Champagne, California, Pinot n...
Champagne
The chalky soils of Champagne combined with its frigid growing environment create wines that are electric and salivating. But it’s the creation of bubbles that makes these wines stand out.
The bubbles are formed during a secondary fermentation in bottle, known as Méthode Traditionelle. The longer they age, the more nougat and brioche flavours develop and the finer the bead (bubble) becomes.
In terms of who invented Champagne, the English make a strong case as they worked out the formula for purposely making the fizz happen and their stronger coal-fired glass bottles - resulting from the Industrial Revolution - could hold the pressure. Whereas the French were still bottling in wood-fired glass which wasn’t strong enough and they hadn’t cracked the technique of creating bubbles on purpose.
Grapes
White: Chardonnay
Red: Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier
Styles
Nowhere in the world can emulate the fineness and electric detail of these wines. Non-vintage Champagnes should be enjoyed earlier in their lives, while vintage wines have more structure and can age beautifully. House styles differ too. Blanc des Blancs (100% Chardonnay) offer a more elegant and fragile expression while Blanc des Noirs (100% Pinot and or Meunier) are darker fruited with more obvious structure and power.
Favourite Producers
Pierre Peters, Louis Roederer, Vilmart, Andre Clouet, Taittinger, Larmandier, Egly-Ouriet, Jacques Selosse
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Hobo Wine Camp Folk Machine Central Coast Pinot Noir 2021From the organically farmed Vecino Vineyard, this is a 50/50 blend of Pommard and Dijon 115 clones. 70% whole cluster.
Each year the names changes, though the wine is fairly consistent. This year it is called The Center of Gravity.
2021Pinot noirUSA362$50.00 As low as $45.00 -
Dosnon Blanc de Noirs NVThe NV Brut Blanc de Noirs Récolte Noire is a touch more elegant than the Récolte Brute, with layers of perfumed Pinot fruit that emerge gracefully from its medium-bodied fame. This delicious Champagne possesses lovely balance in an understated style. ANTONIO GALLONINVPinot noirFrance376$100.00 As low as $90.00 -
Andre Clouet Rose No.3 NVClouet's rose epitomises elegance and focus, while flamboyantly celebrating the generous red cherry, strawberry, watermelon and pink pepper fruit of Bouzy. It encapsulates that wonderful talent of pinot noir to build and rise on the finish, all the while retaining graceful precision as delicate as rose petal perfume. Structure is fine and elegant, driven both by chalk minerality of the village and a very finely executed tannin presence. It finishes with great length and poise of exquisite red cherry fruit. A pristine and enticingly priced rose. Older disgorgements have taken on savoury suggestions of tamarillo, while upholding their primary integrity. TYSON STELZER
The NV Brut Rosé No 3 Grand Cru is a pure Bouzy Pinot Noir that gets its beautiful intense onion-skin color from the addition of 8% red wine. The nose is rich and complex but at the same time pure and refined, with a nice chalky layer and vinous fruit intensity. Round and rich but fresh and vital on the pure and elegant palate, this is a full-bodied, pretty intense and persistent rosé to be served with main courses. This rosé is seriously complex and expressive, with grip, tension and a long finish. Remarkable in class and style. STEPHAN REINHARDT, Wine Advocate
(made from 100% Grand Cru Bouzy pinot noir, with 8% still wine): Vivid orange-pink. Aromas and flavors of ripe red berries, candied rose and toasty lees. Fleshy but nervy and focused, with strong mineral cut and hints of bitter herbs on the very long, energetic finish. Smoothly blends richness and vivacity, making it extremely flexible with food or without. JOSH RAYNOLDSNVPinot noirFrance376$125.00 As low as $112.50 -
Sandhi Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir 2021The 2021 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills has a medium ruby color and pretty scents of cinnamon stick, aniseed, iron, underbrush and charcuterie with a core of red cherries and cranberries. Medium-bodied yet very concentrated, it has a powdery frame, sparks of refreshing acidity and a very long, graphite-driven finish. Precise and detailed, it deserves to spend another 2-3 years in bottle. (96) ERIN BROOKS, Wine Advocate
2021Pinot noirUSA362$140.00 As low as $126.00 -
Bruno Paillard Brut Premiere Cuvee NVPinot noir leads this accurate, well-crafted aperitif style of elegant finesse and persistence. A primary red cherry, wild strawberry and lemon fruit focus is underlined by taut acidity and expressive chalk mineral depth. Nuances of honey, anise and ginger are building as it gains maturity. It's clean and taut, a low dosage keeping the finish fresh and lively. TYSON STELZERNVchardonnay, Pinot Meunier, Pinot noirFrance376$140.00 As low as $126.00 -
Peay Vineyards West Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2022The 2022 Pinot Noir (West Sonoma Coast) is deep, fleshy and seductive—in other words, everything a wine at this level should be. Crushed red/purplish berry fruit, spice, mint, new leather and cedar give the 2022 tons of aromatic nuance and complexity. What a delight. ANTONIO GALLONI
The bright red 2022 Pinot Noir West Sonoma Coast has lifted notes of alpine herbs, red berries, compact bright berries, bay leaf, and fresh roses. Medium-bodied, it offers a lovely amount of tension, with fantastic structure, a good amount of floral charm, and great potential for drinking over the next 7-8 years or more. JEB DUNNUCK2022Pinot noirUSA362$145.00 As low as $130.50 -
