‘I say 10% of the blend is from my blood!’ declares Jean-François Clouet, who has changed the style of his family’s rosé to a fresher and more direct mood, not so soft, aiming for the lively impression of malic acidity, even though it goes through full malolactic fermentation. The result is a rosé that epitomises […]

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Eric Rodez has again crafted a definitive blanc de noirs, and one of the finest at its price anywhere in Champagne. The enticing purity of Ambonnay pinot noir on show is something to behold, encapsulating the personality of the village in voluptuous black cherries, cherry kernel, red apples and mixed spice. Malic acidity is cleverly […]

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It takes a tough season to truly define a great estate, and Gimonnet’s Special Club is one of Champagne’s finest expressions of the sunny and structured 2005 vintage — all the more noble at the top end of Special Club production volumes. Didier Gimonnet is justly proud of the balance he has upheld in this […]

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Such is the intensity of Gatinois’ red wine that even a tiny addition of just 7% creates an impressive medium salmon hue. This refined rosé epitomises the personality of great Aÿ pinot noir in all of its succulent, fleshy generosity, yet presents an impeccably tense and crisp structure. Pretty cherry and strawberry fruit purity meets […]

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Unusually, 2004 was not a large vintage for Rodez, even smaller than 2002. The precision that he has extracted from this vintage is magnificent, and this is the season that he goes back to as confirmation of his biodynamic techniques. And so it is: the minerality is an epiphany, its shards of pure chalk boring […]

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The planets aligned in 2008, when the vintage of the decade coincided with Jacquesson’s tearing up of every contract for fruit that wasn’t up to scratch. It goes without saying that this is the finest 700 series release from Jacquesson yet, but it’s more than that: its breathtaking elegance and electric brilliance position it firmly […]

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The philosophy here is an assemblage of the fruits of the first pressings of the best parcels across many years. The roll-call of vintages is mind-blowing, not only in that it averages 12 years of age on release, but that it plunders the greatest seasons of two decades, a line-up that must be unparalleled in […]

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Special Club is the one cuvée to rule all others at Lassalle. The philosophy here is of greater freshness and delicacy, hence a stronger representation of chardonnay, though the wine does its best to deny it. At almost nine years of age, it’s a beautifully bright and radiant pale straw hue. I was surprised to […]

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Sous bois is as distinctive for Billecart as its bold, modern label. Billecart is constantly experimenting, and occasionally something emerges from its trials for all to behold. Sous bois is literally ‘under wood’, inspired by oak-fermented parcels destined for Billecart’s top cuvées. The precision of the 2008 season has brought this blend closer to its […]

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There is a buzz in the air in Champagne as some of the first great 2008 vintage wines begin to hit the streets, and I have an ever-rising feeling that this may prove to be Champagne’s finest season of the past 20 years, after 1996. Deutz Rosé adds further weight to this claim, a magnificently […]

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