Purchased from retailer and stored in humidity, temperature controlled wine storage location.
Definitely not over the hill. Wonderful nose of spices, yeast, ripe green apple; a little lacking in depth on the palate but good complexity mirroring the nose, showing a hint of age, smooth acidity and fine bubbles. Finish is clean with good length.
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Light yellow to yellow color in the glass, clear looking throughout with tiny, light beading. Nose of fertilizer, dirty diaper and yellow pears. Flavors of lemon, yellow pears and yellow apples. Bright acidity, full bodied. Drink over the short to perhaps medium term. I'd lean toward the next 2 years.
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Sunday hangout (Chicago, IL): I'm not the biggest fan of Gimonnet, but I thought that this bottle showed very well. For my palate, this is relatively mature, showing a good amount of yellow fruit and a touch of baked goods as well. Sufficient, but not overwhelming acids make this very nicely balanced. Feels like it thins out a little on the back end, but that's really just nitpicking.
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Very good! Quite complex with a nice acidity and notes of citrus and tropical fruits (especially pineapple). Not very much autolytic notes for a 13 year old wine though.
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Charity dinner (Washington, DC): From magnum. What a delicious treat. Tons of life ahead, but I love the verve, minerality, complex bready notes. Really pretty stuff.
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Opened by Mark. 2nd time I have had this wine and it has improved a little in the last year. As usual this is put together from old vines in the northern end of the Côte des Blancs. 100% Chardonnay with 54% from Cramant (Grand Cru), 31% Chouilly (Grand Cru), and 15% Cuis (Premier Cru). Very aromatic and floral. Creamy texture which was not present last time with chalk and almond notes. Some spice on the finish. 93 points
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Much better than my last bottle. To my palate on the young side of mature- so, delicious but a bit of a battle between the young and the old as it were.
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OMG, what an awesome wine this is. Gimonnet seems to more consistently deliver on the potential of his terroir in warmer vintages, IMO. This is so opulent yet perfectly balanced. Sadly it's my last bottle in 750 format, it's so amazing already that I think I've drunk a case. Fortunately I picked up some magnums, but those will need time since that format/vintage includes the old vine juice.
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Opened by Mark. As usual this is put together from old vines in the northern end of the Côte des Blancs. 100% Chardonnay with 54% from Cramant (Grand Cru), 31% Chouilly (Grand Cru), and 15% Cuis (Premier Cru). Very aromatic and floral. Notes of brioche, chalk and white peaches. I liked this slightly better than the 2005 vintage. An elegant Champagne. 92-93 points.
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Continuing a streak of great bottles of this. At this rate I will run out soon. My developing theory is that Gimonnet excels in warmer (but not hot) vintages more so than in cooler or even classic vintages. I prefer this to the 2008 at this point in development, and to my taste it's much better than the 2005 or 2004. I find the 2002 a bit puzzling, it showed such potential on release and yet seemed to be in a closed phase when tasted in the last year.
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From magnum. Starts off with a bit of rubber, lean and soft. Fresh, good balance and poise, mild overall. Classy but a bit disjointed and edgy. May be not ready yet, which would be strange considering the vintage.
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Tasted blind from Magnum. Powerful aromas, expressive Champ in its glory. Fresh and elegant with depth of flavours which is a signature of Pierre Gimonnet. Rich and complex wine.
Fruits come from Cramant (54%), Chouilly (31% ), Cuis (15%). Assemblage of the best of each to create an elegant style which is greater than its parts.
Spent more than 5yrs on lees. Dosage 5 g/l. No oak, MLF.
Magnificent wine and my personal winner on the day.
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Really nice. A slightly toastier, briochier wine than I usually get from my favourite Cote de Blanc grower and I prefer the 2006 Cuvee Fleuron but still has the Gimonnet smell(nothing else smells as beautiful) and the beautiful creaminess and chalk seam I love in his wines. Served with raw oysters and scallop ceviche with Andy and friends at Churchill's and paired very well! Consumed too quickly as the opening wine to really show it's stuff I am sure
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Another Saturday at Chevalier...Mostly Blind (Chicago, IL): Tasting, brief note. I'm not very familiar with this wine, but it comes across as very precise and Chardonnay-driven with lots of apple and lemon peel. Very good energy and length, even if not necessarily very powerful.
