(last bottle) dark golden in glass, funky bread and brioche, toasted cashew. Late apricot/peaches, dried honeysuckle, cocoa dusting, grapefruit, bright vibrant acidity, almost no more fizz. Preserved lemons. Perfect w peranakan assortments. =)
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DG 04/2006 Damp cellar, old books, coins, wet cardboard, intensely oxidative nose, mushrooms, baked pineapples, peaches and apricots, overripe fruits, figs, persimmon, nail polish, honey, spices, black pepper, clove and cinnamon, candied fruits. Very interesting to try this older edition of De Sousa's entry-level wine with so many years of bottle age; it seemed like a well-conserved bottle retaining a rounded acidity, despite being mature with an aged feeling. 90pt
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Last 375ml - delicious. It had a lovely matured nose of honey, chrysanthemum, stone fruit and mineral, all edged with just a touch of oxidative white meat aromas. Lovely. The palate was a lot more youthful than the nose promised though. It was nicely round, with little honeyed tones, but there was still a lovely lively acidity and a bright, creamy mousse running through fresh, yummy flavours of yellow fruit and fruit peel. At the finish, just the lightest kiss of spice and mineral added a bit of complexity and bite. Very lovely, and drinking perfectly now.
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Pale gold. Some yeasty and nutty fragrance, but it takes some time to develop. At first citrus fruits, ginger spice and wet stones aromas are more prominent. The freshness and elegance are well mirrored in the mouth, again lemon and green apple. Bubbles are delicate, but the pungence of Chardonnay is perceivable. The acidity is quite persistent. Elegant, but it needs some time to express itself. Better drink it slowly.
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Second last of the 375mls, this had tons of age on it and drank deliciously on the night. It had a lovely, mature nose of caramel, treacle and nuts alongside white fruit and a nice bready aroma. It was on the palate where this shone though. Still fresh and lively, yet with a mature golden glow, with rounded yellow fruit and mellow honey and toasty accents, this was at a perfect junction between youth and maturity. Yummy.
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Vietti Perbacco Vertical: 2005-2011 (My place, Chicago IL): Nose: The nose is wide open and balanced with brioche, red apples, baking spices, yeasty tones, and some pears. There is excellent depth and style to this that comes with this being an older disgorgment.
Taste: Medium bodied with refreshing medium/high acidity. The acidity is certainly there, but it's more in the refreshing category. There is a silkiness to the feel with brioche, red apples, baking spices, fresh baked dough, and pears.
Overall: This is from a 6/10 disgorgement. This showed off some real class and was a real pleasure to drink.
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Long lunch at Asia Grand (Asia Grand, Odeon Towers): From a 375ml, this was one of the less impressive of the few bottles I have had, but it was still quite enjoyable, especially when paired with fried dim sum dishes. The nose showed a little more oxidative than usual, with oxidative browned apples and pear aromas, a little layer of yeast, and then some exotic spice and mineral notes. The palate was wrapped in a gentle, lightly frothed mousse but had lots of crisp, mouthwatering acidity streaming through more browned apple tones on the attack. The midpalate was more lemony than appley, showing a citrus burst before the wine opened up nicely into a pleasing finish of mineral and spice notes. A bit on the simpler side, but nice.
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Good Friday Dinner with Hakka Food (Alex's place): From a 375ml this time. Nice, but this was very advanced and needed to be drank up. It had a very mature nose, with lots of honeyed, caramel notes, red apples and fig aromas, and a touch of earthy mineral. Very nice actually. The palate was also nicely developed, with round, fleshy apple flavours couched in a mellow mousse. However, while clearly mature, there was still a good bit of snappy energy, with bright, fresh acidity running through more citrus, lime notes on the midpalate, and then into a long finish with some minerality woven through honeyed fig tones. There is not much more room for this to go I think, but it was very enjoyable on the night.
