I was a little worried opening this after the P. Peters Les Chetillons 2004, but it really stood up to it. Perfectly mature and open for business, with notes of citrus, bruised apples, some sweet spices, some chalky minerality too, some honey, nuts and just overall nice structure and fruit. It‘s medium-full bodied, with pretty high acidity and some slightly creamy mousse. Very long finish. An excellent grower‘s Champagne of a very high level.
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Just gorgeous, my last bottle from a full case. From 2008 base year, DG 12/2012, with no dosage. I have patiently consumed about a bottle each year, and my notes consistently show this as thrilling, bright, yeasty, incisive, complex, long, and oh so delicious...each and every bottle. I visited this House in Champagne several years ago, and buy L-B wines regularly. This DG is still gorgeous, and should hold up another 10 years...but perfect now.
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Saline & dry, minerally and oxidative. Very buttery with nuts with a silky smooth texture and a very long finish. A layered complex champagne that is more of a glass of white wine with bubbles rather than a straightforward sparkler. CHP 95 pts
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Gorgeous, this is penultimate bottle from a full case, and I have thoroughly enjoyed these Champagnes over the past 8 years or so. Non-dosé bottling, disgorged 12/2012, it's tight and punchy, with notes of almond paste, fresh bread, lemon zest, tangerine, chalk and minerals. Just great. Forever finish, fine bubbles, drinking perfectly.
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Bottle 10 of a full case. This is a 2008 base vintage, and was DG on 12/2012. 100% 1er Cru Chardonnay with zero dosage. This has been beautiful over the past 8 years. Bright citrus and tightly coiled on the finish, with some yeasty bread and nut notes, as well as brilliant chalk and minerals. Drink now through 2023+, I love these L-B Champers.
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Hui, der Terre de Vertus ist schon große Klasse. Puristisch, klar, am Punkt. Über die Jahre haben sich dazu ganz exquisite Reifenoten entwickelt. Ewig langer Nachhall. Kennt ihr das, wenn man mit der Zunge genussvoll die versteckten Winkel im Mund aufsucht?
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Bottle #9 of 12. This Brut Nature BdB is insanely delicious. DG 12/2012. Citrus, tart green apple, chalk, bread crust, just everything you want in Champagne...with a Brut Nature punch in the acid chops. So crazy good and long on the incisive and laserlike finish. Drink now through 2025+.
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It has been 5 years since my last bottle of this and boy has this developped beautifully. Open, aromatic and super lively, this is showing notes of citrus, lemon oil, chalky minerality, steel, some brioche, hazelnut and a touch of honey. It's medium+ bodied, with pretty.high acidity and pure integrated small mousse. Long finish with plenty of complexity. In a lovely place right now.
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Bottle #8 of 12. This non-dosé Champagne is stunning. Chalk, minerals, nuts, warm bread crust, lemon juice, so delicious. The finish lasts forever, I love this wine. Drink now through 2022+.
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Italian Dinner Chez David (David's Place, Mpls): Light gold color. Drank a glass over 30 minutes. White fruits, very mineraly, citrus, chalk, lime, subtle almond, apple peel. Very nice, loved it.
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Oh so very delicious. Took this bottle with me to Italy and consumed it on a porch outside in Montalcino. Bright citrus and apple, with a strong leesy character, and a mineral-laden finish that lasted 40+ secs.
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Gorgeous 2008 base vintage, DG 12/2012. Medium gold in color, showing off a nose of peach, lemon and lime, day-old bread crust, and honey. There is an acrylic pain aroma that is not off-putting, but it is present. The palate is brisk and energetic, showing off tense lime notes, with tart green apple, some hazelnuts, and sauteed mushrooms. Fantastic wine, drink now through 2022.
DBYOB (stockholm): A little tired, with really low acidity, but a nice enough nose, that was quite developed. Would have been impossible to guess that this is only a couple of years younger than the Terre de Versus I tried in december. But there was also a question of proper storage here, so let's not be too harsh. mid eighties if you're keeping score.
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Absolutely sublime. Green apples, lemon, pears, nuts, and warming bread. Chalky and bone dry. Finishes long with a little pepper and smoke. A tremendous value to boot.
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This Champagne is fantastic. It was even better after a day in the fridge. Chalk, lemon-lime, green apple, minerals, and warm bread crust. This a a Brut Nature, with no dosage. You have to be ready for that and like that style of brisk and energetic Champagne. I love it. Drink now through 2022+.
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Tasted over 2 hrs -translucent light gold, exuberant mousse -low key yeast -med+ acidity, med- weight but powerful and focused linear minerality bread dough moderately complex spicy smoky element and excellent length -like how this is clean without being too lean, this is excellent now and likely some upside
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This has improved with 3 years of cellaring. Still super focused, bone dry, super fresh with good acid core, great citrus with some aging notes of summer truffle and brioche add complexity to this still young champagne. Would hold for 3-5 years to add extra dimensions.
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Red Burgs and More at Mr. Jimmy's Farewell to Irving (Jimmy's Place, Mpls): Light gold color. Drank 2 glasses over an hour. This was showing very nicely tonight. Quite crisp and lively with a clean citrus profile, lemon, saline,refined chalky minerality, yeast, with good persistence. 91+ to 92pts.
