liquorice meeting tangerine, pineapple, dried apricots and honey. The sumptuously sweet character continues on the soothingly mellow palate oozing reserve wine richness. Here, the 52% Chardonnay and 48% Pinot Noir going back down to 1998 blend harmoniously into something luxuriously textured. Perfectly balanced with its 7g/l dosage.”

“Based on the 2016 vintage, this wine builds on a magnificent wealth of reserve wines. It already has a high expression on release: a super-complex nose, in which vanilla, burned sugar, caramel and liquorice meet tangerine, pineapple, dried apricots and honey. The sumptuously sweet character continues on the soothingly mellow palate, oozing reserve-wine richness. Here, the 52% Chardonnay and 48% Pinot Noir (going back to 1998) blend harmoniously into something luxuriously textured. Perfectly balanced with its dosage. No need to wait, even if the new Charlie has the structure to age too. Dosage 7g/l”

“Fresh, ripe apricot and salted shortbread are immediate on the nose. More air reveals a mouthwatering streak of ripe and juicy greengage, grapefruit zestiness and melted butter. The palate is wonderfully brisk, taut at first but endowed with cooling, depth with hints of chalk and more apricot, accentuated by fine mousse. This is complex, taut, fine and beautifully vertical. It will age beautifully.”

“What a stunning mature champagne! This marries complex toasty aromas with a vitality that makes it easy to enjoy. Enormous concentration and creaminess, but so clean and straight at the super-long, delicately spicy finish that extends out to the horizon. A cuvee of 20% 2016 vintage pinot noir from Ay, with 80% of mature reserve wines, of which a good third were over 10 years of age.”

“When Cyril Brun was briefed to recreate this iconic cuvée, he struggled to achieve the plenitude and drama he was looking for. Then, he dug in the Heidsieck archives and discovered, as he tells it, that the famous vintages of Charlie, while vintaged on paper, actually contained reserve wines. Brun therefore gave himself carte blanche to draw on the house's best lots to put together the inaugural NV Champagne Charlie, based on the 2016 vintage but incorporating fully 78% reserve wines dating back two decades. Bursting with aromas of golden orchard fruit, brioche, honeycomb, peaches, spices and buttery pastry, it's full-bodied, fleshy and enveloping, with a layered core of fruit, racy acids and a beautifully refined pinpoint mousse. Some 52% of the blend is Chardonnay, with Brun looking for ripe, exotic Chardonnay to complement more tensile lots of Pinot Noir. It's a compelling, flamboyant wine—the only thing that may make consumers smart is the price.”

“An astonishing bouquet presenting notes of petroleum and flint that mingle with scents of pastry and both dried apricot and apricot jam. Complexity and generosity stand out on the palate, with that exemplary creamy and mellow mouthfeel that aged Champagnes at their best can have, but there is also freshness and an underlying crystalline sensation serving as counterpoint to the fullness of texture that is enhanced by the dosage. The chalk-infused finish is long and subtle, leaving a lingering impression of spices, including vanilla and pepper, as well as dried fruits. Bottled and cellared in 2017. Disgorged: November 2021. Dosage: 7g/L. 80% reserve wines and 20% wines from the 2016 harvest. 52% Chardonnay and 48% Pinot Noir from Aÿ.”

“MeC 1990 - Based on 1989, which had the third-largest yields in history, apparently, and a protracted harvest after uneven flowering. 40% Pinot Noir, 20% Pinot Meunier, 40% Chardonnay. Not such a good year for reserve wines – just 29% – as 1989 and 1988 were too young and 1987 and 1986 both so-so vintages. Dosage 11 g/l. Disgorged 1993.
Slightly deeper gold than the 1993. Stony and smells really dry, much less rich in fruit aroma at first but opens up to really toasty breadth. More mushroom on the palate and the acidity very marked. Not quite as well balanced as some in this vertical tasting of MEC. Fatter but the acidity is marked. It actually tastes younger than the 1996 because of the high acidity. Magnum was brilliant and more crisp.”