Dosnon Blanc de Noirs NV 1500mlMore product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
NVPinot noirFrance376$200.00 As low as $180.00 -
Peay Vineyards Pomarium Pinot Noir 2022The 2022 Pinot Noir Estate Pomarium is fabulous. Broad, ample and resonant, the Pomarium shows the more extroverted side of the year. Black fruit, mocha, chocolate, incense, leather and dark spice soar out of the glass. This potent, brooding Pinot Noir packs a tremendous punch. It's the most extroverted Pinot in the Peay range and is absolutely fantastic in this tasting. ANTONIO GALLONI
Youthful ruby with a hint of light magenta, on the nose, the 2022 Pinot Noir Pomarium offers bright pomegranate lift, fresh pine needles, minty herbs, dried flowers, and a hint of licorice. It reveals vibrant tension and deeper concentration on the palate, with a long, earthy finish and notes of tea leaf. Its ripe tannins have a chiseled but elegant feel, and it’s fantastically sculpted. Drink 2026-2046. JEB DUNNUCK2022Pinot noirUSA362$205.00 As low as $184.50 -
Peay Vineyards Savoy Pinot Noir 2022The 2022 Pinot Noir Savoy Vineyard is juicy and expressive, which makes it a fine choice for drinking now and over the next handful of years. Succulent dark cherry, spice, new leather and lavender caress the palate, with plush, silky tannins that wrap it all together. There's lovely texture and resonance. The Savoy Pinot is rarely super-complex, but it sure is delicious. ANTONIO GALLONI
Donum has purchased the Savoy Vineyard, so 2025 will be the last vintage of this wine for Peay. A ripe medium red hue, the 2022 Pinot Noir Savoy Vineyard is woodsy and complex, with notes of pine needles, fresh sage, rose, wild cherries, and bright blood orange citrus. Medium-bodied, it’s elegant all the way through, with a linear feel, fine tannins, evenly balanced acidity, and a finish that floats gently away. Drink it over the next 15 or so years. JEB DUNNUCK2022Pinot noirUSA362$205.00 As low as $184.50 -
Vouette et Sorbee Blanc dArgile Brut Nature R18(R18, disgorged Nov 2020. Magnums R19, disgorged Dec 2021). Within the cold, west-facing, Kimmeridgian limestone-rich lieu-dit of Biaunes, there is a small plot of Chardonnay that Gautherot planted wild: without preparing the soils and amongst the native vegetation (a totally crazy idea). The Côte des Bar is overwhelmingly planted to Pinot Noir, but in 2000 Gautherot chose Chardonnay. He used massale cuttings from Anselme Selosse’s vines (in Avize) and Vincent Dauvissat’s Valmur Grand Cru vineyard. This plot has become the base of what Antonio Galloni calls “one of the most beautiful and distinctive wines in Champagne.”
The vines here yield only 15 to 20 hl/ha each year—one of the keys to the intensity on offer. The 2018 and 2019 wines also took in some Chardonnay from Fonnet (from 2020, upcoming vintages will also take in Chardonnay from the Vouette vineyard, which was previously planted to Pinot Noir but was replanted to Chardonnay a number of years ago).
Fermentation for this wine was wild and took place in used 500- and 600-litre barrels, with a small portion of fruit fermented and raised in Georgian amphora (see Textures). As with the Fidèle, this wine spent roughly 15 to 18 months in bottle on lees, before being disgorged by hand with zero dosage.
2015Pinot noirFrance376$245.00 As low as $220.50 -
Vilmart Coeur de Cuvee 201580% Chardonnay, 20% Pinot Noir from vines averaging 60 years old, the wine spends nearly 6 years on lees. Most importantly only the heart of the pressing is taken - 1400 litres instead of the usual 2100 litres, hence the name 'coeur de cuvee.'
The 2015 Brut Coeur de Cuvée is a pretty dense wine that belies its deceptively mid-weight structure. What surprises me most about the 2015 is how closed it is. In most years, especially warm years, Coeur de Cuvée is quite a bit more open and voluptuous, but the 2015 does not come across like that at all. Rather, it is super-classic in bearing, with tons of gravitas from the 60-year-old vines just waiting to emerge. There are none of the awkward herbal notes that penalize so many wines. Bright saline notes extend the finish effortlessly. The 2015 is a brilliant Coeur de Cuvée. ANTONIO GALLONI
2015chardonnay, Pinot noirFrance376$325.00 As low as $292.50 -
Vilmart Coeur de Cuvee 2016The 2016 Brut Coeur de Cuvée is an elegant, sensual Champagne. In other words, classic Vilmart. Crushed flowers, mint, chalk, slate, dried herbs and citrus peel are all beautifully delineated. Brisk acids wrap it all together in style. The 2016 needs a few years to be at its most expressive, as it is pretty reserved today. Even so, all the elements are impeccably put together. The barrels used here are one to three years old. Dosage is 7 grams per liter. Disgorged: September, 2022. (94+) ANTONIO GALLONI, Vinous
Notes of honeysuckle and lime blossoms, blood orange peel, anise and cardamom are a fragrant overtone heralding this fresh Champagne, which shows good tension and drive. The refined, chalky mousse is lacy in texture, buoying finely meshed flavors of ripe apricot and quince paste, raw almond, vanilla wafer and candied ginger. Ends with a long, mouthwatering finish. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Disgorged September 2022. Drink now through 2036. (95) WINE SPECTATOR2016chardonnay, Pinot noirFrance376$340.00 As low as $306.00 -
Carbon Brut NVMore product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
NVPinot Meunier, Pinot noirFrance376$430.00 As low as $387.00