The Wine Independent (94+)

Delamotte Blanc de Blancs 2014 is an assemblage of six Grand Cru terroir that was disgorged October 2022 and finished with a seven gram per liter dosage. Light burnished gold with a pinpoint, vibrant bead, the 2014 flaunts alluring aromas of lemon confit, poached yellow apple, white flowers, and brioche with hints of white pepper. Medium-bodied with a textured, open-knit palate of plush orchard fruit and racy acid vibrancy, it has a long, mineral finish.

Vinous (91)

The 2011 Brut Amour de Deutz is a gorgeous Champagne, especially for the year. Lemon confit, tangerine oil, brioche and tropical accents give the 2011 its extroverted personality. I would prefer to drink the 2011 sooner rather than later, just in case the vegetal notes typical of the year emerge, but today it is quite expressive. All the elements are nicely balanced in this rather slender vintage Champagne.

Vinous (94)

The 2000 Dom Pérignon is a gorgeous wine to drink now, as it is already showing quite a bit of aromatic and flavor complexity. Although the 2000 doesn’t have the multi-dimensional personality or structure of the very best DPs, it does offer tremendous drinking pleasure today. Hints of pastry, baked apple and mint add nuance, with a touch of reduction that lends an added kick of freshness. Ultimately, the 2000 is a very drinkable and delicious Dom Pérignon.

Falstaff (100)

Light golden yellow, silver reflections, fine, persistent mousse. Touches of brioche underneath nuances of yellow tropical fruit, notes of peach and pineapple, citrus zest, discreet blossom honey, also toasted nut nuances and floral-mineral notes. Complex, pleasant fruit expression, juicy fruit notes, savoury nuances, taut acidity, rich but with finesse and so perfectly balanced, salty-smoky finish. Has super length and great development potential, world class.

Falstaff (100)

Light golden yellow, silver reflections, fine, persistent mousse. Touches of brioche underneath nuances of yellow tropical fruit, notes of peach and pineapple, citrus zest, discreet blossom honey, also toasted nut nuances and floral-mineral notes. Complex, pleasant fruit expression, juicy fruit notes, savoury nuances, taut acidity, rich but with finesse and so perfectly balanced, salty-smoky finish. Has super length and great development potential, world class.

Wine Advocate - Robert Parker (96)

The 2002 Dom Perignon is at first intensely floral, with perfumed jasmine that dominates the bouquet. With time in the glass the wine gains richness as the flavors turn decidedly riper and almost tropical. Apricots, passion fruit and peaches emerge from this flashy, opulent Dom Perignon. The wine's volume makes it approachable today, but readers in search of more complexity will want to cellar this for at least a few years to allow for some of the baby fat to drop off.

Vinous (98)

The 2008 Dom Pérignon is a huge, powerful Champagne and also clearly one of the wines of the vintage. This is one of the most reticent bottles I have tasted. So much so that I am thinking about holding off opening any more bottles! The 2008 has always offered a striking interplay of fruit and structure. Today, the richness of the fruit is especially evident. Readers who own the 2008 should be thrilled, but patience is a must.

One of the top expressions from 2012 was the imperious Dom Pérignon awarded a huge 98 points by Yohan Castaing alongside 97 points, courtesy of Antonio Galloni (Vinous) and 96+ points from William Kelley (Wine Advocate).

 

An outing which “incarnates the very essence of Dom Pérignon with such a concentrated degree of intensity”, this blend of 51% Pinot Noir and 49% Chardonnay is a great pick right now for both superb drinking in a number of years' time and more immediate appreciation given the current explosive market for Champagne.

James Suckling (99)

This shows incredible depth of fruit with strawberry, cherry and phenolics. Full-bodied and layered with an incredible, three-dimensional element to the wine. This is so transparent and dynamic with dark fruit, yet it remains vivid and bright. Refined and precise, it goes on and on. Really savory, fresh and incredibly pinot-noir-like. What a wine. 13 years of maturation in the bottle. So drinkable now, but it will age for many years ahead.

James Suckling (98)

A firm and vivid Champagne with a precise, focused palate. Full-bodied and dry. It’s very layered and bright with light pineapple, peach, praline, cooked-apple and stone aromas and flavors. It’s very subtle and focused at the end. Integrated with richness and high acidity. Good depth. Reminds me of the 1995. Very clean. Solid. Lovely to drink already, but will age nicely.