“Launched some two years after its white sibling, Charles Heidsieck Rosé Millésime 2008 greets you with instant Charles charm. The typical, heavenly ground coffee note is there but it remains coolly reserved with crunchy fruit profile that still holds back a lot. Peach, blood orange and lemon peel with a spicy twist. A rosé d’assemblage with 9% red wine, half from Les Riceys, half from Montagne de Reims, it is elegant, focused, even tight for the time being. The palate finishes very dry with the lowest-ever dosage for Charles, 7g/l, bringing a gastronomic, phenolic bite to the fore. In its breezy lightness and vivacious style it differs greatly from the previous releases but promises to be a slowly ageing keeper. Only a tiny volume was produced and regrettably no magnums, soo ne better move fast with this one. ”

“This age-defying rosé is a blend of 15 crus, with villages such as Cramant, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Oger, Vertus, Ambonnay, Avenay, Aÿ and Tauxières all playing a part. The wine has received its developing pale peach colour from the 9% addition of Les Riceys and Montagne de Reims Pinot Noir. There is plenty of hidden power on the tight nose, which first releases super-fine toasty nuances of the mocha and bonfire kind. The fruitiness is crunchy and cool, with fresh berries meeting red and yellow apples, peach and apricot. The palate is tight and linear, with plenty of tension enhancing the sense of dynamism. Even if prickly from its bubbles, the texture is super-smooth and silky, leading to a long, purely fruity finish. The low dosage (by Charles standards) enhances the feeling of bright radiance. Disgorged 2021; dosage 7g/l”

“Elaborated with 63% Pinot Noir (including 9% of red wine) and 37% Chardonnay, this rosé from Charles Heidsieck is sourced from 11 grands and premiers crus. With a much lower dosage than in previous years (7g/L), it has a spicy and smoky nose with pomegranate, citrus, liquorice and red berry aromas. Harmonious and elegant, the palate is full-bodied with both tense and fresh texture interplays, with a vinous structure. A gastronomic rosé built for long ageing. ”

“The newly released 2008 Brut Rosé unwinds in the glass with youthfully reticent notes of tart red berries, white flowers and citrus oil, framed by a touch of light reduction—which I suspect is accentuated by the wine's Diamant closure. Following the wine in my office, it was only on the third day that hints of plums and licorice began to emerge. Medium to full-bodied, taut and chiseled, it's concentrated and layered, with real cut and energy, but it's also borderline austere and will require patience to realize all its potential. When compared with the rich, demonstrative 2006, it was to be expected that the 2008 would represent a change of pace; but the contrast is even starker than I would have expected.”

“An amazing 2008 rosé Champagne that has all the structure and aromatic complexity - sushi ginger, oolong tea and caramelised mandarin orange - we associate with this vintage, but also has more charm than most. On the palate, this has stunning concentration, yet is diamond bright. The interplay of creaminess, fine tannins and mineral acidity builds and builds at the breathtaking finish. The colour comes from about 7% pinot noir red wine, partly from the little-known Les Riceys in the far south of Champagne.”

“Mid coppery pink (same hue as the Dom Pérignon Rosé 2005) with a fresh strawberry aroma, even with a hint of strawberry jam. Enough acidity and nice balance with a very fine bead. Far from bone dry but with a light savoury thread running through it. Very nice texture.”

“Seductive smoky, flinty aromas wrap around pretty red fruits and gentle oriental spices. A harmonious palate with a creamy texture, lovely strawberry and red currant fruits and a touch of spice. The finish is generous, yet subtly restrained, supported by fresh chalky minerality.”

“Charles Heidsieck have decided to launch the Vintage Rosé 2006 before the 2005, which to them still needs time. Opulent raspberry, fresh peach and caramel nose with stylish spicy complexity but only emerging toastiness. The palate is highly youthful, plump, almost oily in its richness. The finish is tight with pencil shavings notes and slight phenolic feel to it. The dosage has been decreased to well-balanced 9g/l. A generous year suiting perfectly to Charles’ style but should be given time to develop its toasty and coffee complexity typical for Charles Heidsieck.”

“Charles Heidsieck's 2006 Brut Rosé (with 10% Pinot Noir red wine) has been launched before the 2005. Disgorged at the end of 2014, the wine offers a delicate and intense wild strawberry flavor with some lovely spicy aromas on the nose. Ample, full and round, this is a lovely matured Rosé with a super intense and aromatic Pinot character (sweet cherries, red berries). The finish underlines the great complexity, purity and finesse of this vinous Rosé. There are cherry aromas again in the long aftertaste. An impressive Rosé.”

“This is a pale-colored wine with a finely wrought texture and great fruit. It is tight and mineral on the one hand, but balanced with the crispest red-currant flavors that offer a bright line in acidity. Delicious hints of age round out the final fresh aftertaste.”