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(jm's old world education@paulS') Nutty, creamy, with dusty white flowers. Juicy fruit (limes), mineraly with faint, funky creosote characeters showing. Soft, almost spritzy bubbles, pairing perfectly with our anchovies. Brilliant aged bubbly drinking perfectly now!
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JM's Old World Education (Pine Close): It is a credit to the wine that all three bottles of the batch (all disgorged in 2005) flew out of the cellar in barely a few weeks since I first bought them. This was perched somewhere between the mature and absolutely brilliant first bottle and the far more youthful, less developed second one. The nose here shared a very similar vein to both bottles though, with nicely rounded scents of yeast, apple and dried flowers. The palate showed a good sense of development too. Still very clean, very balanced, but it had a nice mellow feel, with a fleshy attack led by spice and apple notes, and then just a touch of caramelly notes on the midpalate, leading into a dry, minerally finish wrapped in gentle mousse.
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Christmas Eve dinner (Amber Park, Singapore): Good stuff. Far less developed than the last bottle we had (which was also disgorged in 2005), this was also rather less interesting. Nevertheless, it was still a really solid NV. The nose showed a nice touch of maturity to it, with developed flavours of white meat and a little earthy funk alongside little aromas of yeast and bread, some toasted vanilla bean, and then slightly fresher scents of apple and other white fruit. The palate was a lot fresher and more primary than one would have expected after that nose though. It was very bright, full of fresh acidity and a lovely mousse, with almost strident flavours of lemons and green apples on the attack and the midpalate. The bottle age only showed up towards the grippy finish, with more developed shades of toffee and caramel floating above a nice streak of stoney mineral. Less integrated and pleasingly complex than on the last time round, indeed a bit on the over-bright side when had without food, but this was nevertheless still a lovely Champagne of with lots of character. Amazingly for an NV with the benefit of 7 years in the bottle, it still needs a bit of time and age - 2 or 3 more years would have done this wonders.
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Dim Sum Club at Royal China (Royal China, Raffles Hotel, Singapore): Disgorged way back in 4/7/2005, this fully mature Champagne was stunning for Non-vintage at this price. Made from 50% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot noir and 10% Pinot Meunier, it had a beautiful nose, very nicely developed, with lovely wafts of malt, honey and spice, ripe red apples and kumquat aromas, and a llittle underlayer of earthy mineral. Nice, but the palate was even better I thought. The mousse had died down somewhat, but it still had a lovely Champagne-ny freshness running through lush, fleshy flavours of ripe lemons, limes and kumquats, then layers of warm malt and honeyed notes on the midpalate, streching away into a lovely, integrated finish, with its gentle length sprinkled with subtle notes of spice and mineral. It may lack some of the breadth of complexity and the underlying tension of a truly great Champagne, but boy was this yummy. Beautiful stuff. Unlike the youthful and austere 2002 Legras we had alonsgide, which will take years to come around, this has reach its peak plateau and is absolutely delicious. So if you are nursing any of these bottles in the cellar, waiting 7 years from disgorgement date (like this bottle) before popping may well be the way to go.
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50% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot noir and 10% Pinot meunier, disgorged 6/14/2010. Nice fruit- apple, pear, florals and lemon. Terrific balance. Citrus, apple and mineral qualities with a nice finish and good underlying acidity.
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Hey, a great bottle, not only it's a great value excellent champagne, but consumed sitting outside on our terrace at -11C and watching fireworks at the New Year's eve! Is there anything better than this? :-) Cheers!
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A young and very good champagne from the simple end. Medium (+) acidity with medium body and finish. Palate still full with citrus, limey flavours and a light touch of toasty/ dried fruit notes still developing. Disgorged July 2009, so still very young. Have another 5 bottles remaining, will see how this develops. Cheers!
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Light golden color with medium bubbles. Lots of green apple and sweet toast on the nose, with coconut and multigrain bread as well. On the palate, creamy mouthfeel on the attack, with honeyed apple, followed by a mid palate explosion of toast, nuts and acidity. Long finish of toast and citrus, very nice.
