Tag: reims

  1. Veuve Clicquot: Exploring Vintage 2008

    March 26, 2020

    We met with recently departed Veuve Clicquot cellar master Dominique Demarville last summer, shorty after it was announced that he would be departing at the end of the year. A marvellous final tasting with Demarville at Clicquot saw us explore 2008, from the perspective of non-vintage, vintage, and prestige cuvée.

  2. Vitalie Taittinger to Become President of Champagne Taittinger

    November 12, 2019

    Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger, who has been President of the company since 2006, will be stepping down at the end of the year. His daughter Vitalie Taittinger will take over as President, while son Clovis will be promoted to General Manager.

  3. Charles Heidsieck: Chardonnay, Chardonnay, Chardonnay

    August 29, 2019

    This summer, we stopped off at Charles Heidsieck’s majestic garden and reception facility, Pavilion des Crayères, for a quick-fire visit and tasting with managing director Stephen Leroux. We sampled the new Coteaux Champenois and Collection Crayères releases.

  4. Taittinger: The Elusive Comtes Magnum!

    August 26, 2019

    We were truly spoilt during our recent tasting at Taittinger, which included not one, but two(!), of the notoriously rare Comtes magnums. Discussion centred around the newly released 2013 vintage, the future for Comtes, and the recently renovated vinification of Comtes Rosé.

  5. The Krug Symphony, Conducted by Olivier

    August 22, 2019

    Scheduling appointments at twenty champagne houses in one week is never an easy task, but perhaps our greatest feat of organisation was pinning down Olivier Krug. We managed to catch up with the globetrotting face of the company amidst his ever-busy international schedule for a whopper of a tasting this June.

  6. Palmer & Co: Bottles vs Magnums and Vintage Collection

    August 10, 2019

    Our last visit to Palmer & Co’s new winery in Reims included a comparison of the current range from bottle and magnum and a selection of older vintages from the late release Blanc de Blancs and Vintage Collections.

  7. Taittinger: 2018 Vins Clairs Tasting

    April 7, 2019

    The unusual weather patterns in 2018 produced the “perfect conditions for the vineyard”, according to new Taittinger Chef de Cave Alexandre Ponnavoy. We met last month to taste the vins clairs, which displayed incredible specificity: each wine showcasing the distinctive characteristics of its individual origins.

  8. A Visit to Champagne Palmer & Co

    October 19, 2018

    During our trip to Reims last week, we visited Champagne Palmer & Co to meet with Managing Director Rémi Vervier. After hunting in the underground cellars for the biggest bottle we could find, we discussed harvest 2018 and tasted two stunning examples of Palmer Vintage Collection.

  9. Tasting of 88 Champagnes from 1988

    October 17, 2018

    Last weekend, we attended a veritable extravaganza of champagne and food: a tasting of 88 champagnes from 1988 organised by fizz fanatic Peter Crawford and hosted at multiple Michelin-starred restaurants Domaine Les Crayères and L’Assiette Champenoise. Read our review of every champagne tasted.

  10. A Interview with Émilien Boutillat

    October 15, 2018

    Last weekend, we met with new Piper-Heidsieck cellar master Émilien Boutillat, who shared his thoughts on the 2018 vintage, what makes Piper-Heidsieck unique and what the future holds for winemaking in Champagne.

  11. Champagne Harvest 2018 Begins

    August 21, 2018

    The 2018 Champagne harvest officially began on August 20th – the earliest harvest since records began in 1822 – with the southern villages of the Côte des Bars being picked first. What does the picking schedule tell us about the maturity of the different grape varieties?

  12. Lanson: 2017 Vins Clairs and old Vintage Collection Magnums

    May 14, 2018

    Our vins clairs visit to Champagne ended at Lanson, with Chef de Cave Hervé Dantan. Here we tasted a comprehensive range of base wines, current champagne releases and some stunning magnums of Vintage Collection, from 1979-1990.

  13. Ruinart: 2017 Vins Clairs and Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs 2007

    April 19, 2018

    Chef de Cave Frédéric Panaïotis talked us through the 2017 vintage for Champagne Ruinart. Although a difficult year for Pinots, we tasted some stunning Chardonnay vins clairs and sampled the upcoming Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs 2007.

  14. Coming Soon: Bollinger R.D. 2004

    January 13, 2018

    The latest iteration of Bollinger R.D. (Recently Disgorged) will hit the market in late-March 2018. Here we share our thoughts on the bottle of Bollinger R.D. 2004 that we tasted with cellar master Gilles Descôtes last year.

  15. Coming Soon: Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millénaires 2004

    January 10, 2018

    After twelve years of waiting, we finally have a new vintage: Blanc des Millénaires 2004. Not yet officially launched, but available to purchase in February 2018, here we share our tasting notes from a bottle sampled with cellar master Cyril Brun.

  16. The Future According to Taittinger

    October 20, 2017

    Our trip to Reims in August included a smorgasbord of Taittinger: over twenty champagne tasted with head winemaker Loïc Dupont, including an interesting look into the future with Comtes de Champagne 2008 and 2012.

  17. Time-Travelling with Lanson: from 2016 to 1959

    October 6, 2017

    The first ever Noble Cuvée Blanc de Blancs and Brut vintages; Black Label NV blends based on the last vintage of the previous six decades; and a comparison of vintage and prestige cuvée. Our recent trip to Lanson had it all.

  18. Louis Roederer: The Old, The New & Everything in Between

    September 28, 2017

    Is there a better way to spend a Sunday evening than dinner with Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon at the Louis Roederer family mansion? We tasted new Cristal 2008 and the exclusive late-release Cristal Vinothèque 1995.

  19. Krug: A Visit to Clos du Mesnil & The New Krug Maison

    September 4, 2017

    We visited Krug over August bank holiday weekend with Jancis Robinson MW. With an unexpected visit to Clos du Mesnil, a tour of the new Maison, a mini-vertical tasting and dinner at the house, it was well-worth the long drive!

  20. Bruno Paillard: Realisation of a Dream

    April 10, 2017

    Bruno Paillard founded this eponymously named Champagne house in 1981: the first in nearly a century. A remarkable success story that is still being written… we met with daughter, Alice and tasted (sniffed) the 2016 Vins Clairs and current Champagne range.

  21. Champagne Lanson: Vive la Révolution

    April 2, 2017

    Big changes have occurred at Champagne Lanson since Chef de Caves, Hervé Dantan took the reins two years ago. We sampled the 2016 Vins Clairs, the latest Black Label NV blend and Clos Lanson 2016 as Hervé talked us through the new developments.

  22. The Making of Champagne

    February 10, 2017

    What makes a sparkling wine ‘Champagne’? What goes into the blend and how is it made? What do the different styles mean and why does one taste sweeter than the other? The answers you seek are here.

  23. Louis Roederer: Reims Visit

    July 6, 2015

    An experience worthy of sharing, very recently I journeyed to France with Louis Roederer to explore the magnificent vineyards and all things Louis Roederer. Find out more

  24. A Trip to Dom Pérignon, Hautvillers

    October 31, 2013

    From Islington to Champagne. Visiting Hautvillers Abbey and tasting Oenothèque in the historical and spiritual home of Dom Pérignon.