This is an appreciable step up from the basic wines, and honestly is an excellent bottle in its own right once you get over the snobbery. Juicy and fresh, with a fairly high dosage which I suppose comes off as stylized as those brut zero hipster wines these days. The 2008 acidity is there, and it sneaks in on the back end. Really good stuff.

I'm told this is the last Launois Special Club, though the reason for that is unclear. In any case, it's a good one, with plenty of the 2008 acidity bringing freshness and lift, but also some creamy qualities on the palate thanks to a touch of dosage. Drinking really well now, this isn't too taut with its acidity or minerality. It's not super complex, but it's definitely very enjoyable.

This is good for the level, first off showing the classic reduction qualities (perhaps a hint too much) with its flinty, minerally popcorn notes. The palate is clearly one of lesser density, and while there's plenty of acidity here, it's fairly one-note, and shows a bit dilute on the midpalate. I reckon the acidity's a bit too loud here, in comparison to the other elements.

I opened one of these recently and was thrilled at how well it was showing, so naturally I opened another one. It's definitely got a lot of Dujac signature, with plenty of brown spice. Any earthy qualities aren't as prominent, and with the hint of vanilla initially, there's definitely some oaky polish here. But that fades with air, and a slight bit of stemminess seems to pop out. The palate is silky and gentle, but with really nice acidity. As with my last bottle, drinking really well.

This was showing much younger than a Ducs of the same vintage that I had last year. The nose had an incredible gentle perfume, with still plenty of lively acidity and slightly tart fruit. For me, this is in an excellent spot, with just nascent secondary characteristics but still some primary red fruit hanging on. The perfume on the nose, though, is what truly makes this wine for me.

This has a nicely evolved nose, with a touch of mushroom and earth, but also still a good amount of fruit. The palate, however, doesn't feel like it has the grand cru density, and (perhaps for the better) the ripeness doesn't show too prominently either. There's earth and acids, but I would expect a little more intensity and concentration. Perhaps my expectations coming into this needed to be moderated a bit?

The best showing of this wine yet, at least to me. There's clearly some ripeness on the nose here, but it's counterbalanced by the earthiness. Most importantly, there's no sign of overripeness or roasted qualities here. The ripe and juicy fruit plays nicely with the earth, and the tannins on this bottle are surprisingly more resolved than I'd have expected. Nonetheless, the Parkerian hyperbole for this wine is thoroughly unjustified. It will be a great wine at best, but a candidate for a perfect score? Risible.

Fairly clean, but nonetheless there's a slight hint of animal funk on the nose here (it's really not that bad, and I'd probably have missed it if it weren't for the label, or maybe I imagined it because of the label). Nonetheless, there's a lovely candied cherry component here that seems to mix with some dried herbs. The palate is both sweet from the fruit, but also savoury, with a slight tinge of olive. It's obviously young, but to my palate, this is a nice time to hit this wine, before it gets a little too funky.