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This was just past the edge of too sweet, but very good, reasonably interesting champagne. Grapefruit rind, Mexican vanilla and hints of graphite on the nose. Less distinctive on the palate. Creamy texture supports honeyed pear flavors and well integrated acid. There's a nice, lingering mineral finish.
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7/30/2020 - JerM wrote: 93 Points
(last bottle)
dark golden in glass, funky bread and brioche, toasted cashew. Late apricot/peaches, dried honeysuckle, cocoa dusting, grapefruit, bright vibrant acidity, almost no more fizz. Preserved lemons. Perfect w peranakan assortments. =)
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5/3/2020 - julen789 Likes this wine: 90 Points
DG 04/2006
Damp cellar, old books, coins, wet cardboard, intensely oxidative nose, mushrooms, baked pineapples, peaches and apricots, overripe fruits, figs, persimmon, nail polish, honey, spices, black pepper, clove and cinnamon, candied fruits.
Very interesting to try this older edition of De Sousa's entry-level wine with so many years of bottle age; it seemed like a well-conserved bottle retaining a rounded acidity, despite being mature with an aged feeling.
90pt
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12/22/2016 - Paul S wrote: 92 Points
Last 375ml - delicious. It had a lovely matured nose of honey, chrysanthemum, stone fruit and mineral, all edged with just a touch of oxidative white meat aromas. Lovely. The palate was a lot more youthful than the nose promised though. It was nicely round, with little honeyed tones, but there was still a lovely lively acidity and a bright, creamy mousse running through fresh, yummy flavours of yellow fruit and fruit peel. At the finish, just the lightest kiss of spice and mineral added a bit of complexity and bite. Very lovely, and drinking perfectly now.
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4/18/2016 - The years of the grape Likes this wine:
Pale gold. Some yeasty and nutty fragrance, but it takes some time to develop. At first citrus fruits, ginger spice and wet stones aromas are more prominent.
The freshness and elegance are well mirrored in the mouth, again lemon and green apple. Bubbles are delicate, but the pungence of Chardonnay is perceivable. The acidity is quite persistent.
Elegant, but it needs some time to express itself. Better drink it slowly.
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2/4/2016 - Paul S wrote: 92 Points
Second last of the 375mls, this had tons of age on it and drank deliciously on the night. It had a lovely, mature nose of caramel, treacle and nuts alongside white fruit and a nice bready aroma. It was on the palate where this shone though. Still fresh and lively, yet with a mature golden glow, with rounded yellow fruit and mellow honey and toasty accents, this was at a perfect junction between youth and maturity. Yummy.
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1/2/2016 - kurishin Likes this wine: 92 Points
There is complexity here, secondary flavors come out to play almost immediately. Some pear and potentially green apple, fresh flavors.
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9/21/2014 - KeithAkers wrote: 91 Points
Vietti Perbacco Vertical: 2005-2011 (My place, Chicago IL): Nose: The nose is wide open and balanced with brioche, red apples, baking spices, yeasty tones, and some pears. There is excellent depth and style to this that comes with this being an older disgorgment.
Taste: Medium bodied with refreshing medium/high acidity. The acidity is certainly there, but it's more in the refreshing category. There is a silkiness to the feel with brioche, red apples, baking spices, fresh baked dough, and pears.
Overall: This is from a 6/10 disgorgement. This showed off some real class and was a real pleasure to drink.
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9/26/2013 - Paul S wrote: 90 Points
Long lunch at Asia Grand (Asia Grand, Odeon Towers): From a 375ml, this was one of the less impressive of the few bottles I have had, but it was still quite enjoyable, especially when paired with fried dim sum dishes. The nose showed a little more oxidative than usual, with oxidative browned apples and pear aromas, a little layer of yeast, and then some exotic spice and mineral notes. The palate was wrapped in a gentle, lightly frothed mousse but had lots of crisp, mouthwatering acidity streaming through more browned apple tones on the attack. The midpalate was more lemony than appley, showing a citrus burst before the wine opened up nicely into a pleasing finish of mineral and spice notes. A bit on the simpler side, but nice.
