2011 Agrapart Champagne Grand Cru Minéral Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut, France, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2011
Score: 
93
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$127.00USD

A nice showing especially considering the vintage.  Light golden in color.  A steady stream of smaller bubble.  The nose is clean with good minerality and slight pear notes.  Full bodied but overall the wine is more on the delicate side.  Clean.  On the palate, slight pear and nice minerality as well.  Long finish.  This should drink well over the next eight to ten years.  Very food friendly.  Nice to open a bottle of this with some popcorn.  

2011 Larmandier-Bernier Champagne Grand Cru Vieille Vigne du Levant Extra Brut, France, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2011
Score: 
95
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$120.00USD

A difficult vintage in Champagne, but this one is drinking very well.  Golden in color, clear and bright.  A persistent bead of small bubbles form a nice mousse.  The nose is big with apples, pears, yeast and salinity.  Full bodied but good acidity.  On the palate, apples, salinity and slight yeast.  Long finish.  Delicious.  This is drinking well but should easily go another five to eight years.  Very food friendly, this would be very nice with spicy Thai food.  

MV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Edition 166eme, France, Wine Review

Score: 
97
Grade: 
A+
Current Price: 
$225.00USD

Gorgeous.  This is their "basic" non-vintage or multi-vintage but better than most luxury cuvees.  It is a blend of 45% Pinot Noir, 39% Chardonnay, and 16% Meunier.  Light golden in color with a steady stream of small bubbles.  Nice frothy mousse.  The nose has toast, yeast, slight cherries, apples and chalk.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this is complex and deep.  Slightly tart fruit (oranges) with some chalk.  Long finish.  This is drinking well now, and should for the next ten to fifteen years.  This will go with just about any food.  It would be great with Sushi.

2006 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut La Grande Dame, France, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2006
Score: 
94
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$180.00USD

Always a treat though this is starting to show some age (in a good way).  Light golden in color, clear and bright.  The mousse isn't as frothy as it had been not as persistent, but still present.  It is a blend of 53% Pinot Noir and 47% Chardonnay.  The nose is great with yeast, ginger, slight char, and slight nutty note.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this is deep and complex.  Some apples, ginger, char and nuts especially on the finish.  Long finish.  Great on its own, this is incredibly versatile with food. It worked well with grilled, spiced radishes.  

2012 Bollinger Champagne La Grande Année, France, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2012
Score: 
97
Grade: 
A+
Current Price: 
$135.00USD

With 2/3 Pinot Noir and 1/3 Chardonnay, this is slowly opening up.  Pale golden in color, clear and bright.  Lots of tiny bubbles.  The nose is boisterous with pears and green apples along with a bit of chalk and slight black cherry.  Really a lot going on.  Full bodied.  Tart acidity.  On the palate, green apples, slight lemon, slight black cherry with nice chalky minerality.  Long, long finish.  Plenty of depth and layered complexity.  Still quite youthful but getting closer to peak.  Drink over ten to fifteen years.  This is very food friendly and went great with an assortment of cheeses

2007 Perrier-Jouët Champagne Belle Epoque, France, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2007
Score: 
94
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$145.00USD

This is a blend of 50% Chardonnay. 45% Pinot Noir, and 5% Pinot Munier.  This is their prestige cuvee in the attractive, hand painted bottle.  Go0lden in color with a steady stream of small bubbles.  The nose is nice with toast, slight lemon and maybe a hint of peach.  Crisp acidity.  On the palate, lemons with some toast.  Long finish.  Very tasty and very food friendly, it will work with just about any food.  Still fresh and vibrant, drink over the next seven to ten years.

NV Weingut Willi Bründlmayer Brut Reserve, Austria, Wine Review

Score: 
90
Grade: 
A-

Disgorged March 2022.  A blend of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, and Grüner Veltliner.  Golden in color, clear and bright.  A nice mousse of small bubbles.  On the nose, light toast, hay, chalk and some apricot.  Frothy.  On the palate, crisp with nice peach notes.  What seems like just a hint of sweetness.  Minerality.  Some depth.  Long finish.  This is refreshing and very food friendly.  Drink over the next few years.  This would be a great wine to sit with a bowl of (buttered) popcorn and watch a really good movie.  

2006 Piper-Heidsieck Champagne Cuvée Rare, France, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2006
Score: 
95
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$165.00USD

This is a blend of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir.  Straw gold in color.  A steady bead of tiny bubbles.  The nose is nice with apples, slight peach, spice and a bit of baked bread.  Full bodied.  Firm structure at age 16.  On the palate, red fuji apple, some green apples, some salinity and minerality.  Lots of depth, it unwinds in the glass to show a delicious complexity.  Long, tart finish.  This wine drinks beautifully on its own and will work well with just about any food.  Fried foods would be perfect.  Drink over the next ten to fifteen years.  

NV Ca' del Bosco Franciacorta Cuvée Prestige Brut, Italy, Lombardy, Wine Review

Score: 
92
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$32.00USD

Beautiful sparkling wine from the north center of Italy.  It is a blend of 75% Chardonnay, 10% Pinot Bianco, and 15% Pinot Nero.  Light golden in color with a steady stream of tiny bubbles.  The nose has red apples, minerals and slight toast.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this has a slight oxidative note along with apples and slight toast.  A nice backbone of acidity.  Long finish.  This drinks great on its own but will work well with a wide variety of food.  Everything from popcorn to fried, spicy chicken.  Long finish.  It will compete with everything in its price category from Champagne.

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