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Too young, but very nice already. Lacy, classy mouthfeel with fine caressing fizz. Pretty toasty lemony yellow fruit with some unripe pear and cream. Floaty. Drier in the mouth than the '95 Chuck A Milli we had open alongside. This should be great in just 2-3 years and should be one to drink while the '08s age. I also greatly prefer this to the 2005.
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Obnoxiously large wide bottle is forgiven based on it's contents. White flowers and fruit, citrus balance with leesy yeasty notes so none dominate. Very lively in terms of bead and acidity. A real joy to drink with friends last night.
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A wonderful wine with balanced acidity, creamy mousse and beautiful acidity. White flowers, honeysuckle and a big profound body. Superb length on the finish.
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Very expressive, classy nose, full of finesse, with pear, green apple notes, and the palate is both creamy and snappy, with great substance and poise. Serious business, this.
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Deep color. The nose is creamy, with hints of flowers, nuts, honey and mature citrus fruits. This is medium full bodied on the palate, with outstanding concentration and wonderful finesse. Rich. The long, mineral tinged finish shows great precision. Excellent.
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Consistent with my impression when first tasted in September at Gimonnet. This really is a great champagne that shows lovely acacia on the nose and an incredible minerality, depth of fruit, elegance and precision. I know I am repeating myself, but for me this is my best value find of top class champagne in 2014. This (for me) beats a Salon 1999 I had not too long ago by quite a margin. Interestingly enough after keeping one glass for three days with a champagne stopper in the fridge it had mellowed just a tad and showed more elegance, but was showing absolutely beautifully with a great length (normally I find that using a stopper and keeping an unfinished bottle shows some significant deterioration post the first day). I am really curious to see how this one develops, it will just be very hard to keep my hands off this beauty.
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Very young and one dimensional at the moment, certainly a food wine. All minerals and citrus for the time being with plenty of pent up energy. Wait for a number of years to get the best out of this
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Nose: Very aromatic and balanced with crushed rocks, citrus tones, white fruits, pears, and some white florals. There is excellent depth here with a real precision too.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium/high acidity. The acidity is showing its youth and is on the tart side with crushed rocks, citrus tones, white fruits, and a good bit of white florals.
Overall: This is a very classy and youthful Gimmonet Special Club. There is a real attractive freshness and precision to it with excellent depth.
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Tasted at Gimonnet, tasted their full range. All their wines were very impressive. This one marginally topped the Fleuron 2006 and came across a bit more polished and rounded, pure drinking pleasure. For the price (if I recall correct ~€34 at the house), an incredible value for a champagne I believe to be on par with a Comtes de Champagne (which I love) and an absolute must buy in my view for lovers of fine BdB vintage champagnes.
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8/26/2022 - tastark Likes this wine:
Still has some primary characteristics, but will transition to secondary over the next few years. Delicious, in either case.
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12/14/2021 - BarbecueMike Likes this wine: 90 Points
Purchased from retailer and stored in humidity, temperature controlled wine storage location.
Definitely not over the hill. Wonderful nose of spices, yeast, ripe green apple; a little lacking in depth on the palate but good complexity mirroring the nose, showing a hint of age, smooth acidity and fine bubbles. Finish is clean with good length.
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6/20/2021 - wineismylife wrote: 92 Points
WIML92
Tasted non blind.
Light yellow to yellow color in the glass, clear looking throughout with tiny, light beading. Nose of fertilizer, dirty diaper and yellow pears. Flavors of lemon, yellow pears and yellow apples. Bright acidity, full bodied. Drink over the short to perhaps medium term. I'd lean toward the next 2 years.
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5/16/2021 - acyso wrote: 93 Points
Sunday hangout (Chicago, IL): I'm not the biggest fan of Gimonnet, but I thought that this bottle showed very well. For my palate, this is relatively mature, showing a good amount of yellow fruit and a touch of baked goods as well. Sufficient, but not overwhelming acids make this very nicely balanced. Feels like it thins out a little on the back end, but that's really just nitpicking.
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7/24/2019 - esh44 wrote:
Crisp, balanced and delicious.
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3/15/2019 - freedee wrote: 91 Points
Very good! Quite complex with a nice acidity and notes of citrus and tropical fruits (especially pineapple). Not very much autolytic notes for a 13 year old wine though.
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2/28/2019 - isaacjamesbaker wrote: 93 Points
Charity dinner (Washington, DC): From magnum. What a delicious treat. Tons of life ahead, but I love the verve, minerality, complex bready notes. Really pretty stuff.