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3/29/2013 - Paul S wrote: 91 Points
Good Friday Dinner with Hakka Food (Alex's place): From a 375ml this time. Nice, but this was very advanced and needed to be drank up. It had a very mature nose, with lots of honeyed, caramel notes, red apples and fig aromas, and a touch of earthy mineral. Very nice actually. The palate was also nicely developed, with round, fleshy apple flavours couched in a mellow mousse. However, while clearly mature, there was still a good bit of snappy energy, with bright, fresh acidity running through more citrus, lime notes on the midpalate, and then into a long finish with some minerality woven through honeyed fig tones. There is not much more room for this to go I think, but it was very enjoyable on the night.
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2/17/2013 - mchiew Likes this wine: 90 Points
Golden yellow in color. Nutty, almond, toasty nose. Good balance of acidity, quite weighty n pretty pleasant to drink. Excellent buy!
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12/30/2012 - JerM wrote: 93 Points
(jm's old world education@paulS') Nutty, creamy, with dusty white flowers. Juicy fruit (limes), mineraly with faint, funky creosote characeters showing. Soft, almost spritzy bubbles, pairing perfectly with our anchovies. Brilliant aged bubbly drinking perfectly now!
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12/30/2012 - Paul S wrote: 92 Points
JM's Old World Education (Pine Close): It is a credit to the wine that all three bottles of the batch (all disgorged in 2005) flew out of the cellar in barely a few weeks since I first bought them. This was perched somewhere between the mature and absolutely brilliant first bottle and the far more youthful, less developed second one. The nose here shared a very similar vein to both bottles though, with nicely rounded scents of yeast, apple and dried flowers. The palate showed a good sense of development too. Still very clean, very balanced, but it had a nice mellow feel, with a fleshy attack led by spice and apple notes, and then just a touch of caramelly notes on the midpalate, leading into a dry, minerally finish wrapped in gentle mousse.
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12/24/2012 - Paul S wrote: 91 Points
Christmas Eve dinner (Amber Park, Singapore): Good stuff. Far less developed than the last bottle we had (which was also disgorged in 2005), this was also rather less interesting. Nevertheless, it was still a really solid NV. The nose showed a nice touch of maturity to it, with developed flavours of white meat and a little earthy funk alongside little aromas of yeast and bread, some toasted vanilla bean, and then slightly fresher scents of apple and other white fruit. The palate was a lot fresher and more primary than one would have expected after that nose though. It was very bright, full of fresh acidity and a lovely mousse, with almost strident flavours of lemons and green apples on the attack and the midpalate. The bottle age only showed up towards the grippy finish, with more developed shades of toffee and caramel floating above a nice streak of stoney mineral. Less integrated and pleasingly complex than on the last time round, indeed a bit on the over-bright side when had without food, but this was nevertheless still a lovely Champagne of with lots of character. Amazingly for an NV with the benefit of 7 years in the bottle, it still needs a bit of time and age - 2 or 3 more years would have done this wonders.
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12/18/2012 - Paul S wrote: 93 Points
Dim Sum Club at Royal China (Royal China, Raffles Hotel, Singapore): Disgorged way back in 4/7/2005, this fully mature Champagne was stunning for Non-vintage at this price. Made from 50% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot noir and 10% Pinot Meunier, it had a beautiful nose, very nicely developed, with lovely wafts of malt, honey and spice, ripe red apples and kumquat aromas, and a llittle underlayer of earthy mineral. Nice, but the palate was even better I thought. The mousse had died down somewhat, but it still had a lovely Champagne-ny freshness running through lush, fleshy flavours of ripe lemons, limes and kumquats, then layers of warm malt and honeyed notes on the midpalate, streching away into a lovely, integrated finish, with its gentle length sprinkled with subtle notes of spice and mineral. It may lack some of the breadth of complexity and the underlying tension of a truly great Champagne, but boy was this yummy. Beautiful stuff. Unlike the youthful and austere 2002 Legras we had alonsgide, which will take years to come around, this has reach its peak plateau and is absolutely delicious. So if you are nursing any of these bottles in the cellar, waiting 7 years from disgorgement date (like this bottle) before popping may well be the way to go.
