Krug Tasting

Memories Bad Ragaz
Tasted Friday, November 18, 2022 by sirpat00 with 222 views

Flight 1 (1 Note)

  • NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Edition 164eme 97 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    From magnum. Base 2008. Cépages 48% PN, 35% Ch, 17% PM. 8 years on lees, degorged Q3 2017. Hints of burned wood, yeast notes, pear and grated apples, mineral notes of wet pebbles. Adding fresh, green notes of lemongrass (or similar) and later also stone fruit. Medium intensity, but detailed and delicate. A filigree palate adding citric freshness to the aromatics. The level of detail and delicate nature reminded me of Cristal 2008, but with more expansive breadth and more steely minerality. An off-the-charts Krug that in my view was not far behind Clos du Mesnil 2008. Of the Grande Cuvée line-up (158, 163, 164, 167, 168, 169, 170) this was without a doubt the strongest.

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Flight 2 (4 Notes)

  • NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Edition 170ème 92 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Base 2014. Cépages 51% PN, 28% Ch, 11% PM. 6 years on lees, degorged Q2 2021. More dominantly expressed autolytic notes of yeast and brioche. Smoke and pear fruit. Pretty linear and comparatively high intensity. The palate was mostly mineral and citric, but lacking mid-palate weight and appeared to lack direction – at least for now. Best to keep stowed away and revisit in 5+ years.

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  • NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvee Edition 169eme 95 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Base 2013. Cépages 43% PN, 35% Ch, 22% PM. 6.5 years on lees, degorged Q1 2021. Broad mineral base with smoke and toast, above-average intensity. Brown pear fruit, tangerine zest with herbal infusion and fir. Precise and delicate. The palate added more to the structure, again mostly fresh and mineral but also with just a bit of cream. Not necessarily expanding, but well sustained finish.

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  • NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Édition 168ème 96 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Base 2012. Cépages 52% PN, 35% Ch, 13% PM. 6 years on lees, degorged Q2 2019. Another step up in intensity compared to 169 and 170 with fine toast notes, pear fruit, hints of orange juice and mineral notes of smoke. The palate showed crisp acidity and a slightly creamy texture, further elevated by mid-palate density.

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  • NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Edition 167eme 93 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Base 2011. Cépages 47% PN, 36% Ch, 17% PM. 6 years on lees, degorged Q1 2018. Pear and a bit of citrus fruit, plus toast notes. Felt more fresh and less ripe than the following 3 releases. More lean also on the palate, mostly built on acidity and as harmonious as the others as 168 or 169.

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Flight 3 (4 Notes)

  • 2008 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut 92 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Cépages 53% PN, 22% Ch, 25% PM. 11 years on lees, degorged Q1 2020. A buttery or even lactic touch was the first distinguishing factor. More red apple type of fruit along with some pear, fine brioche and a layer of steely minearlity. The palate has a clear texture and appears entirely built on acidity. Considering that the Clos du Mesnil was the wine of the night and that the Grande Cuvée 164 with 2008 base was stellar, encountering a below-average 2008 was a big surprise. The theory appears to be that in view of the uncertainty around the financial crisis which was unfolding at the time, the estate focused more on the Grande Cuvée that year.

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  • 2008 Krug Champagne Clos du Mesnil 98 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Cépage 100% Chard. 12 years on lees, degorged Q3 2021. An incredible nose with a humble yet persistent intensity. In addition to the pear and apple fruit there is just an idea of red berry essence, a bit of melted butter and a touch of caramel. The palate is broad, expansive with crisp acidity on top of a beautifully soft texture. It seemed early days for this, but the future is definitely bright…

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  • 2004 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut 91 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Cépages 37% PN, 39% Ch, 24% PM. 11 years on lees, degorged Q2 2016. Intense nose of bruised, ripe pear, melted butter and nutty, slightly oxidative notes. These dissipated after a while, however, and helped to improved a bouquet that got off to a pretty slow start. The palate felt somewhat out of sync in terms of balance, was pretty heavy on the acidity and in general lacked allure. One of the weakest showings at the event.

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  • 2004 Krug Champagne Clos du Mesnil 95 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Cépage 100% Ch. 12 years on lees, degorged Q3 2017. This had similar features to the vintage 2004, again with fabulous intensity and a riper type of fruit complemented by caramel, almond and marzipan features. Harmonious and exhilarating palate with perceptible age.