Vinous (97+)

The 2006 Dom Pérignon Rosé is every bit as captivating as it was last year, maybe even more so. At times powerful, but in other moments finessed, the 2006 constantly changes in the glass, revealing a different shade of its personality with every taste. Perhaps most importantly, the 2006 seems to have gained a level of precision and pure sophistication it did not show last year, when it was quite a bit less put together. Back then, the 2006 was a wine of tremendous potential; today that potential is starting to be realized. Quite simply, the 2006 Dom Pérignon Rosé is a magical Champagne. Don’t miss it.

Wine Spectator (94)

A vinous version, featuring a delicate mousse and mouthwatering acidity, this is reminiscent of aged white Burgundy, with hints of toasted hazelnut, coffee liqueur and straw accenting baked cherry, mineral and crystalized honey flavors. Smoke and saline notes linger on the finish. Disgorged October 2017. Drink now through 2027. 100 cases imported.

Wine Advocate (99)

Broad and powerful, Egly's 2012 Brut Grand Cru Millésime is a serious, vinous Champagne somewhat reminiscent of his brilliant 2002. Delivering complex aromas of pear, honeycomb, orange oil, sweet stone fruits, praline and freshly baked bread, it's full-bodied, deep and muscular, with a multidimensional core of fruit, racy acids and a long, resonant finish. Complex and compelling, readers will have a hard time choosing between the power and texture of 2012 and the quintessentially elegant, seamless 2013. Both are benchmarks for what contemporary Champagne can achieve.

Matthew Jukes (19.5)

“It must be said that tastings take all shapes and forms, but tasting this wine was the single most extraordinary event of the year. I have written up a couple of Henri Giraud Champagnes in the last twelve months, and they are all masterpieces, but this wine takes the biscuit. As always, the Argonne forest plays a leading role in this wine’s makeup. Giraud uses new Argonne oak, lots of it, and great Aÿ fruit in perfect harmony to make astonishingly impactful wines. But this rosé uses a ‘few liters of extraordinary Aÿ Grand Cru Rouge’ to transform this white wine into a rosé, and the result is game-changing. I tasted this wine at Hawksmoor Seven Dials before a ‘Monday Night £5 corkage’ dinner. I then popped a stopper in it and brought it out during the main course, after a couple of stellar white Burgundies and before a Vieux Château Certan, a Grange and a couple of other impressive reds. Having already road-tested 2013 Argonne at The Clove Club earlier in the year and finding it one of the most gastronomically-skilled wines on the planet, I was confident that this insanely beautiful rosé would step up to the mark. And boy, it did not disappoint. But, as well as it romancing Hawksmoor’s finest steaks, I was more interested in the impression this wine made on the assembled wine aficionados. While I am familiar with the Henri Giraud legend, the other five fellows around the table were not. This meant they could comment on the flavour without getting hooked up in the impeccable presentation and astronomic price tag. We all agreed that this statesmanlike wine was like nothing we had ever tasted before. One of our brigade was so baffled and befuddled that he admitted defeat early on. He loved the flavour but, not surprisingly, couldn’t find a place to file it in his wine memory, so he bowed out. The other four chaps were spellbound, carving out ever more fantastical descriptors and admiration for this unique wine. There is no doubt that the artistry and individualism of the Henri Giraud range are shocking to many and, in some cases, polarising, but if you crave Champagnes of the very highest standards with tremendous depth of fruit and an all-encompassing and otherworldly presence on the palate, you must taste these wines. 2011 Argonne Rosé hails from one of the world’s most famous villages and is embellished with some of the most revered oak on earth. The fact that it is a sparkling wine is a detail, a mere delivery mechanism, a vector of flavour. It is an elite messenger of the most elemental vine and wood flavours in drinkable form, and it blows my mind.

James Suckling (97)

An edgy, lively Champagne with bread dough, dried apples and apricots. Toffee with caramel with a lifted sense. Light oxidation with some nuts and saltiness. Full-bodied and very layered with so much going on. Creme brulee, pie crust and zingy acidity. Minty and lively. Strawberries and oranges coming through. This is 80% pinot noir and 20% chardonnay, all fermented in wood, 60% new. Drink now.

Jancis Robinson (17.5)

Very pale gold, plenty of lively mousse on pouring. Intense, rich and inviting toasty aroma, deep and yeasty with ripe lemon and clementine freshness of fruit. Terrific combination of intensity and freshness on the palate, the marked autolytic character giving an impression of sweetness even though it tastes dry. Toasty on the palate and there's still lovely citrus fruit at the core. Fine mousse, vibrant freshness through the deep and long flavours. (JH)

Vinous (96)

The Non-Vintage Cuve 38 from Henriot is another exceptionally rare champagne. Released only in magnum, it was tricky trying to check the disgorgement date, but the cork was branded “0616” inferring June 2016. This réserve perpetuelle, which is to say that it is constantly topped up like a solera, comes from fruit originating from Avize, Le Mesnil-Sur-Oger, Oger and Chouilly. It is named, perhaps a tad unimaginatively, after the tank in which it ages and limited to 1,000 magnums. Very fresh and energetic on the nose, there are hints of citrus lemon and petrichor - vibrant and penetrating. The palate is likewise surfeit with energy and tension, perfect acidity with a very harmonious and slightly minty, spicy finish. Surprisingly youthful, you would not guess that it is a blend of mature reserves.