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Disgorged 12/2012. Beautifully precise, nice toasty notes, crisp lemon and apple fruit, elegant. Paired nicely with sushi, my wife and I drained the bottle. Drink now through 2021+.
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Two bottles recently, stored identically. One seemed strangely lifeless. The other was vivacious, chalky and citrus-y, with good poise and a rounded texture.
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A decidedly interesting Champagne that was both nicely chiseled but also offered up a bevy of flavors, some unusual in a fairly balanced round. This Magnum clearly could use another few years to tone down a little bit of excessive fruit definition. As others have noted, the flavor profile changed in the glass over a 15-minute period. Some grapefruit, quince, lemongrass, sweet almond milk, and a bit of grapey flavor came to the fore. Not much in a way of toasty flavors that one would expect from a better aged bottle.
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A pure expression of terroir. This great champagne leaves most of the fruity notes behind, and instead offers plenty of chalky, bready autolytic notes. Fresh, still young and with good energy, this is bone dry intellectual champagne for the afficionados. The focus on autolytic notes in no way makes this heavy.
Served this for two friends who have only recently started being interested in wine. Initially, both of them found the chalky and bready notes too much. With time, one of them was won over by the complexity, but this is not the style of champagne most people expect. It is not an "easy drinking" champagne that everyone will enjoy, but for the people bored with mass-produced anonymous champagnes, this offers great value.
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Toasty notes are prominent, on top of the fruit. Saline and chalky too, good balance, and there is a satisfying mid palate density. I like this wine very much, but there is something about the toasty-ness, the style of the wine is not what most excites me about a fine blanc de blancs
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Mostly 1966 Bordeaux and other surprises (Ripple Restaurant in Washington D.C.): This was a lip smacking delicious Champagne, with a creamy aspect perhaps more than expected given the vintage and the fact that it is zero dosage. Ken Brown, who brought it, suggested that the estate must have picked very ripe grapes, as 2008 is a vintage known for its acidity. Perhaps. I found it balanced and smooth, with a fine bead and a long finish marked by a toasty brioche aspect as well as citrus. I recall visiting the estate a few years ago and very much enjoying their wines.
More info about the wine: Made from only Chardonnays, coming from vineyard plots Les Barillers and Les Faucherets situated mid-slope in Vertus, facing south-east.
Natural alcoholic fermentation (natural yeast) and malolactic fermentation in casks, wooden vats and stainless-steel tanks. The wines are left on their natural lees for nearly a year and undergo gentle bâtonnages, but no filtering or fining, according to the website. Then the bottles are then taken down into their cool cellars, where second fermentation and maturation 'on laths' quietly take place over a period of some 4 years.
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66 Bordeaux dinner (Ripple Restaurant in DC): Per Ken, no dosage. However the overall impression is surprisingly sweet due to very ripe fruit expression. Decadent yellow fruits, tarte tatin, a hint of brioche and honey. Very good concentration, medium fine mousse, piercing acidity and lovely long finish. It is neither very complex nor polished but really delicious.
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Enjoyed this wine over several days. It is a Brut Nature, so very tense and focused on the first day. Savory elements are noted in the long and citrus-laden finish. This is a wine that has great complexity, aromas of fresh bread dough, flavors of green apple, lime and lemon, and showing off it's precision and impeccable balance throughout. Drinking beautifully now, but better on the 2nd day. Drink through 2022 or so.
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Gevrey-Chambertin and Game (Nicolas Restaurant, Teck Lim Street, Singapore): As would be expected, this was a bit punishing to drink in its youth. On the night, there was character and quality, but not all that much in the way of enjoyment. The nose was still very primary, with a citrus, lemon-zest core and an edge of saline mineral – almost Chablis-like, save for a slight liquered lift along with a little shade of oxidative notes at the side. I would say that it smelt like a slightly premoxed Chablis if I was being mischievous. The palate on the other hand was absolutely clean, bright and juicy, and like many Extra-Bruts, a little demanding in its youthfulness, with a leanness that cut through its fine mousse and good depth of ripe apple and citrus fruit. A bit of a curate’s egg at the moment, as some of these cutting-edge grower’s Champagnes tend to be. It has the build and structure to age well though – this would be interesting to try in say 5-10 years.
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This is aromatically pretty closed down right now. But there is plenty of tension, minerality and depth. There are some reticent notes of citrus, hazelnuts, brioche, smoke and some steely minerality. It's medium+ bodied and dense with medium-high acidity and nice mousse. Good length. This still feels a little young but a really fascinating Champagne. (93+)
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Feels shut down and muted. Similar to a bottle I had six months ago. Chalky and clean/vivid acidity but the fruit is buried somewhere. I'm hoping some time in the cellar will be well worth the while.
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This bottle did not impress - aromas and flavors felt compressed, inexpressive, and the wine lacked vibrancy. I've now had two lackluster bottles and one great bottle. Not the best numbers...
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Opening up with an intense effervesces of minerals, brioche and spiced apple. On the palate, it displayed fine bubbles with caking minerality, rich textures and mouthwatering acidity. It was intense, long and utterly satisfying.
