Launching this week is Bollinger R.D. 2007 extra brut; the R.D. cuvée embodies the House’s dedication to hard work and Madame Bollinger’s vision. The contrast between freshness on the palate and the spicy aromatic intensity of Bollinger R.D. 2007 brings a new experience of the cuvée to lovers of fine wine.
Ulysse Collin are right at the forefront of the terroir movement that is currently revolutionising Champagne. Olivier Collin, a student of Anselme Selosse, embodies the hip, alternative, craftsman image that is proving so popular with younger consumers. We visited in June to find out more.
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.
Nearly two decades ago, Champagne Jacquesson redefined non-vintage champagne. Instead of creating a consistent style year upon year, they now produce the best champagne possible and value each creation for their distinctive personalities – a concept that the wider region is just now starting to wake up to.
Champagne Krug have announced that Julie Cavil will take over as winemaking director in the new year. Incumbent winemaking director Eric Lebel will become deputy director of Krug and will lead projects involving all of the brands within the Moët Hennessy portfolio.
Not many champagnes are as eagerly anticipated as Salon 2008. Produced only in magnums (just 8,000 were made) and exclusively available as part of a specially designed wooden case, the ultimate rarity just got rarer. We met president Didier Depond in June to find out more.
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.
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.
Raphaël Bérëche is quite possibly the most cheerful and energetic winemaker in Champagne. Alongside brother Vincent, his passion for terroir focused champagne is transforming the family business from a top grower into an iconic domaine. We visited in June to find out more.
We recently visited Leclerc Briant with Jancis Robinson MW. General manager Frédéric Zeimett and winemaker Hervé Jestin discussed the winemaking innovations happening at Leclerc Briant and we tasted a range of champagnes, including Hervé’s personal project.
Lanson Chef de Cave Hervé Dantan is a huge fan of vintage 2018, telling us: “It was a dream, this harvest.” We visited the house in Reims earlier this year to sample the vins clairs and conduct a vertical tasting of all the Clos Lanson vintages from 2006-2014.
Based in Épernay, Champagne Boizel have a long and illustrious history with a tradition of trendsetting. We met with Florent Boizel, who has taken over the reins from his recently retired father, to sample some 2018 vins clairs and taste the range of finished champagnes.
Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon recently presented a fascinating masterclass at 67 Pall Mall entitled ‘Fighting for Freshness’, in which he explained the challenges facing winemakers as they battle to cope with riper grapes and higher alcohol levels in a warming climate.
Dominique Demarville will be leaving Veuve Clicquot to join Laurent-Perrier at the end of the year. Demarville has been Chef de Cave at Clicquot since 2006 and will be replacing the retiring incumbent Michel Fauconnet as Chef de Cave at Laurent-Perrier.
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.
Last week, Ruinart launched the latest iteration of their prestige cuvée champagne: Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs 2007. The brilliant young winemaker Caroline Fiot was in London to present the new release, alongside the house NV cuvée and the previous vintage of Dom Ruinart.
Last week, we had lunch with Régis Camus, Rare Champagne Cellar Master, and Diane-Sophie Lanselle, Communications Director at Mellerio, to discuss the now unclassified Rare Le Secret project and find out what inspired this great partnership.
Earlier this year, Séverine Frerson became Cellar Master of Piper-Heidsieck, while previous incumbent Régis Camus took on a new role as Cellar Master of Rare Champagne, which is to become its own brand. Check out the first pictures of new Rare Champagne bottles here.
Popping a cork has become so synonymous with celebration that the particularly unique vinous qualities of Champagne can be easily overlooked. Here we shed light on the complexities of our favourite effervescent tipple, by defining some of the key terms involved in Champagne and its production.
Earlier this year, we travelled to Champagne to visit thirteen different Champagnes houses and taste the 2017 Vins Clairs with their winemakers. Challenging weather has rendered this vintage one to forget for many, but there are some promising surprises. Which ones have the most potential? Read our full summary.
We tasted the 2017 vins clairs at Veuve Clicquot with Chief Winemaker Gaëlle Goossens, who described it as “a difficult year, but good for Chardonnay”. We also discussed her thoughts on innovating winemaking by bridging the gap between oenology and viticulture.
We met with winemaker Amine Ghanem to taste the 2017 vins clairs. As usual, discussion turned to the future of winemaking, of which Moët is at the forefront. Technological corks, thermovinification, thermal imagery – you name it, they’re doing it.
We were invited to a weekend at The Savoy for a vertical tasting of Dom Ruinart Rosé champagnes with head winemaker Frédéric Panaïotis. With 2002, 1998 and 1988 on show, it was a stunning showcase of pink champagne.
Last month, we attended a Charles Heidsieck Vintage Masterclass tasting with Cellar Master, Cyril Brun. A showcase of Heidsieck’s ageing potential beginning with a 2008 base vintage and finishing with a 1981 magnum.
Enlightening, educational and at times jaw-dropping, our visit to Moët was one of a kind. Amine Ghanem showed us the 2016 Vins Clairs, new Grand Vintage 2008, a 1988 magnum and the ultra-prestige MCIII.
We tasted the 2016 base wines with Vitalie Taittinger, Loïc Dupont & Damien Le Sueur. Discussing the influence of oak barrels, the new ‘image of Taittinger Rosé’, the potential for Comtes 2016 and Taittinger’s new winery; this was a truly eye-opening visit.
Our boxes are 100% recyclable cardboard and "paper bubble wrap" is efficient to both transport and dispose of. Additionally we seal the boxes with paper tape.
All same day deliveries are made in TFB "Jute Bags" a 100% recyclable material highly durable, made with tightly woven and sewn jute material that give their free-standing ability, and as a result, many customers use it for shopping bags. They are 100% bio-degradable.
