Been awhile since I've seen this producer although it's traditionally been one of my favorite champagnes. It's always a bit more interesting. This was quite light and perhaps not as PN driven as I'd have expected. Easy drinker. Went down fast. Maybe needed some more time to open up and maybe even warm up a bit.

Really interesting to try. A purchase that a friend's aunt made likely in the 90's during a visit to champagne. Since then it's been sitting in the basement. It poured extra dark and certainly has the aged champagne notes, but not overly oxidized at all and actually generally enjoyable. Fun to get to try. We have one of these from maybe even some years before that and I'm now interested to see.

I still think this is drinking on the very young side. It's a bit tighter and yet I have a feeling that it's going to be one of the really good DPs in the long run. So give it more time if you have any.

I enjoy the GG Rieslings especially young (perhaps because petrol isn't really my favorite). This is nice and sharp and almost a hint green in style. Drinks well. Good pre-dinner sipper.

Love me some good aged champagne and this was right there. It's perhaps a bit more evolved than you'd expect for a 96. Lots of caramel and roundness but still with the bubbles that kindof bite through. Enjoyed.

Opened and decanted at the beginning of the night. This needs more time, but it's a wonderful wine and very nice share. Kindof tart red fruits. Would have been fun to have the decanter and have a glass today.

Still very young. Big and powerful and yet perhaps because we've been there there's something about this wine that reminds me of the sea that is not all that far away. Maybe a certain minerality or seabed or something. Drinks nicely but I'd give it a lot more time.

A favorite I think among the group as this was the first bottle to finish. Good medium aged Bordeaux. In general I've tried to keep pre-2000 as a rule of thumb, but actually this was in a nice spot right now. A touch young, but it's developed the complexity and isn't quite as tight as a very young wine would be. Nice to try.

Funny to call a 20 year old wine quite young but that's how this came across. It's not really integrated yet - the heat and the oak are still fairly primary and haven't had time to settle down yet. We did not try decanting - which might have taken some of the heat off although I think the oak would still have been pretty strong. I'd keep waiting on these.

Have enjoyed this wine every time I've had it. It was one of my favorite Brunellos when we visited that area some years ago and continues to not disappoint. Also young, but there is more integration here and it's heading in a nice direction.

Low shoulder fill so not perhaps the best bottle of this but getting to try Rayas from the 80's is an almost impossible feat and one I'm not sure I'll be repeating anytime soon. If you didn't know what this wine could be you would think this was good. Compared to other bottles though I'd say it is a little bit more tired. The tea leaves are there. The fruit a bit less so. And the sharpness or preciseness of the wine is just a hint rounder. A treat though regardless.

These wines are just monsters. We've been collecting from some years now and yet never opt to open a bottle because honestly they're just not ready and obviously the newest release is no different. This was opened and decanted for prob a few hours then rebottled and left open for maybe another hour or two before folks got to it. Didn't really matter as it's still super young and tight. Dark and brooding. Well made wine that will be great with age.

Nice to try next to the Macdonald to see how that fruit goes with time. This was totally fine although somewhat more one-dimensional (I put that down to 97 which often comes across that way to me).

One of my favorites of the night but to be honest I'm a bit biased. I just love this producer and these wines. Opened and decanted for sediment and then rebottled. Drinking really well. There's lots of life left so won't be popping our others too quickly, but this is that old world style and new world fruit that when it's done right I think is just killer.