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Chef Eric does Risotto: baked apples, rich creamy mid of stone and custard somehow working together. grapefruit on the back and into a long tangy finish. more minerality as the time went on. very good stuff!
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Very good, but a bit lean, not as overtly mineral as the '08, and a bit disjointed. Very dry, very high acid, needs to mellow out a bit, maybe gain some weight. Should be fatter as it's the '09, but disappointed this didn't drink like the '08 from last week.
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Very aromatic with pine needles, earthy-limestony-yeasty apple skins, slight caramelized note of some kind--maybe more herbal in character--really cool unique smells; laser-like acidity, crisp, with intense minerality, chalky-rocky notes, long finish. intense and dry, may be a bit too much at this point in time but would live to see it mellow out just a bit and try in 2-3 years or more.
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I don't generally find that there is a whole lot one can say about young Champagne. I remember when the 1996 Salon came out and everybody was going gaga over it even though it didn't taste anything like Salon yet and all it was really offering was a whole lot of tensile power and some bright acidic fruit. I have no doubt that if you slapped a luxury-cuvée label on this, you'd see lots of people going gaga, because it's offering that same tension and brightness while actually having a lot more to it than just the bones of young champagne (though it's probably more like Cristal than Salon). Despite its being a bone-dry brut nature, there is actual sunny color to the fruit, which even occasionally oscillates into showing some of the jammy succulence and creamy lemon custard that it might develop with more age. So the result is that this has a satisfying, cleansing cut without tasting in the slightest bit austere. It is just cool and pure and already showing personality.
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Christmas Eve at Eric and Deb's: Darn it... another champagne i like... this is getting to be a trend!! fresh and floral with vanilla and toast on the nose. the mid is full of baked apples and spices(cinnamon and clove?) - apple pie comes to mind. green apples on the lively finish. YUM
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A Christmas Eve to Remember: 2014: The nose was pure and lively with saline minerals and apple up front, followed by fresh brioche and spring floral notes. On the palate, it was smooth with lively bubbles giving way to spiced apple, inner florals and minerals, which lasted through the finish. Expressive, detailed and fun; what more can I ask for?
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Drank in London Crisp, dry with a nose of faint apples, flowers and slight brioche. Lovely delicate mouthfeel. This really is some amazing champagne and I was really surprised it was non-dosage.
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Lovely Champagne. This was dry on entry with good acidity and mineral then ended very rounded and smooth. Not reductive and no brioche. Could improve with a little age.
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Coteaux Champenois tasting (Riga): Abundant, intense, rather big bubbles. On the nose there is pronounced rye bread, apple puree, a little brioche and butter, also small yellow plum. (B+)
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Bibendum Trade Portfolio Tasting 2014: Subtle aromas, floral, mineral, pear and earth. Palate has great finesses. Obviously youthful but it is lovely and will improve.
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Notes from a B-Day tasting. N of golden apple, little honey, fuzzy minerals, sea stones P of apple, honey, zesty lemon, fuzzy rocks, and sea water F was above average in length with fantastic acidity and yeast showing This felt like a laser on the tongue
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Brett's B-Day Bash: Apples, apricot, minerals and whipped honey on the nose and palate. Zesty and mineral-driven, I picked up more saline notes this time.
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One of those wines that was perfectly fine but left me disappointed relative to expectations. Lots of cut and acidity (no dosage, I think), but it handles it well. Lemons, minearality and a nice finish.
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Lemon, honey and yeast on the nose. Sharp, medium bodied bubbly with citrus, baked apples, honey and brioche on the palate. Moderate length. Does not feel balanced to us. We felt even 1-2g/l dosage would make it come together better.
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Opened with Mark. This is 100% Chardonnay without any dosage added which is in line with this estates' hands off winemaking approach. The grapes are sourced from the Les Barillers and Les Faucherets plots in Vertus (Southern end of the Cote des Blancs). From the great 2008 vintage. Disgorged June 2012. Golden straw color which was surprising for a wine this young. Very effervescent. Drank this right after a No dose Fluteau and they were quite different. This bottle was fuller and rounder. Notes of necco wafers, chalk, apples and biscuits. Nice purity on the finish. I can see this improving with time. 91+ points
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Weekend in Cleveland; 4/4/2014-4/8/2014: Stunning bubbly. Precise and elegant mousse, so light and airy on the palate. Friends said they had "never had Champagne like this before." It was utterly delicious, brilliantly bright and energetic, med+ intensity flavors and acidity, just so well balanced, beautiful complexity. This is 2008 vintage, and will continue to evolve and improve for 3-4 years, and drink well through 2024.
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Larmandier-Bernier Terre de Vertus 2008. Elegant nese med sitrus, nektarin og mineraler. Sprek friskhet, elegant munnfølelse også. Medium konsentrasjon, men det er energien som spiller førstefiolin her. Sitrondrops med en touch bitterhet i lang finish. Good stuff!
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Millesime Bio Fair - Day 1 (Montpellier, France): Richer apple, honey and cream on the nose, some minerals as well. Rich apricot, orange peel and red apple on the palate. Brisk, mineral-driven, edgy but accessible. 100% Pinot. Quite impressive and long finish.
