Dim Sum Club tries Fleur de Sel

It was time for the monthly lunch again (after my having skipped the last one with a new baby just arrived), this time in one of my favourite new restaurants, FdS. We bought the bottle of Salon from the restaurant to get corage waived, and paired it with a couple of Blanc de Noirs Champagnes and red to go with the meat - all blind as usual. The Salon was universally acknowledge to be underwhelming; but, that aside, this was a great lunch as usual. I was especially pleased at how well the Blanc de Noirs went with a lovely dish of roasted duck breast.

• 1999 Salon Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut 92 Points

  France, Champagne

  A very friendly, forward Salon, very understated, almost too much so - this came across as rather unremarkable until one really paid attention. The nose was nice, but a little tight, with little bits of honey and biscuits, some deeper apple fruit aromas, white flowers, and a bit of minerality and spice that opened up with time. The palate had a very elegant gentleness to it, with easy, pleasant flavours of white peach and nectarine and some kumquats on the side. Effortlessly balanced and wreathed in a fine mousse, this was a Champagne with an amazing finesse; quite delicious, but very quietly and subtly so - this was more ballerina than boxer, more Nureyev than Ali; certainly not one for those who look for power and punch in their Champagne. I found it quite easy to fall in love with its long, slim, graceful lines though. It had a nice finish too, with lemon zest and kumquats laced with spice and mineral. It feigned to faded away quite quickly at first, but then came back in a lovely, long retour. This lacked a bit of oomph at the moment; there was still a rather monolithic top later to it, maybe just statring to peel off to reveal some complexity. All in all though, I thought it was very nice indeed, and the great thing is that it still has its best days ahead of it. I would love to try it again in 5 years. 92+

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• NV Egly-Ouriet Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Noirs Les Crayères 92 Points

  France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

  I thought this was very good. Served blind, it stood toe-to-toe with a rather underwhelming bottle of 1999 Salon and did not blink a eyelid. This had a very expressive nose, with some sweet oak, drips of honey, then ripe apples and cherry flesh aromas, and a touch of yeast and earth at the sides. The palate was very nicely textured, with quite a bit of power to it, showing ripe apples and subtle cherry notes that came out more when this was paired with a lovely dish of roasted duck breast. Not the subtlest of Champagnes, this was a lot of flavour packed into a soft, creamy mousse and enlivened with fresh acidity showing through brighter lemon notes. It was nicely harmonious though, so that it never came across as overbearing. Strong finish as well, with sweet kumquats along with a litte biscuity note and a lovely line of mineral. This was a nice Blanc de Noirs that went very well with food. I think this was still pretty young, still pretty tight, but there was already a nice touch of complexity. 2-3 more years would have done this bottle a world of good though - it is a pity I did not note the disgorgement date.

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• 2005 Marie-Noëlle Ledru Champagne Grand Cru Cuvée du Goulté Blanc de Noirs Brut 90 Points

  France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

  Decently good, but cast a bit into the shadows when placed next to a hyper-elegant 1999 Salon and a rather more interesting Egly-Oriet Blanc de Noirs. Both the the nose and the palate showed simple but pleasant notes of sweet apples, cherries and lemons - good depth, yummy, but far from subtle in the way they poured out of the glass - a bit in-your-face. I liked the freshness and food friendliness of its though. Decent enough finish as well, with a little bittersweet mineral kiss. Nice enough, but nothing special.

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• 2007 Château Pape Clément 92 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

  Decanted for an hour, this was a surprising forward, accessible young Graves. While not one of the best Pape Clements from recent vintages, I thought this was a really well-made wine, and quite a success for the vintage. It had a really nice nose, with rich scents of cassis and plums with a little lift of capsicum and tobacco tones, some spiciness, and an earthy, slightly meaty undertone. Very open and expressive and remarkable devoid of the overtly sweet oak notes that have afflicted recent vintages of the wine. I really enjoyed it on the palate as well. The tannins were supple, already beginning to soften - a real surprise for something this young - and it had nicely integrated acidity that traced its way though pure notes of cassis and black cherries. All very elegant and understated, especially for a modern Pape Clement. Nice finish too, with lots of tobacco notes, and then a lovely spicy fragrance, redolent of anise and cloves. I do not think this will be a wine for long-aging. With the soft spiciness on this, it was quite easy to pick it out as a Graves, but we were all about a decade off on the palate, with 1998 and 1999 being the most common guesses. It is very nicely crafted wine though, really pleasurable, and especially good with a roast duck dish on the day - one to enjoy now and over the next 8-10 years I think.

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