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8/24/2018 - Vino Me wrote: 93 Points
Opened by Mark. 2nd time I have had this wine and it has improved a little in the last year. As usual this is put together from old vines in the northern end of the Côte des Blancs. 100% Chardonnay with 54% from Cramant (Grand Cru), 31% Chouilly (Grand Cru), and 15% Cuis (Premier Cru). Very aromatic and floral. Creamy texture which was not present last time with chalk and almond notes. Some spice on the finish. 93 points
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5/20/2018 - collin wrote:
Much better than my last bottle. To my palate on the young side of mature- so, delicious but a bit of a battle between the young and the old as it were.
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3/26/2018 - 5laton wrote:
OMG, what an awesome wine this is. Gimonnet seems to more consistently deliver on the potential of his terroir in warmer vintages, IMO. This is so opulent yet perfectly balanced. Sadly it's my last bottle in 750 format, it's so amazing already that I think I've drunk a case. Fortunately I picked up some magnums, but those will need time since that format/vintage includes the old vine juice.
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1/15/2018 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Alas, cooking frantically as the dinner party sucked it down. I registered that it was a very good Gimonnet, but not much more.
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12/27/2017 - mnoljo wrote: 91 Points
Green Apple chalk and hints of bread dough
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12/26/2017 - Vino Me wrote: 92 Points
Opened by Mark. As usual this is put together from old vines in the northern end of the Côte des Blancs. 100% Chardonnay with 54% from Cramant (Grand Cru), 31% Chouilly (Grand Cru), and 15% Cuis (Premier Cru). Very aromatic and floral. Notes of brioche, chalk and white peaches. I liked this slightly better than the 2005 vintage. An elegant Champagne. 92-93 points.
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10/14/2017 - 5laton wrote:
Continuing a streak of great bottles of this. At this rate I will run out soon. My developing theory is that Gimonnet excels in warmer (but not hot) vintages more so than in cooler or even classic vintages. I prefer this to the 2008 at this point in development, and to my taste it's much better than the 2005 or 2004. I find the 2002 a bit puzzling, it showed such potential on release and yet seemed to be in a closed phase when tasted in the last year.
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9/19/2017 - AV2012 wrote: 91 Points
From magnum. Starts off with a bit of rubber, lean and soft. Fresh, good balance and poise, mild overall. Classy but a bit disjointed and edgy. May be not ready yet, which would be strange considering the vintage.
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9/19/2017 - StasMedvedev.lv Likes this wine: 96 Points
Tasted blind from Magnum. Powerful aromas, expressive Champ in its glory. Fresh and elegant with depth of flavours which is a signature of Pierre Gimonnet. Rich and complex wine.
Fruits come from Cramant (54%), Chouilly (31% ), Cuis (15%). Assemblage of the best of each to create an elegant style which is greater than its parts.
Spent more than 5yrs on lees. Dosage 5 g/l. No oak, MLF.
Magnificent wine and my personal winner on the day.
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12/18/2016 - collin wrote:
Oddly disappointing for a Gimonnet Special Club. Dull and lifeless. Hopefully in a dumb stage, because because I love other vintages of this.
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9/17/2016 - jeff nowak Likes this wine: 92 Points
Gimonnee Cricket, this is good!
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6/18/2016 - cmueller Likes this wine: 91 Points
Not as complex as I was expecting. Still the classic Gimmonet taste, clean, crisp, light toast. Prefer the 08 special club at this time
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4/29/2016 - bjlcrucrazy wrote: 93 Points
Really nice. A slightly toastier, briochier wine than I usually get from my favourite Cote de Blanc grower and I prefer the 2006 Cuvee Fleuron but still has the Gimonnet smell(nothing else smells as beautiful) and the beautiful creaminess and chalk seam I love in his wines. Served with raw oysters and scallop ceviche with Andy and friends at Churchill's and paired very well! Consumed too quickly as the opening wine to really show it's stuff I am sure
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4/1/2016 - RajivAyyangar wrote: 88 Points
Epic wines on a Friday Night (Home (Noe st)): Strong developed complex baguette. Large mousse but complex toasty apple notes. A delightful note of Asian pear.
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2/27/2016 - nzinkgraf wrote:
Pretty and mineral, very fresh approach. Crisp tree fruit and citrus palate.
