Christmas Bubbles

Incredible value for a blanc de noirs (100% Pinot Noir) grower Champagne from the grand cru vineyards of Bouzy. It shows gorgeous aromas of stone fruit, citrus and strawberry, with complex brioche nuances, remarkable balance, ongoing elegance and a rich, refined, persistent finish. DECANTER

Release after release, year after year, I have always marvelled at the lemon blossom freshness that Clouet manages to capture in pinot noir from two of Champagne's most powerful terroirs.  Here it is again, in a captivating interplay of fleshy mirabelle plums, white peaches, crunchy golden delicious apples, and even a hint of pepper.  Wild honey and mixed spice join the maelstrom along the way, gliding obediently into a well-defined finish of soft minerality and integrated dosage.  TYSON STELZER, The Champagne Guide

The NV Brut Grande Reserve offers up layers of mineral-infused red fruits on a silky, mid-weight frame, with gorgeous length and a refined, subtle mousse. This impeccable, elegant wine shows terrific overall balance as well as complexity. I loved it. ANTONIO GALLONI

The effusive nose of candied citrus, ripe pear and brioche pulls you into this fresh and creamy champagne that hits all the pleasure buttons for a non-vintage Brut. Then the chalky freshness at the finish pulls you back for another sip. Excellent balance! 100% pinot noir. JAMES SUCKLING

The NV Brut Grand Réserve Grand Cru is a pure Pinot Noir from Bouzy. It's pure, fresh, fine and aromatic on the nose and round and delicate on the palate. The fruit-intense finish is chalky-mineral and stimulatingly fresh in its salty finesse and elegant yeastiness. Nice lemon juice flavors give an extra kick of refreshment. This is a picture-book NV Brut. STEPHAN REINHARDT, Wine Advocate

The latest release of André Clouet's NV Brut Grand Réserve Grand Cru is showing well, exhibiting a nicely integrated bouquet of red apple, ripe citrus fruit, honeycomb and blanched almonds, followed by a medium to full-bodied, enveloping palate with a fine mousse, ripe but racy acids and an elegant, understated profile, concluding with a well-defined finish. This is a stylish, harmonious wine WILLIAM KELLEY

Clouet'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 RAYNOLDS

 

Jean-Francois Clouet's zero-dosage ideal is realised with magnificent clarity here.  Such is the concentration and richness of his pinot noir that it has absolutely no need for any sweetness.  The bouquet is delightfully fresh, lifted, pure and expressive, with lemon zest, yellow mirabelle plums and red apple fruits.  The palate follows impeccably, showcasing the concentration of Bouzy with exceptional purity and focus.  Its barrel work blends impeccably contributing nuances of nougat, brioche and honey.  Succulent yellow summer fruits pull seamlessly into a crunchy finish of red apple and lemon zest, concluding long and refined, with refreshingly taut acidity and soft, chalky minerality.  Classic Bouzy of the finest order. TYSON STELZER, The Champagne Guide

Light yellow-gold. A highly aromatic nose displays lemon zest, fig, pear and ginger, with a bright mineral overtone. Tangy and precise, offering a complex blend of lime, white flowers, quinine and dusty minerals. Juicy, tightly focused Champagne, with nervy acidity adding cut to a long, sappy finish. This wine reminded me a lot of an old-school Chablis. JOSH RAYNOLDS

The NV Brut Nature Silver is naturally a very focused, driven wine given the no-dosage style. This shows wonderful nuance and depth all the way through to the long finish, with bright aromas and flavors but less of the toastiness than some of the house's other wines. The mousse and finish are both utterly impeccable in their elegance. ANTONIO GALLONI

Jean-Francois describes pinot noir as entering a phase he dubs 'The Whirlwind' in its sixth year of maturation. The rest of his inspiration is impossible to put into words, but clicking on 'Cuvee Design Specification' on his website will put you on the right trajectory. For the exuberance of Bouzy pinot noir and not inconsiderable age, the freshness packed into this cuvee is something to behold. Grapefruit tang meets crunchy red apple fruit, contrasting the generosity and spice of the village and the tension of zero dosage. Get on board. Tyson Stelzer

