Frerejean Freres Cuvee des Hussards 2012

“Here is the Blanc de Blancs from this exciting new house. All the fruit for this is sourced from Premier Cru sites along the Cote des Blancs including Grauves and highlights a moreish sense of chardonnay.

When we tasted this with co-founder of the house Rodolphe late 2017, we were quietly impressed with the expressive nature of this champagne. The nose presents aromas of acacia, apricot, hazelnut followed by warm butter on toast. We know this sounds fanciful, but there is a LOT going on here.

The taste shows richness and a creamy mousse with soft, almost pillowy texture. Flavours develop into pear, autumn apple and a smoky mineral finish. This is delicious!”

Gosset Grand Blanc de Blanc N.V  is both mineral and floral, with aromas of flowers mixed with white fruits, apricot and Mirabelle plum. There are very light notes of lemon and other citrus fruits, crystallised quince and honey. The palate it is harmonious, complex and delicate, with great freshness. It is a crisp and well-structured champagne with a gentle silky finish. It is the perfect aperitif and is excellent paired with seafood such as scallops, crab or lobster..

Gosset Grande Reserve NV. A blend of Chardonnay (45%), Pinot Noir (45%) and Pinot Meunier (10%)—shows an intense, ripe and aromatic yet vinous bouquet with white and delicate red fruit, floral, brioche and nutty expressions. Full-bodied, dry and very fresh, this is a firm, complex, finessed, fruity, round and stimulating cuvée with a good, tight and slightly salty finish.

Gosset, founded in 1584, is the oldest wine house in Champagne. In 1584, Pierre Gosset, alderman of Aÿ and wine-grower, made still, mostly red, wines from the grapes he harvested from his own vines. In those days, two wines vied for pride of place at the table to the Kings of France: the wine of Aÿ and, from some hundreds of leagues further South, the wine of Beaune. Then, in the 18th century the wine made in around Aÿ began to bubble and the Gosset family turned naturally to the production of champagne.

Laurent Perrier is pioneer the Brut Nature category, a wine with no added sugar.

Laurent Perrier Ultra Brut expresses the quintessential character of champagne and was known as a “Great Wine without sugar”.

Launched in 1981, Laurent-Perrier Ultra Brut is a true illustration of the House’s know-how.

Blending and Wine Making:

55% Chardonnay
45% Pinot Noir

One or two reserve wines from a complementary year are blended in Laurent Perrier Ultra Brut with around 15 cru wines used in the composition.

Laurent Perrier Ultra Brut has zero dosage – the bunches of grapes are rigorously selected to ensure that only grapes with high sugar levels and low acidity are retained. These conditions are necessary to create a finished champagne that has the required balance without any dosage.

Ideally this Champagne should be aged for a minimum of 6 years.

Tasting Notes:

Very pale, crystal-bright in colour.

Intense and complex on the nose with a wide range of aromas including citrus and white fruits, honeysuckle flowers and iodine notes which give off an impression of freshness.

This airy and delicate wine of a surprising length is characterised by high purity of taste, a long and non-saturating finish.

Gardet Brut Tradition N.V is emblematic of the Gardet House, with a dense and powerful nose showing Pinot depth and richness, all balanced with fine acidity.The palate is full-bodied, creamy in texture with harmonious yeast flavours prominent. It has a softness and accessibility underpinned with loads of black fruit. Aromatic, complex and a long finish. A solid, rounded wine, with immediate appeal

Billecart Salmon Nicolas Francois 2002 A hint of struck flint reduction makes way for the icy brightness of grapefruit zest, lemon, white peach, then the warmth of figs, and later, yellow summer fruits. A decade in the cellar has set down layers of toast and nuts, even wood spice. Refreshing acidity takes time to uncoil, and minerality rises slowly, super fine, confident and taut, surging on the finish in a cascade of chalk that lingers, undeterred, for minutes.

The NV Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Brut is a clear, fresh and chalky Chardonnay from Cramant in the Côte des Blancs that opens with lovely intense and soft white fruit aromas. It is a mouth-filling, very elegant and finessed Cramant with highly digestible balance and stimulating lightness in alcohol (12%). The finish is charmingly round and fruity but also has the typical chalky texture that gives it perfect balance. This is an excellent cuvée with a delicate, salty, well-structured finish.

A delicious, persistent rosé that works equally well as an aperitif or with elaborate meals. – Gilbert & Gaillard, 2016.

Colour
Intense salmon pink.

Nose
Displays red berry-fruit aromas of ripe redcurrants, cherries, wild strawberries, giving way to notes of plum.

Palate
A fresh and full style of champagne with a fine finish and notes of peach and apricot.

Technical notes
This cuvée has all the hallmark Chardonnay finesse (35%-40%), rounded out by the ripeness of the Pinot Meunier (25-30%) and the structure of the Pinot Noir, of which 15%-18% is vinified as red wine. The addition of Pinot Noir red wine to the blend (15-18%) and a light dosage of 10g/L result in a very complete, balanced champagne.

This family-owned producer in the Aube region of Champagne has made a pale colored rosé. Dominated by 70% Pinot Noir, it’s ripe and softly rich, its red fruit balanced with an almost-warm acidity that gives it a welcoming character. Drink now.