The flagship cuvée of Delamotte, the only house to offer a blend of the six crus of the Côte des Blancs. The 2018 vintage strikes a very solid balance between the generosity of this sunny vintage and the core terroirs...

95+ The bright yellow 2021 Champagne Premier Cru Special Club Brut originates from the Grand Crus of Louvois, Chouilly, and their home base of Mareuil-sur-Ay, which features vines over 50 years old. Aged in stainless...

The 2018 Champagne Starck Brut Nature exhibits notes of lemon and citrus oils, but the stone fruit has a silkiness, not the tannic side you sometimes see. It also has hints of savory toast, but it remains very elegant...

Mostly grand cru as well as 30% from Villers-Marmery and Trepail, I love the nose of the 2016 Champagne Millesime Brut, which is very pretty and offers lots of pleasure and decadence. It has more Chardonnay character at...

A composed, deeply refined nose unfolds with Granny Smith apple, macadamia and saline patisserie, accented by violet. The palate is poised and authoritative, its fine, persistent perlage carrying rose petal, fresh almond...

The 2016 Champagne Cristal is chalky and pristine, with a crystalline nature and notes of white peach, fresh citrus blossoms, and bright salinity. Tasted for the first time last year, it captures a precise and focused...

(95+ points) One of the greatest hits from Rare Champagne, the 2012 Rare Millésime is produced from fruit harvested between September 10 and 26. Disgorged in November 2023 with a dosage of eight grams per liter, it is a...

The same blend as the Blanc but including 5% red wine from their La Côte aux Enfants parcel, the 2015 Champagne La Grande Année Brut Rosé is a lovely wine on the nose, and I think I might like it more than the Blanc in...

A vibrant, graceful Champagne that shows fine definition and integration, with a mouthwatering frame of acidity. The persistent, lacy mousse is enmeshed with an appealing range of ripe and juicy black cherry and...

Dom Ruinart 2013 is a blanc de blancs of lithe, satin-smooth beauty already upon release, very much built around the reserved, cool energy of the 2013 vintage. This cuvée's new aromatic range, amplified since the 2010...

Hints of brioche and lemon meringue pie enrich the flavors of cassis and apricot fruit, pickled ginger, smoke and roasted hazelnut in this classy Champagne, backed by vibrant acidity. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot...

Crafted around the 2018 vintage, the NV Champagne Le Sous Bois is a blend of 33% Meunier, 39% Chardonnay, and the remainder Pinot Noir, with 37% reserve wine, the oldest part from 2006. A copper straw color, entirely...

(91+ points) Produced on the foundation of the 2020 harvest and complemented by 30% reserve wines, Charles Heidsieck’s NV Blanc de Blancs (laid in chalk cellars in 2021) was disgorged at the end of 2023 with a dosage of...

A textbook blanc de blancs Champagne, with a rich waft of toasted hazelnut on the nose, plus a voluptuous range of poached apricot, quince paste, tangerine peel and brioche notes that expand on the finely detailed mousse...

Born of a long yet cold and damp growing season that yielded many wines from grapes harvested at the threshold of ripeness, the 2007 Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne is a considerable success and has evolved little...

(90+ points) Tasted from magnum, Piper-Heidsieck's 2018 Vintage opens with an aromatic medley of pear, freshly baked bread, orange zest and dried apricot mingling with white peach, wheat toast and a subtle trace of smoky...

An elegant Champagne that glides across the palate on its satiny mousse, integrating a chalky underpinning and pleasing range of white cherry, grainy pear, toasted almond, vanilla wafer, and pretty verbena and ginger...

The 2019 Brut Rosé is a pretty rich, heady wine from Pol Roger, largely because of the inclusion of 18% still red wine in the blend. This rich, vinous Rosé packs a pretty substantial punch. Sweet red cherry, rose petal...

A composed, deeply refined nose unfolds with Granny Smith apple, macadamia and saline patisserie, accented by violet. The palate is poised and authoritative, its fine, persistent perlage carrying rose petal, fresh almond...

2015 is the current release of Salon as the team is quietly waiting for the very promising 2014 to be ready. It is a surprisingly concentrated yet open Salon, already pale gold in the glass. The ripe nose – on the poire...

A late release of this excellent vintage. Pretty aromas of vanilla, sweet croissants and pineapple tart follow through to a full body with lots of fruit and character. Bread-dough and pie-crust undertones in the finish...

(94+ points) Disgorged in January 2024 with a dosage of 4.4 grams per liter, the 2013 Rosé Elisabeth Salmon emerges from this cool, late-ripening vintage as a rather giving, generous rendition. It unfurls in the glass...

Made even less regularly than the L’Ermitage Brut (the last vintage was 2015), the outstanding 2019 Brut Rose L'Ermitage spent five years on the yeast. It exudes fresh-picked strawberries and summer peach along a...

I thought the 2012s would be a good place to start this lunch, as the wines have always been quite open and seductive. That is very much the case today. The 2012 Cristal is quite delicate and floral, with hints of pear...

The 2007 Brut Cuvée Nicolas François continues to show beautifully, wafting from the glass with scents of sweet orchard fruit, citrus oil, clear honey, white flowers, buttery pastry and warm biscuits. Medium to...

The 2012 Brut Rosé Cuvée Elisabeth Salmon is a very sexy Champagne, but it is also quite reserved, especially within the context of the year. Crushed rose petal, kirsch, white pepper, slate and mint are all beautifully...

Rich and decadent nose that shows dried apricots, dried lemons and pie crust. Caramel and sweet hazelnuts, too. Refined bubbles, a creamy texture and a crisp and lively finish. Drink or hold.

The 2008 Cristal is just fabulous. Chiseled and nuanced to the core, the 2008 possesses dazzling intensity from start to finish. Crushed rocks, lemon peel, graphite, mint, lime, chalk and white flowers all race across the...

One of my wines of the tasting, this has terrific tension, elegance and completeness from start to the persistently long finish. It has super-refined definition with minerals, nougat, cream, toast and sweet white pear...

Disgorged in 2017 with a dosage of nine grams per liter, the 2002 Rare Millésime continues to drink superbly, unfurling in the glass with a complex bouquet of tropical fruit, buttered toast, roasted cacao beans...