Aromas of Italian croissant, cooked apple and tarte tatin. Medium-bodied with a roundness and freshness. Steely. Floats on the palate like you are in the clouds. (96) JAMES SUCKLING

It shines in this blend with clarity, precision and excellent freshness of apple, pear, grapefruit and lemon. All the theatrics of his masterful reserve solera build out a backdrop layered with enticing brioche and mixed spice. Its fruit presence contrasts a well-poised malic acid line, with the magnificent frothing salt mineral structure of Le Mesnil singing loud and clear… TYSON STELZER, The Champagne Guide

A precise, crystalline wine, the NV Brut Cuvée de Réserve is the perfect wine with which to explore the Péters Champagnes. Lemon peel white, flowers and slate are super-expressive throughout in a Champagne that impresses with its finely-sculpted personality and energy. The Cuvée de Réserve is quite powerful, but never heavy. Slightly tropical overtones add the final shades of nuance. It remains one of the best values in artisan Champagne. ANTONIO GALLONI

A complex, reliable Champagne that would show well in all occasions thanks to its freshness and class. Drawing on all three grapes (chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier), this has a complex grilled-nut and autolysis character overlayed across red berries and citrus fruits. Definitely a lot of reserve wine character here. The palate delivers lemons, grapefruit, peaches and mangoes in a refreshingly pure, fleshy style. The bright acidity, handy balance and tannins smoothly frame the finish JAMES SUCKLING

One of the great signatures of the region, its calligraphy flowing with elegance, panache and balance, the last reflected in the equal proportions of the three great varieties of Champagne. A flamboyant straw gold lustre, and an immediately seductive nose, encyclopaedic in its indulgence. Nougat, praline, white pepper, spice and nectarine were first to the page for this taster, but there is much more behind that, the sugar discrete yet edifying, the long yeast ageing responsible for a happy and altogether luminous marriage of power and finesse. Consistently excellent. SIMON FIELD MW, Decanter

the wine wafts from the glass with an alluring bouquet of green apple, brioche, pastry cream and buttered toast. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, impressively layered and complete, with a crisp but fleshy core of fruit, a youthfully frothy mousse and bright acids, concluding with a delicately chalky finish. This is one of the very finest—as well as among the most consistent—non-vintage brut bottlings from any of the Grandes Marques, and comes very warmly recommended. While it will be drinkable on release, it will reward some bottle age too. WILLIAM KELEY

Equal parts Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Meunier. It pours a bright silver straw hue and is fresh on opening, with a floral perfume of white flowers, fresh pear, and fresh almond. Medium-bodied, it’s attractive and approachable, with juicy peach fruit that fills the palate, although it stays refined, with a pinpoint mousse and a clean finish. It is a lovely entry to the range to enjoy now or over the next 6-8 years, and I love this as an aperitif style. JEB DUNNUCK

Light, bright orange. Intensely perfumed scents of raspberry, orange zest, white flowers and chalky minerals.  Juicy and precise in the mouth, offering vibrant red berry and blood orange flavors and a complicating hint of brioche.  The floral quality comes back strong on the very long, incisive finish, which features a subtle anise quality and smoky minerality. JOSH RAYNOLDS, Vinous Media

The NV Brut Cuvée Ste.-Anne (base 2022) is terrific. I tasted it in the middle of the range after many of the single-vineyard Champagnes, but the wine did not suffer at all from its placement. If anything, this tasting reinforced my long-held view that the Ste.-Anne is one of the very finest grower Champagnes in its price range. This release, based on 2022, is brisk and energetic to its core. Citrus, white pepper, chalk and floral top notes are finely cut. This is an especially brisk edition of the Ste.-Anne. Chardonnay planted on chalk increasingly plays a leading role in this bottling. Superb. Dosage is 2.5 grams per liter. Disgorged: October 2024. ANTONIO GALLONI

The work that Alex Chartogne has done with his single-vineyards benefits also cuvée Sainte Anne, which delivers fantastic value for money year in and out. This 2022 based blend is showing deliciously drinkable with crystalline fruitiness and impeccable energy. Fresh, vibrant and transparent, finishing on a saline zest. ESSI AVELLAN MW