“Heidsieck's 2006 Brut Rosé Vintage offers good immediacy and plenty of intensity, both of which make it quite appealing. Still a bit tight, the 2006 could use another year or more in bottle to soften. Although light in color, the 2006 packs a pretty serious punch. Hints of orange zest, chalk and white pepper add an attractive upper register on the finish. With time in the glass, the 2006 softens nicely, hinting at a bright future. Disgorged: October 28, 2014.”

“With a pale hue in the glass, this has a savory nose that delivers a very nicely struck toasty edge with chalky pastry and faint red fruits. The palate's sophisticated and fine texture is mesmerising, and this really dances. It leaves a trail of red berry fruits in its wake through to a long, pure, fresh and spicy finish. Drink now.”

“100% Chardonnay in a special walled, so early-ripening, eighteenth-century vineyard in Reims. Part of it was planted in 1962 and part in 1986 after the frosts of 1985. What happened to these grapes before Clos Lanson was bottled separately to celebrate Philippe Bejot’s acquisition of Lanson in 2006? They went into vintage and Black Label. Fermented in pièces from Burgundy and 300-litre casks from Argonne.
Smoky nose. So distinctive! A bit like Laphroaig malt whisky! The oak still rather marks it but Hervé claims it’s ideal to drink now. Good acidity but there are definite oak overlays. Fruit is a tad weak for the moment, but should come out from behind the oak eventually. Good saline quality. Again, not one of the most intense on the finish.
Drink 2020-2030”

“The 2006 Clos Lanson is bright, focused and exceptionally pure. Veins of underlying acidity and chalkiness give the 2006 its super-distinctive, saline-driven personality. Lemon peel, white flowers, chalk and white pepper develop in the glass, adding further dimensions of nuance. With time in the glass, the 2006 acquires lovely textural brilliance, but it remains tense, crystalline and absolutely impeccable in its purity. The aromatics could use a bit more finesse and freshness, but otherwise this is a solid debut. Clos Lanson is fermented entirely in barrel, but the oak is very nicely integrated. Disgorged December, 2014.”

“From the immured one-hectare vineyard on the top of the hill, which also harbors the cellar of Champagne Lanson that dates back into the 18th century, the 2006 Clos Lanson is 100% first press Chardonnay from a very fine, chalky soil. It was fermented and aged in Argonne oak until spring 2007 (no malolactic fermentation), and disgorged after seven and a half years on the lees in December 2014 as Brut Nature with a dosage of three grams per liter. This bright yellow-golden colored prestige Champagne offers a brilliant nose of pure and ripe Chardonnay, along with delicate chalky flavors. Full and round on the palate, with a nice freshness and purity, this is a very elegant and well-balanced Blanc de Blancs. it has an aromatic as well as clear, fresh and mineral finish. This very first release has a very good length and characteristic mineral taste, with iodine notes along with ripe fruit and vanilla brioche flavors in the finish. This is a great new entry in the Lanson portfolio and it will improve with age. Total production is 7,870 serially numbered bottles.”

“A new bottling on me in a broad, straight-sided flask from a single plot in Reims next to the cellars. 100% Chardonnay. Disgorged December 2014.
Pale golden straw. Impressive aromatic completeness and integration on the nose – although one is hit by Lanson’s trademark high acidity on the palate. Very firm and still quite chewy. Tastes pretty youthful and aggressively frothy. I’d hold on to this for quite a while. Embryonic. 12%”

“Generous fruit from the weathered chalk site is enhanced by a bright acidity, triggering mineral complexities. So delicious, tout en plaisir. The mineral imprint makes it a great match for ocean fish, especially turbot. A lovely surprise from the warm walled clos.
”

“Rich golden colour. Highly expressive nose with tropical fruit, smoky layers sweet brioche and spicy vanilla aromas and finely integrated note of high-quality oak. Voluptuous, round, fleshy palate that is mouth-filling at first until the fine, zesty acidity kicks in and lifts the palate. The finish is minerality driven, fresh and succulent, emphasizing fruit purity. Great intensity and length.”

“The latest rendition of Delamotte's NV Brut Blanc de Blancs is drinking very well out of the gates, offering up aromas of crisp orchard fruit and citrus zest mingled with hints of fresh bread and wet stones. Medium to full-bodied, pillowy and precise, with bright acids and chalky grip, concluding with a dry finish, this is a classy, seamless wine that will offer a broad drinking window.”

