'13 Billecart-Salmon "Extra Brut" Champagne, Mareuil-sur-Ay - (750ml)
This wine spends 89 months on the lees, which is much more time than the competitors. In this case, they are sourcing fruit from some of the famed Côte des Blancs Grand Cru villages. 62% of the blend is made of Pinot Noir, with 24 % Chardonnay and 14% Pinot Meunier all fermented in stainless steel tanks. This allows for that crystalline, clean, and fresh profile. Instead of trying to cover up flaws like some, they are only allowing a dosage of 3 g/l. This means they are very proud of their fruit and don’t need to “doctor it up”.
Here’s what Alison Napjus, writer for the Wine Spectator, thought about this bottling, “A vibrant Champagne, finely balanced and lacy in texture, serving as an elegant canvas for layered flavors of yellow peach, chopped almond, cherry, toast point and preserved lemon. Minerally smoke, chalk and spice notes play on the finish. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Disgorged November 2021. Drink now through 2030.”
94 points, Wine Spectator
This wine spends 89 months on the lees, which is much more time than the competitors. In this case, they are sourcing fruit from some of the famed Côte des Blancs Grand Cru villages. 62% of the blend is made of Pinot Noir, with 24 % Chardonnay and 14% Pinot Meunier all fermented in stainless steel tanks. This allows for that crystalline, clean, and fresh profile. Instead of trying to cover up flaws like some, they are only allowing a dosage of 3 g/l. This means they are very proud of their fruit and don’t need to “doctor it up”.
Here’s what Alison Napjus, writer for the Wine Spectator, thought about this bottling, “A vibrant Champagne, finely balanced and lacy in texture, serving as an elegant canvas for layered flavors of yellow peach, chopped almond, cherry, toast point and preserved lemon. Minerally smoke, chalk and spice notes play on the finish. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Disgorged November 2021. Drink now through 2030.”
94 points, Wine Spectator
This wine spends 89 months on the lees, which is much more time than the competitors. In this case, they are sourcing fruit from some of the famed Côte des Blancs Grand Cru villages. 62% of the blend is made of Pinot Noir, with 24 % Chardonnay and 14% Pinot Meunier all fermented in stainless steel tanks. This allows for that crystalline, clean, and fresh profile. Instead of trying to cover up flaws like some, they are only allowing a dosage of 3 g/l. This means they are very proud of their fruit and don’t need to “doctor it up”.
Here’s what Alison Napjus, writer for the Wine Spectator, thought about this bottling, “A vibrant Champagne, finely balanced and lacy in texture, serving as an elegant canvas for layered flavors of yellow peach, chopped almond, cherry, toast point and preserved lemon. Minerally smoke, chalk and spice notes play on the finish. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Disgorged November 2021. Drink now through 2030.”
94 points, Wine Spectator