TYSON STELZER"S SPARKLING WINE OF THE YEAR UNDER $25

The same blend that has wone a beloved place among the most legendary of Australia's bargain sparkling reds. All the plush, spicy mulberry and blackberry fruits of Langhorne Creek are enveloped into its fold, laced with pepper and a wonderful greengage tang.
Impeccably managed, fine tannins, lively acidity and just the right level of dosage unite harmoniously on a finish of line, length and integrity completely unexpected at this price.
It's a downright delicious drink - and begs the question of why there aren't more sparkling red made in Langhorne Creek. TYSON STELZER

Based in Rully and presided over by third-generation winemaker-proprietor Philippe Chautard, Maison Louis Picamelot produces some of the best sparkling wines in Burgundy. Forever in Champagne's shadow, few take Crémant de Bourgogne seriously. But what this Maison is doing is already impressive and well worth open-minded consumers' attention. WILLIAM KELLEY, Wine Advocate

Makes you smile this wine. There's a generosity of aromatic that leads you through baked pastry, fresh cut stonefruits and then an invogorating punch of crushed stone minerality puffs into view. It's kind of like a Champagne letting it's hair down on the palate as well, genrosity of well-defined fruit is edged with minerality and oyster shell while the fine bead cinches and tucks in the effusive edges. Its got enough in it for the serious-minded fizz drinker but is also playful and generous enough to keep you pulling it out of the fridge for pretth much any pcassion. MICHAEL MCNAMARA

This thing hits it out of the park in terms of delivering quality and value. It doesn’t hold back with packing in the flavour either. The fruit is present and accounted for, with a nice lick of minerality and some back end punch, but what is really striking is the yeasty, brioche, burnt toast mealy characters that immediately greet you as you take your first sniff. It has all the bells and whistles. As a Champagne nerd I love to see that in the wine, as distinctly different to my fetish for Grower Bubbles, give me some of that expressively yeasty goodness. Substantial length here too. This will be one hell of a crowd pleaser. ROSCOE

Siren song aromatics of strawberries and cream, a little tarragon and mineral and maybe a little vanilla lead you head first into the glass. So enticing and welcoming and it continues on the palate with the same ebullient fruit held within a soft and pillowy mousse creating an almost sensual decadent impression. Alongside that though is real energy and vigour elevating the fruit and spice (and a little sage) element in the wine. It's so beuatiuflly put together this wine and would leave a number of it's Champagne cousins for dead and ashamed of their pricing. Gorgeous sparkling. MICHAEL MCNAMARA   


One of the crew called this “soft and mellow” I can see where that comes from, it certainly has a lovely mouth filling quality and all those billowing soft bubbles provide such a sensual cushioning effect, but the wine lacks nothing for racy energy either. I don't think its soft, I think it's lush!
Also, I love the fine chalkiness that punctuates the fruit. Like its BdB sibling the lights are flashing and the sirens are cranked up, they don’t shy away from the winemaking and let’s be honest, that’s what makes Champa… sparkling wines like this so exciting. Even with that distinct autolytic creaminess the wines overall impression is one of flirtatious elegance. It is my pick of the two, but only just, and it pips its sibling on refinement if not substance. ROSCOE

Damien Pinon is the third generation of his family to naturally farm Chenin Blanc in the chalky soils of Vernou-sur-Brenne in the appellation of Vouvray. His vines are old, creating lush, expressive white wines.

Ah Tuffo! This wine seems to never fail us. Not only is it a wonderful example of classic Vouvray it always delivers that little x-factor and bit of pizzaz we like. That lovely clay/waxed citrus and quince fruit comes at you straight off-the-bat with that slaty chalky thin that chenin does in the Loire so well. Some apple and pear drop generosity on the palate is cut by crunchy acidity and a little hit of phenolic grip that stick all those beautiful flavours to your mouth. There is a little floral flourish in the middle and spritz of mixed sweet spice on the finish. A cracker!