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A no dosage wine. Subtly complex nose, but lacking intensity; very good acid, tart, fresh, short-med persistence; finish short-med. The complexity and intensity just wasn't there, which I don't necessarily blame just on the no dosage character. 89
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Too austere even for me, a fan of austere. Almost bitter on the finish. Maybe just needs a little more time to settle down?Possibly would be better as an apero, not with food.
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Svært mineralsk, med søt brioche, kalk, hasselnøtter og røyk. Non dosé fra 2008 høres unektelig litt tøft ut, men her er det flott moden, konsentrert frukt, og en overraskende kremet munnfølelse, som balanserer den høye syren. Masse kraft og spenning! Nesten ubegripelig bra til kr. 343. Bør få noen år på seg. 91p.
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The biggest on the nose of the Larmandier set, the hardest on the palate. Maybe just a touch of dosage please? Or maybe just a touch of cellar time! Its great, and its also incredibly penetrating. Wish I had some older bottles to test out. See where that lengthy finish eases into.
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Awesome wine. Tightly wound and a tiny bit reduced on the back end, which recedes with air. Chalky, intense, detailed, powerful, finessed wine - utterly delicious and lovely. A great vintage for this wine, a return to form.
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a great bottle of champagne with rich fruit and great acid and mineral influence that really just leaps from the glass. the fruit was sufficiently ripe that the lower dosage was not really even apparent - still fleshy, rich, a texturally creamy.
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A private dinner (Restaurant La Belle Epoque ***, Lübeck/Travemünde, Germany): No dosage. Wonderfully subtle, pure and layered, very elegant, harmonious without even the slightest hint of austerity, minerally, very refined Chardonnay fruit flavours, ever so slightly earthy (this is Vertus after all, not e.g. Chouilly), citrus and green apple, seamless, beautifully integrated acidity.
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12/10/2023 - NostraBacchus Likes this wine: 95 Points
I was a little worried opening this after the P. Peters Les Chetillons 2004, but it really stood up to it. Perfectly mature and open for business, with notes of citrus, bruised apples, some sweet spices, some chalky minerality too, some honey, nuts and just overall nice structure and fruit. It‘s medium-full bodied, with pretty high acidity and some slightly creamy mousse. Very long finish. An excellent grower‘s Champagne of a very high level.
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12/10/2023 - Collector1855 wrote: 96 Points
Fantastic nose, subtle oxidative nose, bruised apples, Selosse style. Very good palate, dense, cinnanom spice, touch of oak. Wonderful.
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9/28/2023 - Uncle John wrote: 93 Points
Excellent❣️
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1/10/2023 - drrobvino wrote: 95 Points
Just gorgeous, my last bottle from a full case. From 2008 base year, DG 12/2012, with no dosage.
I have patiently consumed about a bottle each year, and my notes consistently show this as thrilling, bright, yeasty, incisive, complex, long, and oh so delicious...each and every bottle. I visited this House in Champagne several years ago, and buy L-B wines regularly. This DG is still gorgeous, and should hold up another 10 years...but perfect now.
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7/12/2022 - platpeeps Likes this wine: 95 Points
Saline & dry, minerally and oxidative. Very buttery with nuts with a silky smooth texture and a very long finish. A layered complex champagne that is more of a glass of white wine with bubbles rather than a straightforward sparkler. CHP 95 pts
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5/4/2022 - drrobvino wrote: 94 Points
Gorgeous, this is penultimate bottle from a full case, and I have thoroughly enjoyed these Champagnes over the past 8 years or so.
Non-dosé bottling, disgorged 12/2012, it's tight and punchy, with notes of almond paste, fresh bread, lemon zest, tangerine, chalk and minerals. Just great.
Forever finish, fine bubbles, drinking perfectly.
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7/31/2021 - drrobvino wrote: 93 Points
Bottle 10 of a full case. This is a 2008 base vintage, and was DG on 12/2012. 100% 1er Cru Chardonnay with zero dosage.
This has been beautiful over the past 8 years. Bright citrus and tightly coiled on the finish, with some yeasty bread and nut notes, as well as brilliant chalk and minerals.
Drink now through 2023+, I love these L-B Champers.
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7/31/2021 - MauritzM Likes this wine: 93 Points
Voldsomt kompleks lukt med modne epler, brioche, uttalt autolyse. Helt tørr. Fine bobler
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6/5/2021 - bia hanoi Likes this wine: 94 Points
Hui, der Terre de Vertus ist schon große Klasse. Puristisch, klar, am Punkt. Über die Jahre haben sich dazu ganz exquisite Reifenoten entwickelt. Ewig langer Nachhall. Kennt ihr das, wenn man mit der Zunge genussvoll die versteckten Winkel im Mund aufsucht?
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2/27/2021 - LW31 Likes this wine:
Stylish, energetic. Quite chiseled but opens with air. Not an especially complex finish.
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12/9/2020 - drrobvino wrote: 95 Points
Bottle #9 of 12. This Brut Nature BdB is insanely delicious. DG 12/2012.
Citrus, tart green apple, chalk, bread crust, just everything you want in Champagne...with a Brut Nature punch in the acid chops.
So crazy good and long on the incisive and laserlike finish. Drink now through 2025+.
