2002 Vincent Couche Champagne Sensation

Community Tasting Notes (7) Avg Score: 92 points

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  12/24/2023 - TXRhoneRanger wrote: 95 Points

  Merry Christmas to me. Lovely wine. Aged gracefully with at least 10 more years left of life. Lots of lemon bar dessert and brioche. Not really on the yeasty side like the 1999, but quite excellent and completely smashable even though I didn't want to guzzle it, and I didn't, but I totally could have. Delicious Champs. Will seek out more of this.

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  7/16/2023 - jkvedar Likes this wine: 93 Points

  Lovely bottle . Very yeasty as you would expect on the nose . Great food wine. Long finish !

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  4/18/2023 - AD_jutant wrote: 88 Points

  Personal introduction:
  Unfortunately, I did not have an exciting 18th birthday as it happened during the first Covid lockdown, but the fate reimbursed me with the second chance: my 21st in the USA. By now, I am eager to experience and learn more about wine but some things I just can never afford on a college student budget. My own birthday is, however, an exception, so I wanted to get an aged (birthyear preferably) wine. I was disappointed to find out that 2002 was generally a poor year in Italy, since those are the wines I know the most because of Switzerland’s proximity. However, I guess I won a lottery by being born in a great Champagne vintage year. So, I decided it was the perfect chance to try a grower Champagne for the first time.
  
  About the wine: Vincent Couche’s “Sensation” is an equal-parts blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from two separate lots in Champagne. The wine was aged on the lees for over 19 years until getting disgorged last year. I heard it’s good to give a Champagne a year after disgorgement to settle down, so this seemed perfect. In addition, it also ticked off all the other hype-boxes that I was curious about: grower-producer, biodynamic (though certified only in 2008), brut nature.
  
  So, I was excited to try it and prayed that the local wine store did not run out by my birthday. I also thought that a seafood restaurant was the only appropriate place to open this bottle, so I chose one with a bearable corkage fee and a nice menu. The food was great, but can you imagine my disappointment when they brought out those small flute-ish stemless glasses? When I asked for anything with a bigger bowl, I got smirked at: “No, this is it. It’s called a Champagne flute”. I guess it’s my first day of legal drinking in this country so what would I know…
  
  Anyway, notes:
  
  Colour: golden, slightly on a darker side for a dry wine. Bubbles looked very big, and I was surprised until I noticed the little streams of other, tiniest bubbles I have ever seen in a drink. This combination of big soda-like bubbles and the tiniest ones was a discovery and I wonder if someone could tell me more about it?
  
  Nose: I have smelled butter and toast in Champagne before, but this time was different. It straight up smelled like brioche. I could almost think it is a smell of a beer, though of course there were other, more wine-usual aromas: apple, lemon tart, and whipped cream.
  
  Taste: it starts off with a very fine mousse which makes the wine feel almost like only a foam. It is dry and even drier given the piercing acidity, almost like straight lemon juice with water that does not quench your thirst but rather inhibits it. There is a full mouthfeel but also bitterness on the end which I did not enjoy that much. Unfortunately, that bitterness lasts out into the aftertaste. There are flavours of lemon pith and apple skins.
  
  Conclusion: I am not sure I loved this and would ever buy this bottle for the price again, but it was definitely a great experience, unlike anything I’ve tried so far. In the end, it did make me write 700 words on Reddit ;) Oh, and it went absolutely fabulous with my lobster roll.

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  4/13/2023 - 5laton wrote:

  Diam Mytik closure. Young but already lovely balance of fresh and rich, it will definitely improve for my preferences. Continues the trend of recent releases of this being less oxidative than what I remember previously.
  Even better on day 2, and still so young. This is going to be really, really good with a few years.

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  2/22/2023 - Rbhan12 Likes this wine:

  Part of a large tasting, wasn't able to take detailed notes.
  
  Bubbles were very fine and balanced. Nose was sublime. Beautiful brioche, lemony curd, white florals, maybe some almond too. Could've spent an hour just smelling this. Palate was medium body for me with similar notes as the nose. Well balanced acidity and bubbles, concentrated fruit but not overpowering. Great balance of subtle aged character but freshness still.
  
  Very very nice. Definitely one of the best bubbles I've had yet.
  
  Drinking beautifully now but can definitely cellar for longer.

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