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1/18/2016 - phils_hobby wrote: 93 Points
Really good. Super nice balance and smooth with lots of bubbles. Better than a lot of Grand Cru's.
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12/25/2015 - randyjc wrote: 93 Points
Gorgeous. Light, elegant, ethereal. Lemon peel, subtle citrus. Quite a beautiful wine. Whatever it costs, it is worth it.
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12/21/2015 - phils_hobby wrote: 95 Points
Really, really nice!
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12/19/2015 - Burgundy Al wrote: 92 Points
Another Saturday at Chevalier...Mostly Blind (Chicago, IL): Tasting, brief note. I'm not very familiar with this wine, but it comes across as very precise and Chardonnay-driven with lots of apple and lemon peel. Very good energy and length, even if not necessarily very powerful.
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11/27/2015 - 5laton wrote:
Too young, but very nice already. Lacy, classy mouthfeel with fine caressing fizz. Pretty toasty lemony yellow fruit with some unripe pear and cream. Floaty. Drier in the mouth than the '95 Chuck A Milli we had open alongside. This should be great in just 2-3 years and should be one to drink while the '08s age. I also greatly prefer this to the 2005.
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11/22/2015 - WST Likes this wine:
Obnoxiously large wide bottle is forgiven based on it's contents. White flowers and fruit, citrus balance with leesy yeasty notes so none dominate. Very lively in terms of bead and acidity. A real joy to drink with friends last night.
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11/7/2015 - Christoffer78 Likes this wine: 93 Points
A wonderful wine with balanced acidity, creamy mousse and beautiful acidity. White flowers, honeysuckle and a big profound body. Superb length on the finish.
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5/3/2015 - yofog wrote:
Very expressive, classy nose, full of finesse, with pear, green apple notes, and the palate is both creamy and snappy, with great substance and poise. Serious business, this.
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4/11/2015 - thewiz Likes this wine: 89 Points
Gourmetklubbens tjugofemte middag hemma hos P+A (Tema: Franskt möter Kubanskt) (Södermalm): Light yellow color with amazingly fine and tiny bubbles. Nose is youthful showing yeast, mineral and citrus tones. Palate is youthfully acidic with a rather short finish showing mature yellow apples. Needs more cellaring to integrated and open up.
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1/6/2015 - aajder wrote: 93 Points
Deep color. The nose is creamy, with hints of flowers, nuts, honey and mature citrus fruits. This is medium full bodied on the palate, with outstanding concentration and wonderful finesse. Rich. The long, mineral tinged finish shows great precision. Excellent.
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12/23/2014 - BenBlu Likes this wine: 95 Points
Consistent with my impression when first tasted in September at Gimonnet. This really is a great champagne that shows lovely acacia on the nose and an incredible minerality, depth of fruit, elegance and precision. I know I am repeating myself, but for me this is my best value find of top class champagne in 2014. This (for me) beats a Salon 1999 I had not too long ago by quite a margin. Interestingly enough after keeping one glass for three days with a champagne stopper in the fridge it had mellowed just a tad and showed more elegance, but was showing absolutely beautifully with a great length (normally I find that using a stopper and keeping an unfinished bottle shows some significant deterioration post the first day). I am really curious to see how this one develops, it will just be very hard to keep my hands off this beauty.
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11/23/2014 - WillersC wrote: 89 Points
Very young and one dimensional at the moment, certainly a food wine. All minerals and citrus for the time being with plenty of pent up energy. Wait for a number of years to get the best out of this
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10/20/2014 - KeithAkers wrote: 92 Points
Nose: Very aromatic and balanced with crushed rocks, citrus tones, white fruits, pears, and some white florals. There is excellent depth here with a real precision too.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium/high acidity. The acidity is showing its youth and is on the tart side with crushed rocks, citrus tones, white fruits, and a good bit of white florals.
Overall: This is a very classy and youthful Gimmonet Special Club. There is a real attractive freshness and precision to it with excellent depth.
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9/19/2014 - BenBlu Likes this wine: 95 Points
Tasted at Gimonnet, tasted their full range. All their wines were very impressive. This one marginally topped the Fleuron 2006 and came across a bit more polished and rounded, pure drinking pleasure. For the price (if I recall correct ~€34 at the house), an incredible value for a champagne I believe to be on par with a Comtes de Champagne (which I love) and an absolute must buy in my view for lovers of fine BdB vintage champagnes.
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