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10/7/2020 - NostraBacchus Likes this wine: 94 Points
It has been 5 years since my last bottle of this and boy has this developped beautifully. Open, aromatic and super lively, this is showing notes of citrus, lemon oil, chalky minerality, steel, some brioche, hazelnut and a touch of honey. It's medium+ bodied, with pretty.high acidity and pure integrated small mousse. Long finish with plenty of complexity. In a lovely place right now.
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9/4/2020 - Sorrowless Likes this wine: 92 Points
Great, but still on the young side. Needs more time to reach its full potential.
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3/4/2020 - drrobvino wrote: 94 Points
Bottle #8 of 12. This non-dosé Champagne is stunning.
Chalk, minerals, nuts, warm bread crust, lemon juice, so delicious.
The finish lasts forever, I love this wine. Drink now through 2022+.
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10/12/2019 - rocknroller wrote: 92 Points
Italian Dinner Chez David (David's Place, Mpls): Light gold color. Drank a glass over 30 minutes. White fruits, very mineraly, citrus, chalk, lime, subtle almond, apple peel. Very nice, loved it.
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7/3/2019 - drrobvino wrote: 94 Points
Oh so very delicious. Took this bottle with me to Italy and consumed it on a porch outside in Montalcino.
Bright citrus and apple, with a strong leesy character, and a mineral-laden finish that lasted 40+ secs.
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2/7/2019 - hajoha wrote: 90 Points
Begynner å vise modningstoner.
Drikker fint nå, og er ikke sikker på om den vi bli mye bedre.
Flott vin.
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11/11/2018 - Vino Me wrote: 92 Points
2nd time I have had this wine. Drinking very well. Light straw color. Doughy aromas. Notes of chalk, minerals and lemon curd. Fine bead. 92 points.
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11/2/2018 - drrobvino wrote: 92 Points
Gorgeous 2008 base vintage, DG 12/2012.
Medium gold in color, showing off a nose of peach, lemon and lime, day-old bread crust, and honey. There is an acrylic pain aroma that is not off-putting, but it is present.
The palate is brisk and energetic, showing off tense lime notes, with tart green apple, some hazelnuts, and sauteed mushrooms.
Fantastic wine, drink now through 2022.
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3/24/2018 - Omar Khayyam wrote:
DBYOB (stockholm): A little tired, with really low acidity, but a nice enough nose, that was quite developed. Would have been impossible to guess that this is only a couple of years younger than the Terre de Versus I tried in december. But there was also a question of proper storage here, so let's not be too harsh. mid eighties if you're keeping score.
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3/18/2018 - thunberg wrote: 88 Points
DBYOB (Don't Bring Your Own Bottle) (Stockholm, Sweden): Very generic, short, tart, green apples
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2/18/2018 - jgreco Likes this wine: 96 Points
Absolutely sublime. Green apples, lemon, pears, nuts, and warming bread. Chalky and bone dry. Finishes long with a little pepper and smoke. A tremendous value to boot.
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2/12/2018 - drrobvino wrote: 93 Points
This Champagne is fantastic. It was even better after a day in the fridge.
Chalk, lemon-lime, green apple, minerals, and warm bread crust.
This a a Brut Nature, with no dosage. You have to be ready for that and like that style of brisk and energetic Champagne. I love it.
Drink now through 2022+.
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2/9/2018 - Cote d'Or Likes this wine:
Tasted over 2 hrs
-translucent light gold, exuberant mousse
-low key yeast
-med+ acidity, med- weight but powerful and focused linear minerality bread dough moderately complex spicy smoky element and excellent length
-like how this is clean without being too lean, this is excellent now and likely some upside
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10/14/2017 - matt182 Likes this wine: 92 Points
This has improved with 3 years of cellaring. Still super focused, bone dry, super fresh with good acid core, great citrus with some aging notes of summer truffle and brioche add complexity to this still young champagne. Would hold for 3-5 years to add extra dimensions.
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7/28/2017 - Drankard wrote:
Bone dry. No dosage. Lots of bready/yeasty notes with some oxidation. Not my style of Champs. Tasted twice.
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7/8/2017 - JOsgood Likes this wine:
Bone dry with ample minerals. I like it more than love it. Needs to be served cold.
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6/29/2017 - chablis28 wrote: 92 Points
Same btl as R&Rler.... Fresh, vibrant and tasty. Like many other 2008s this shows some extra oomph and concentration.
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6/29/2017 - rocknroller wrote: 92 Points
Red Burgs and More at Mr. Jimmy's Farewell to Irving (Jimmy's Place, Mpls): Light gold color. Drank 2 glasses over an hour. This was showing very nicely tonight. Quite crisp and lively with a clean citrus profile, lemon, saline,refined chalky minerality, yeast, with good persistence. 91+ to 92pts.
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6/11/2017 - drrobvino wrote: 92 Points
Disgorged 12/2012.
Beautifully precise, nice toasty notes, crisp lemon and apple fruit, elegant.
Paired nicely with sushi, my wife and I drained the bottle.
Drink now through 2021+.
