11/2009 Champagne Tasting at Renaissance Wines

While tastings here are usually quite solid, the port and champagne tastings always take it to another level. This was a wonderful opportunity to try a great range of bubbles, and to get to taste some fancy bottles that I'd never pick up "just to check out". The lineup was both educational and enjoyable!

• NV Domaine Chandon Étoile 87 Points

  USA, California

  Bright apples on the nose along with hints of biscuit and violets. Some nice juicy apples come across on the palate along with some decent acid. The wine is pretty basic and short, but decent for the sub $20 price point. 87+

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• NV Domaine Langlois-Château Crémant de Loire 88 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Crémant de Loire

  Bread and lemon peel scents dominate the nose with a little bit of grapefruit in the background. The lemon peel comes in full force on the palate, with a hint of bitterness at the end. Normally, this would be a big problem, and I'm surprised to be using "lemon peel" with such a positive tone, but it contributes nice structure, and is interesting. The acidity is great of course, and a bit of red grapefruit is apparent toward the finish.

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• NV Moët & Chandon Champagne Nectar Imperial 85 Points

  France, Champagne

  The wine has a rich nose with over-ripe peaches at the forefront, skins included. Some honey hits on the palate, and the bubbles deliver some serious zip. The wine gets flabby on the finish though, and the peach flavors lean towards sugary syrup at times.

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• 1999 Delamotte Champagne Blanc de Blancs Millésimé 91 Points

  France, Champagne

  Deep baked apples on the nose with a hint of pie crust. I love the fruit on this wine! It delivers rich, ripe apples with a hint of cream around the sides of my mouth. There's a hint of some nice french bread, and a cool spearmint sensation near the back of the mid palate. Totally enjoyable.

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• NV Taittinger Champagne Brut Réserve / La Française 87 Points

  France, Champagne

  Some green apples appear on the nose, along with some very pungent yeast scents. The wine tastes like nice, clean, apple juice from the start with the bubbles providing a softer texture. Some sourdough comes into play on the mid palate as well, which makes me pucker a bit.

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• NV Ruinart Champagne Brut Rosé 88 Points

  France, Champagne

  The nose is full of bright strawberry scents, with a faint note of yeast appearing as well. The bright strawberries deliver when tasted, and the strong acidity makes for a nice clean experience, even if a bit simple. This taste fell short of the previous 2 times I've had this wine.

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• NV Charles Heidsieck Champagne Brut Rosé Reserve 91 Points

  France, Champagne

  This excellent nose comes rolling out with rich, ripe peaches baked into a tasty cobbler. There's a hint of jammy red fruit as well, but it's fairly subtle. This nose is great! When tasted, the wine is bright and floral. The acidity starts out lovely and mellows out as the flavors on the nose come through. The tart acidity and balanced yeast flavors linger enjoyably for over 10s. Solid! 91+

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• 2000 Dom Pérignon Champagne 88 Points

  France, Champagne

  Apples, pears, and a hint of oak? appear on the nose here. Deep, ripe, pear hits right away and becomes intense quickly on the mid palate. But, it fades quickly and is kind of disjointed. Lots of acidity shows throughout the entire experience.

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• 1995 Charles Heidsieck Champagne Blanc des Millénaires 93 Points

  France, Champagne

  Great delicate yeast on the nose along with subtle apple scents, hazelnut, and a bit of cucumber. This wine is just delicious with light, bright acidity and ripe apples right on the front. It's incredibly delicate and smooth all the way through. Lovely grape skins appear on the mid palate with bread flavors, and some strong acidity that slowly evolves to dry everything out on the finish. Wonderful!

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• 1998 Veuve Clicquot Champagne Brut La Grande Dame 91 Points

  France, Champagne

  Lighter apples and some nice yeast scents on the nose, along with a bit of white frosting. The apples are lovely on the palate, and the texture is wonderful throughout the experience. The acidity is even and excellent, and there's a hint of cream to round things out. Very enjoyable. 91+

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The Heidsieck blanc de blanc was far and away my favorite, with the Veuve Grande Dame, Heidsieck Rose Reserve, and the Delamotte Blanc de Blanc making up notable mentions asl well. Seriously, multiple wines at 91 points or better from me? This was an awesome tasting. Now I need to find some bubbles I can get really excited about for under $50. All of the stuff I really like, is special occasion wine at best!