Vinous (100)

The 2008 Extra-Brut Millesime Grand Cru is outrageous. Deep, powerful and explosive, the 2008 possesses tremendous vertical depth. There is a feeling of dimension here that is truly breathtaking. Readers will find a Champagne that marries Selosse’s trademark volume and texture with all of the energy of this great vintage. Lemon confit, dried flowers, mint, chamomile, pear, ginger and light hazelnut notes linger. Time in the glass really helps bring out the elegance and freshness here. I look forward to tasting and drinking the 2008 Selosse in the coming years next to the other great Champagnes of this important vintage in what will surely be a hedonistic, off the charts experience! Needless to say, readers who can latch on to a few bottles should not hesitate. Disgorged: January 16, 2020.

As the epitome of luxury, the Joseph Perrier Royale Cuvee Rose 1000 NV captivates with its blend of sophistication and elegance. This extraordinary cuvée hails from Chalons-en-Champagne, honing its taste under the mastery of Joseph Perrier, a revered traditionalist of Champagne making. Sumptuously made with a blend of 20% Chardonnay, 60% Pinot Noir and 20% Meunier, matured in the cellars for 3 to 4 years, it boasts a sublime complexity.

Vibrant notes of ripe red berries, acute savoury undertones and a lively mineral edge are enveloped within its intricate profile. This spirited wine not only emanates delicacy and finesse but also expresses a rich, full-bodied structure. A testament to the craftsmanship of the House of Joseph Perrier, the Royale Cuvee Rose 1000 NV bestows an unforgettable gastronomic journey, beautifully encapsulating the exquisite allure of true Champagne.

Wine Spectator (98)

A profound wine of great depth and complexity. Its detailed flavors range from citrus and ginger to whole grain bread and woodsy richness, with accents of honey and nuts. Retains its focus thanks to a vibrant structure, all the time carrying its weight with authority and grace. Fine, smoky finish. Drink now through 2020. 15017000 cases imported.

Vinous (99+)

Light gold. Remarkably perfumed nose projects an exotic bouquet of deep, leesy yellow fruit, minerals, honeycomb, smoked meat and flowers, with Asian spices building expanding in the glass. Almost painfully concentrated, offering a surreal parade of orchard and pit fruits, smoked meat, toasted brioche and marrow braced by intensely salty, stunningly incisive minerality. Imagine a Frankenstein's monster of Chablis Le Clos and Clos Ste. Hune-but one with perfect balance, of course-and you get an idea of what I found in my bottle. The energetic, stony character builds exponentially on the finish, which didn't seem to, well, finish. The best analogy I can come up with for the intensity, focus and clarity of this Champagne is liquefied barbed wire. Utterly hallucinatory and one of the most amazing wines I've ever been fortunate enough to drink. At the risk of sounding completely out of touch with reality, this is a value.

James Suckling (100)

The much-anticipated 2002 has impeccable detail and depth with a lot of chalky, stony and flinty elements on the nose as well as a very fresh edge. The nose is very complex and wound up tight but presents itself as very integrated and compressed. There are aromas of lemon rind, lime juice and a lime custard all at once, complemented in turn by a super-restrained hazelnut-like edge. Undertones of brown mushrooms, chalky minerals and lemon leaf. The palate has a core of sizzlingly intense, concentrated chardonnay framed whitin a powerful phenolic structure that will underpin the future of this Champagne. Flawlessly fresh and as perfect as it gets. Give this time as it needs to settle: best from 2020 and then for another decade beyond.

Jancis Robinson (19)

ID 113015. Disgorged winter 2012-13. 46% Pinot Noir, 29% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Meunier. Named ‘Vivacious Radiance’ at Krug. A truly unique year with particularly challenging circumstances. The first harvest was on 23 August, the earliest since 1822. Pale gold. Pungent nose. Very tight. Hint of putty on the nose. Opens out on the palate. Masses to chew on. Real concentration. Perfect for drinking now. Dry but complete. Intellectual and great balance. Very impressive.