The 1996 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne has been a stunning example of the vintage since day one and at age twenty it is still not fully at its apogee of peak maturity. I had not tasted a bottle in five years and in the ensuing time the wine has started to really come into its own, with secondary layers of maturity starting to color the stunning bouquet of pear, delicious apple, brioche, complex, limestone minerality, toasted almond, orange zest, gentle smokiness and a lovely topnote of fresh nutmeg. On the palate the wine is deep, pure and utterly seamless, with its full-bodied format vivid and focused. The core is rock solid, the soil signature is exemplary and the finish is endless, electric and very complex. The wine is just now entering its plateau of maturity, where it should cruise along for decades and decades. One of the finest vintages of Comtes de Champagne I have ever had the pleasure to taste. (Drink between 2016-2060)

Editor's Choice. Hugely toasty, nutty, mature, this is a delicious wine. The richness of the apple and cream flavors gives way to a finely balanced wine that keeps lightness in play with intense flavors. Drink now, it is in perfect condition.

There's richness to offset the vibrant structure of this 1996. Shows toast candied berry lemon zest and mineral flavors. Balanced ending with a chalky sensation around the gums. Still very youthful with a long life ahead. Drink now through 2018. –BS