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1/22/2017 - Ben H. Likes this wine:
Two bottles recently, stored identically. One seemed strangely lifeless. The other was vivacious, chalky and citrus-y, with good poise and a rounded texture.
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1/1/2017 - Sotto325 wrote: 90 Points
A decidedly interesting Champagne that was both nicely chiseled but also offered up a bevy of flavors, some unusual in a fairly balanced round. This Magnum clearly could use another few years to tone down a little bit of excessive fruit definition. As others have noted, the flavor profile changed in the glass over a 15-minute period. Some grapefruit, quince, lemongrass, sweet almond milk, and a bit of grapey flavor came to the fore. Not much in a way of toasty flavors that one would expect from a better aged bottle.
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8/30/2016 - drrobvino wrote: 92 Points
Very tasty, brought to a get together this evening and shared with friends (I'm a nice guy).
Citrus, rocks, long finish. Yum.
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7/27/2016 - esh44 wrote:
Much more open and expressive than earlier bottles a year and two ago. This has great savory acidity, and is simply delicious. Terrific qpr.
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7/10/2016 - JOsgood Likes this wine:
This was excellent. Bone dry with a lasting finish. Several layers of flavor. No dosage.
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6/20/2016 - BilboBaggins Likes this wine: 92 Points
A pure expression of terroir. This great champagne leaves most of the fruity notes behind, and instead offers plenty of chalky, bready autolytic notes. Fresh, still young and with good energy, this is bone dry intellectual champagne for the afficionados. The focus on autolytic notes in no way makes this heavy.
Served this for two friends who have only recently started being interested in wine. Initially, both of them found the chalky and bready notes too much. With time, one of them was won over by the complexity, but this is not the style of champagne most people expect. It is not an "easy drinking" champagne that everyone will enjoy, but for the people bored with mass-produced anonymous champagnes, this offers great value.
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2/13/2016 - brooklynguy wrote:
Toasty notes are prominent, on top of the fruit. Saline and chalky too, good balance, and there is a satisfying mid palate density. I like this wine very much, but there is something about the toasty-ness, the style of the wine is not what most excites me about a fine blanc de blancs
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1/13/2016 - PanosKakaviatos Likes this wine: 92 Points
Mostly 1966 Bordeaux and other surprises (Ripple Restaurant in Washington D.C.): This was a lip smacking delicious Champagne, with a creamy aspect perhaps more than expected given the vintage and the fact that it is zero dosage. Ken Brown, who brought it, suggested that the estate must have picked very ripe grapes, as 2008 is a vintage known for its acidity. Perhaps. I found it balanced and smooth, with a fine bead and a long finish marked by a toasty brioche aspect as well as citrus. I recall visiting the estate a few years ago and very much enjoying their wines.
More info about the wine: Made from only Chardonnays, coming from vineyard plots Les Barillers and Les Faucherets situated mid-slope in Vertus, facing south-east.
Natural alcoholic fermentation (natural yeast) and malolactic fermentation in casks, wooden vats and stainless-steel tanks. The wines are left on their natural lees for nearly a year and undergo gentle bâtonnages, but no filtering or fining, according to the website.
Then the bottles are then taken down into their cool cellars, where second fermentation and maturation 'on laths' quietly take place over a period of some 4 years.
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1/12/2016 - dcwino wrote: 92 Points
66 Bordeaux dinner (Ripple Restaurant in DC): Per Ken, no dosage. However the overall impression is surprisingly sweet due to very ripe fruit expression. Decadent yellow fruits, tarte tatin, a hint of brioche and honey. Very good concentration, medium fine mousse, piercing acidity and lovely long finish. It is neither very complex nor polished but really delicious.
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1/8/2016 - drrobvino wrote: 93 Points
Enjoyed this wine over several days. It is a Brut Nature, so very tense and focused on the first day. Savory elements are noted in the long and citrus-laden finish. This is a wine that has great complexity, aromas of fresh bread dough, flavors of green apple, lime and lemon, and showing off it's precision and impeccable balance throughout. Drinking beautifully now, but better on the 2nd day. Drink through 2022 or so.
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11/20/2015 - Paul S wrote: 90 Points
Gevrey-Chambertin and Game (Nicolas Restaurant, Teck Lim Street, Singapore): As would be expected, this was a bit punishing to drink in its youth. On the night, there was character and quality, but not all that much in the way of enjoyment. The nose was still very primary, with a citrus, lemon-zest core and an edge of saline mineral – almost Chablis-like, save for a slight liquered lift along with a little shade of oxidative notes at the side. I would say that it smelt like a slightly premoxed Chablis if I was being mischievous. The palate on the other hand was absolutely clean, bright and juicy, and like many Extra-Bruts, a little demanding in its youthfulness, with a leanness that cut through its fine mousse and good depth of ripe apple and citrus fruit. A bit of a curate’s egg at the moment, as some of these cutting-edge grower’s Champagnes tend to be. It has the build and structure to age well though – this would be interesting to try in say 5-10 years.