“This is a classic racy-mineral Chardonnay from the grand cru villages of the Côte des Blancs: Avize, Cramant, Oger and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. The reserve wines are kept to a minimum in the blend to enchance the fresh, zingy and mineral style. There is a stylish restraint to the youthful, cool nose, which gives off stony mineral tones, complemented by faint smoky notes. The palate is equally subdued, with impeccable fruit quality shining through in a highly transparent way. Long, linear structure and palate-soothing texture. This is a truly emblematic Côte des Blancs Chardonnay in a cool, reserved but pristinely fruity style. Dosage 7g/l”

“(8 g/l dosage): Light yellow. Mineral-tinged peach, melon and pear aromas display excellent clarity, picking up a subtle floral quality with aeration. Supple and seamless on the palate, offering vivid honeydew and pit fruit flavors accented by a vibrant lemon zest quality. Finishes very long, silky and precise, with an echo of juicy melon and strong mineral lift.”

“Mostly 2012 with 25% reserve (2010 and 2011).
Wonderfully fragrant - smells white and pure but there are delicate notes of yeasty autolysis and scented lemons and white peach. Perfect balance here, finesse and elegance and no lack of flavour intensity and length. Fine and persistent mousse. (JH)”

“Le Mesnil, Avize, Oger, ‘300% grand cru’. Base 2013 plus 30% reserve wines. Disgorged September 2017. Just released. No info on back label. Dosage 6.5–7 g/l. This wine is very successful in Japan apparently. 30–35% of Salon and Delamotte’s business is in Japan. ‘Italy and Japan are very similar markets for high-quality products’.
Fine and firm – tight-knit, tiny little bubbles. Fine bead with a tiny bit of softness but still a little chewy on the end.”

“One third of each, Le Mesnil, Cramant and Oger, make up for the lovely smoky-mineral yet pure fruity essence of Delamotte non-vintage blanc de blancs. Lemon curd, butter, pastry and charred wood nuances on top of a highly mineral backbone. Lean, long and mouth-watering as it should be.”

“This is only the third vintage of this cuvée composed of all six grands crus of the Côte des Blancs, since Chouilly and Oiry joined the original quartet of Cramant, Avize, Oger and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger in 2008. The nose prompts an instant wow reaction, being so irresistibly classy, with sweet, toasty exuberance complementing the shiny, bright fruitiness. Lovely intensity of lemony fruit, delicate floral notes wrapped in toasty tones. The palate is appropriately tight and lean for the time being but coming with laciness and drive. This is such a bright, vibrant, overdelivering wine, oozing its grand cru origins with every drop. Dosage 6.5g/l”

“The 2014 Blanc de Blancs is seriously impressive. Ample in feel, Delamotte is especially rich in 2014, and yet there is plenty of freshness to balance things out. This is an especially savory style for Delamotte, and one that works so well. Dried lemon peel, pastry, almond, dried herbs and chamomile open in a beautifully translucent Blanc des Blancs that marries power and finesse. I can’t wait to see how it ages.”

“Such a consistent wine from vintage to another, Delamotte Blanc de Blancs brings together the six Grands Crus of the Côte des Blancs. Pristinely crafted, the wine is squeaky clean and radiant, with cool, crunchy lemony fruit at centre stage. Beautiful reductive smoky tones lining the intense fruitiness. The racy palate is pleasantly creamy and silky with a lingering long finish. ”

“A pretty Blanc de Blancs with aromas of white grapefruit, lemon pith, dried honeysuckle and white peach. Silky and creamy with bright acidity and
an elegant finish.
Drink now.”

“From the Grand Cru village of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger on the Côte des Blancs, this well-textured Champagne shows a crisp apple freshness underlined by strong minerality. At seven years past vintage, the wine is just starting to lose its initial freshness and develop attractive toasty elements. Drink now”

“A finely-meshed, linear Champagne, with racy acidity and a citrusy overtone driving flavors of poached apricot, biscuit, candied lemon peel and a toasty hint of brioche. Fine and creamy.
Drink now through 2026”

“Offering up an elegant yet bright bouquet, this 2014 Delamotte Blanc de Blancs opens in the glass with orchard fruits, verbena, lemon zest, pastry, and slightly reductive aromas. Chiselled and perfectly balanced, the palate is lively and intense, and expresses clearly the fruit and the straightforward nature of the 2014 vintage. Should age well for a decade or so.”