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Flight 4 (5 Notes)

  • 2002 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut 94 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Cépages 39% PN, 40% Ch, 21% PM. 12 years on lees, degorged Q2 2015. Not overly intense and appeared closed, but fascinating level of detail. Pear fruit, mineral notes and some whiffs of white flowers along with marzipan and freshly baked baguette. The palate showed an expansive structure, amazing presence and facetted aromatics. Seemed in a disadvantaged spot but very promising if you allow for another couple of years.

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  • 2002 Krug Champagne Clos du Mesnil 95 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Cépage 100% Ch. 12 years on lees, degorged Q1 2015. Rather low intensity, pretty much like the vintage 2002. Mineral notes and herbal complexity of leek, generally more green and less sweet than the vintage wine. This was actually the only occasion where the regular vintage wine came in close to the same vintage Clos du Mesnil. But with more aeration, the Mesnil managed to develop more breadth. The palate was just as fresh and expansive, but showed a bit more cream on the texture.

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  • 2000 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut Flawed

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Late release. Cépages 43% PN, 42% Ch, 15% PM. 14 years on lees, degorged Q1 2015. Unfortunately this was corked, hard to make any comments.

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  • 1998 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut 93 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    From Magnum, late release. Cépages 35% PN, 45% Ch, 19% PM. 13 years on lees, degorged Q1 2012. Fascinating, intoxicating aromatic intensity with a cold butter, pear, apple and candid stone fruit, a bit of marzipan and grassy herbal freshness. However, the mid-palate was lacking structure unfortunately and mostly built around the acidity which was a downer after the highly promising nose. In comparison to the regular bottle, this was notably younger and fresher.

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  • 1998 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut 92 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    From normal bottle, late release. Cépages 35% PN, 45% Ch, 19% PM. 10 years on lees, degorged Q4 2009. Slightly milky with fine ox notes, a bit Sherry-like here and there but also with nutty complexity and hints of caramel which became more dominant with aeration. Nicely aged, a bit weak mid-palate (consistent with the Magnum) and a less exiting, mostly citric finish. Notably more advanced than the magnum.

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Flight 5 (4 Notes)

  • 1988 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut Collection 90 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Intense nose with nicely aged, Williams-like pear fruit, hazelnuts and caramel note. On balance mineral and dry, lacking sweet notes. Palate clearly reflects the age, quite nice aromatics with an emphasis on ox notes, but the structure was underwhelming and the finish overly citric. Still a solid fizz, but the laggard in this tasting.

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  • 1996 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut 98 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Late release. Cépages 48% PN, 31% Ch, 21% PM. 10 years on lees, degorged Q4 2007. An incredibly detailed, humble nose showing bruised pear fruit, caramel, marzipan with top notes of spice, just an idea of red berries and fresh herbal complexity (but struggled to pinpoint the exact flavours here). But there is more! The palate is to die for, amazingly fresh acidity and a beautifully creamy texture. This a complete wine in its prime.

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  • 1996 Krug Champagne Clos d'Ambonnay 95 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Cépage 100% PN. 24 years on lees, degorged Q1 2021. A beautifully aged nose of bruised pear, drops of red berry, nutty notes and caramel. A well-built, solid palate showing both freshness and maturity. A highly hedonistic and enjoyable wine, but can’t compete with the regular 1996 vintage Krug.

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  • 1995 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut Collection 91 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    Cépages 48% PN, 35% Ch, 17% PM. 24 years on lees, degorged Q2 2020. Candid stone fruit, bruised pear, scents of herb and mineral notes. Fresh but a bit unexciting palate. Not unlike the Collection 1988, a solid fizz but overall a bit plump in comparison to the rest.

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Flight 6 (2 Notes)

  • NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Edition 158eme 94 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    This was an add-on bottle outside of the formal tasting, hence only brief notes: Quince and pear fruit, more salty type of minerality and a layer of marzipan. Fresh palate, adding citric complexity, but came across a bit one-dimensional compared to the outstanding nose.

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  • NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Edition 163eme 93 Points

    France, Champagne

    Krug tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. Main takeaways: 1/ Clos du Mesnil and the 1996 back vintage were show-stoppers, 2/ 164 was in a different league of the Grande Cuvée line-up, 3/ a general feature and maybe signature for Krug for me was the fine integration of autolytic notes into a balance of fruit and mineral notes. The textures tend to be soft with just a splash of cream and structures built around acidity. 4/ Clos du Mesnil towers over the vintage and GCs in terms of precision, complexity and elegance.

    Tasting note:
    This was an add-on bottle outside of the formal tasting, hence only brief notes: Pear fruit, slightly candid in nature, a glimpse of vanilla and steely-like minerality. Fresh palate built around acidity, but not expanding the overall complexity.

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