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10/2/2015 - NostraBacchus Likes this wine: 93 Points
This is aromatically pretty closed down right now. But there is plenty of tension, minerality and depth. There are some reticent notes of citrus, hazelnuts, brioche, smoke and some steely minerality. It's medium+ bodied and dense with medium-high acidity and nice mousse. Good length. This still feels a little young but a really fascinating Champagne. (93+)
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9/1/2015 - esh44 wrote:
Feels shut down and muted. Similar to a bottle I had six months ago. Chalky and clean/vivid acidity but the fruit is buried somewhere. I'm hoping some time in the cellar will be well worth the while.
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8/16/2015 - brooklynguy wrote:
This bottle did not impress - aromas and flavors felt compressed, inexpressive, and the wine lacked vibrancy. I've now had two lackluster bottles and one great bottle. Not the best numbers...
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7/12/2015 - Eric Guido Likes this wine: 92 Points
Opening up with an intense effervesces of minerals, brioche and spiced apple. On the palate, it displayed fine bubbles with caking minerality, rich textures and mouthwatering acidity. It was intense, long and utterly satisfying.
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7/12/2015 - Mlermontov wrote: 92 Points
Chef Eric does Risotto: baked apples, rich creamy mid of stone and custard somehow working together. grapefruit on the back and into a long tangy finish. more minerality as the time went on. very good stuff!
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7/7/2015 - peternelson wrote: 91 Points
Very good, but a bit lean, not as overtly mineral as the '08, and a bit disjointed. Very dry, very high acid, needs to mellow out a bit, maybe gain some weight. Should be fatter as it's the '09, but disappointed this didn't drink like the '08 from last week.
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7/2/2015 - peternelson wrote: 93 Points
Very aromatic with pine needles, earthy-limestony-yeasty apple skins, slight caramelized note of some kind--maybe more herbal in character--really cool unique smells; laser-like acidity, crisp, with intense minerality, chalky-rocky notes, long finish. intense and dry, may be a bit too much at this point in time but would live to see it mellow out just a bit and try in 2-3 years or more.
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3/2/2015 - Keith Levenberg Likes this wine: 94 Points
I don't generally find that there is a whole lot one can say about young Champagne. I remember when the 1996 Salon came out and everybody was going gaga over it even though it didn't taste anything like Salon yet and all it was really offering was a whole lot of tensile power and some bright acidic fruit. I have no doubt that if you slapped a luxury-cuvée label on this, you'd see lots of people going gaga, because it's offering that same tension and brightness while actually having a lot more to it than just the bones of young champagne (though it's probably more like Cristal than Salon). Despite its being a bone-dry brut nature, there is actual sunny color to the fruit, which even occasionally oscillates into showing some of the jammy succulence and creamy lemon custard that it might develop with more age. So the result is that this has a satisfying, cleansing cut without tasting in the slightest bit austere. It is just cool and pure and already showing personality.
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2/27/2015 - Wine_lvr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Amazing zero dosage Champagne. Very precise and well structured. Smooth and elegant. I was surprised how mature it was. Still very tasty...
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2/19/2015 - burr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Clean, long finish. A wine of precision.
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12/25/2014 - Mlermontov wrote: 92 Points
Christmas Eve at Eric and Deb's: Darn it... another champagne i like... this is getting to be a trend!! fresh and floral with vanilla and toast on the nose. the mid is full of baked apples and spices(cinnamon and clove?) - apple pie comes to mind. green apples on the lively finish. YUM
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12/24/2014 - Eric Guido Likes this wine: 93 Points
A Christmas Eve to Remember: 2014: The nose was pure and lively with saline minerals and apple up front, followed by fresh brioche and spring floral notes. On the palate, it was smooth with lively bubbles giving way to spiced apple, inner florals and minerals, which lasted through the finish. Expressive, detailed and fun; what more can I ask for?
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12/15/2014 - RayOB wrote: 92 Points
Drank in London
Crisp, dry with a nose of faint apples, flowers and slight brioche. Lovely delicate mouthfeel. This really is some amazing champagne and I was really surprised it was non-dosage.
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11/7/2014 - Uncle John wrote: 92 Points
Lovely Champagne. This was dry on entry with good acidity and mineral then ended very rounded and smooth. Not reductive and no brioche. Could improve with a little age.
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10/31/2014 - drrobvino wrote: 94 Points
Fantastic. See prev TN
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9/15/2014 - AV2012 wrote: 89 Points
Coteaux Champenois tasting (Riga): Abundant, intense, rather big bubbles. On the nose there is pronounced rye bread, apple puree, a little brioche and butter, also small yellow plum. (B+)
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9/8/2014 - CamWheeler wrote: 91 Points
Bibendum Trade Portfolio Tasting 2014: Subtle aromas, floral, mineral, pear and earth. Palate has great finesses. Obviously youthful but it is lovely and will improve.
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6/12/2014 - manonthemoon wrote: 93 Points
Notes from a B-Day tasting.
N of golden apple, little honey, fuzzy minerals, sea stones
P of apple, honey, zesty lemon, fuzzy rocks, and sea water
F was above average in length with fantastic acidity and yeast showing
This felt like a laser on the tongue
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6/12/2014 - isaacjamesbaker wrote: 90 Points
Brett's B-Day Bash: Apples, apricot, minerals and whipped honey on the nose and palate. Zesty and mineral-driven, I picked up more saline notes this time.
