Christmas Morning

As we were leaving to ski the next day, this would be our last chance to see Jonathan. Samantha, and kids before their move to HK. We had them over for homemade buttermilk-white cheddar-thyme biscuits with Parma ham and mayonnaise flavored with yuzu rind and dried red chile pepper. In addition to the Champagne, we served bloody marys and bullshots.

• NV Varnier-Fanniere Champagne Grand Cru Brut Zero Blanc de Blancs

  France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

  Bright yellow color to meet the morning, with a strong mousse of very fine bead. A very pretty Champagne in the glass. Clean fruit and mineral driven nose shows a soft and generous slate sort of character with white fruits and a tad of lower behind the slate. On the palate, the mousse is aggressive but the wine is not. Extremely giving for a Brut Zero wine, I never would have guessed that it had no dosage blind. Palate is more of the white fruit with very crisp and fresh apple and pear and just a touch of citrus on the finish. Overall impression is of a nice balance between crispness and generosity with a hallmark of that very strong mineral nose. Only complaint would be lack of complexity but this drank very, very well for a basic-level NV. I’m generally not a big fan of no-dosage Champagnes and imagine a touch of sugar may have brought out a little more interest, richness, and complwxity in the mid-palate and finish.

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A melancholy event for a Christmas morning, but I'm looking forward to seeing them when I am in HK next week.