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1/28/2012 - AllRed wrote: 90 Points
50% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot noir and 10% Pinot meunier, disgorged 6/14/2010. Nice fruit- apple, pear, florals and lemon. Terrific balance. Citrus, apple and mineral qualities with a nice finish and good underlying acidity.
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11/22/2010 - Yagil wrote: 89 Points
light fresh aromatic elegant champagne
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9/11/2010 - dexterng wrote: 88 Points
Not too acidic. Good balance or creamy and lime. Color is light gold.
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3/6/2010 - AN wrote: 87 Points
This time, left half of the bottle open for 24 hours. It turned out a very elegant mature burgundy. Check it out this way.Cheers!
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1/16/2010 - AN wrote: 90 Points
Hey, a great bottle, not only it's a great value excellent champagne, but consumed sitting outside on our terrace at -11C and watching fireworks at the New Year's eve! Is there anything better than this? :-) Cheers!
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12/30/2009 - AN wrote: 87 Points
A young and very good champagne from the simple end. Medium (+) acidity with medium body and finish. Palate still full with citrus, limey flavours and a light touch of toasty/ dried fruit notes still developing. Disgorged July 2009, so still very young. Have another 5 bottles remaining, will see how this develops. Cheers!
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10/26/2009 - tplskylrk wrote: 89 Points
Light color, rather biggish bubbles. Warm bakers bread, yeast, minerals. Pear lemon twist on the palate decent finish. Good NV and QRP.
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2/1/2009 - cadamson wrote: 89 Points
Very good QPR, enjoyed as much as the first time, but setting was not right for good formal notes as attention was limited!
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11/15/2008 - sunalsorises wrote: 90 Points
Nice bubbly. A bit acidic in the beginning but settled down nicely. A nice crisp finish.
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6/15/2008 - cadamson wrote: 91 Points
Very good, straw gold, sour apple, biscuit, very, very good for the price point.
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5/17/2008 - cmbond wrote: 91 Points
Light golden color with medium bubbles. Lots of green apple and sweet toast on the nose, with coconut and multigrain bread as well. On the palate, creamy mouthfeel on the attack, with honeyed apple, followed by a mid palate explosion of toast, nuts and acidity. Long finish of toast and citrus, very nice.
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5/9/2008 - RationalDenial wrote: 86 Points
This was just past the edge of too sweet, but very good, reasonably interesting champagne. Grapefruit rind, Mexican vanilla and hints of graphite on the nose. Less distinctive on the palate. Creamy texture supports honeyed pear flavors and well integrated acid. There's a nice, lingering mineral finish.
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12/29/2007 - CruConnexion wrote: 90 Points
Toast and almond on the nose. Balanced fruit and acidity. Some citrus, apricot, a tiny hint of honey on the finish.
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12/28/2007 - Wine Spam wrote: 91 Points
End-of-Year Double Extravaganza Tasting: Champagne and Bordeaux--Vineyard Gate (Millbrae, CA): A rich deep champagne nose of yeast, nuts and biscuits. Beautiful in the mouth with apple, citrus and pear notes mixing with good minerality. Complex and satisfying.
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12/17/2007 - archer752000 wrote: 92 Points
Very nicely balanced champagne. Grapefruit, tropical fruits.
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12/8/2007 - EMichels wrote: 85 Points
K&L Hollywood Tasting: Strong; Better with food; A bit of acid
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12/31/2006 - desik wrote: 93 Points
really nice. Buy again
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