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6/11/2014 - christyler wrote: 90 Points
One of those wines that was perfectly fine but left me disappointed relative to expectations. Lots of cut and acidity (no dosage, I think), but it handles it well. Lemons, minearality and a nice finish.
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5/25/2014 - Yme wrote:
Blanc de Blanc, 0 dosage
Lemon, honey and yeast on the nose. Sharp, medium bodied bubbly with citrus, baked apples, honey and brioche on the palate. Moderate length. Does not feel balanced to us. We felt even 1-2g/l dosage would make it come together better.
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5/18/2014 - Vino Me wrote: 91 Points
Opened with Mark. This is 100% Chardonnay without any dosage added which is in line with this estates' hands off winemaking approach. The grapes are sourced from the Les Barillers and Les Faucherets plots in Vertus (Southern end of the Cote des Blancs). From the great 2008 vintage. Disgorged June 2012. Golden straw color which was surprising for a wine this young. Very effervescent. Drank this right after a No dose Fluteau and they were quite different. This bottle was fuller and rounder. Notes of necco wafers, chalk, apples and biscuits. Nice purity on the finish. I can see this improving with time. 91+ points
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4/9/2014 - JOsgood wrote:
Good stuff, lots of power and vitality. Minerals and slate with some toasty oak notes. Lovely.
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4/6/2014 - drrobvino wrote: 94 Points
Weekend in Cleveland; 4/4/2014-4/8/2014: Stunning bubbly.
Precise and elegant mousse, so light and airy on the palate. Friends said they had "never had Champagne like this before."
It was utterly delicious, brilliantly bright and energetic, med+ intensity flavors and acidity, just so well balanced, beautiful complexity. This is 2008 vintage, and will continue to evolve and improve for 3-4 years, and drink well through 2024.
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3/23/2014 - hajoha wrote: 90 Points
Larmandier-Bernier Terre de Vertus 2008.
Elegant nese med sitrus, nektarin og mineraler.
Sprek friskhet, elegant munnfølelse også. Medium konsentrasjon, men det er energien som spiller førstefiolin her. Sitrondrops med en touch bitterhet i lang finish.
Good stuff!
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3/8/2014 - BigJul Likes this wine:
100% Chardonnay. Champagne sur la poire et la pomme cuite. Attaque et prise de mousse puissante. Bulles abondantes. Un apéro de haut niveau.
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2/27/2014 - damo2576 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Lots of bubbles, apple and toast on medium intensity nose, medium acid, medium finish. Enjoyed this a lot.
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1/27/2014 - isaacjamesbaker wrote: 89 Points
Millesime Bio Fair - Day 1 (Montpellier, France): Richer apple, honey and cream on the nose, some minerals as well. Rich apricot, orange peel and red apple on the palate. Brisk, mineral-driven, edgy but accessible. 100% Pinot. Quite impressive and long finish.
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1/24/2014 - aagrawal wrote: 89 Points
A no dosage wine. Subtly complex nose, but lacking intensity; very good acid, tart, fresh, short-med persistence; finish short-med. The complexity and intensity just wasn't there, which I don't necessarily blame just on the no dosage character. 89
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1/9/2014 - Matsutake wrote: 87 Points
Too austere even for me, a fan of austere. Almost bitter on the finish. Maybe just needs a little more time to settle down?Possibly would be better as an apero, not with food.
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12/23/2013 - loegaute wrote: 91 Points
Svært mineralsk, med søt brioche, kalk, hasselnøtter og røyk. Non dosé fra 2008 høres unektelig litt tøft ut, men her er det flott moden, konsentrert frukt, og en overraskende kremet munnfølelse, som balanserer den høye syren. Masse kraft og spenning! Nesten ubegripelig bra til kr. 343. Bør få noen år på seg. 91p.
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11/22/2013 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
The biggest on the nose of the Larmandier set, the hardest on the palate. Maybe just a touch of dosage please? Or maybe just a touch of cellar time! Its great, and its also incredibly penetrating. Wish I had some older bottles to test out. See where that lengthy finish eases into.
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9/21/2013 - brooklynguy Likes this wine:
Awesome wine. Tightly wound and a tiny bit reduced on the back end, which recedes with air. Chalky, intense, detailed, powerful, finessed wine - utterly delicious and lovely. A great vintage for this wine, a return to form.
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8/25/2013 - Bogho wrote: 90 Points
Cedro e crema di agrumi bianchi, minerale chiarissimo. bocca tesissima, incazzata di estrema pulizia il finale. Piaciuto.
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6/28/2013 - kthornton78 Likes this wine: 92 Points
a great bottle of champagne with rich fruit and great acid and mineral influence that really just leaps from the glass. the fruit was sufficiently ripe that the lower dosage was not really even apparent - still fleshy, rich, a texturally creamy.
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5/29/2013 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 93 Points
A private dinner (Restaurant La Belle Epoque ***, Lübeck/Travemünde, Germany): No dosage. Wonderfully subtle, pure and layered, very elegant, harmonious without even the slightest hint of austerity, minerally, very refined Chardonnay fruit flavours, ever so slightly earthy (this is Vertus after all, not e.g. Chouilly), citrus and green apple, seamless, beautifully integrated acidity.
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