Adriana Fabbro

9.5

There are outstanding wines and then there are really really good wines that just get you: for me, Aurelian Laherte gets me every time from his entry level wines to his tete de cuvées. Fuck it, why do I need a preface—this is an outstanding wine, with both low and high brow appeal.

There’s a nostalgic & almost primal appeal that reminds me of 90’s strawberry / cherry jello layered mousses. Perhaps because this is one of the most fruit forward champagnes out there (tart cherry, strawberry, rhubarb, cranberry, pomegranate) as a blend of red wine, saignee meunière and direct press meunière. The wine is enriched by decadent layers of vanilla and pastry (no hate for the genius use of oak barrels here). The color, the packaging, the generous nose — everything about it is very easy and enjoyable if a little bit confected—hedonistic, yet complete & complex.

This wine treads the line between red wine and champagne offering the best of both worlds. On the one hand, you get fascinating depth and richness with a dosage of only 2.5g/l —fruit is prominent, flavors are concentrated but the acid delivers an unbuffered punch. The vibrancy and character of the Laherte Freres wines across the spectrum and vintages continues to impress me.

Please don’t spread the word though as these are still some of the most affordable grower champagnes out there…

— 2 years ago

K J

9.9

Another winner from Aurelian at frenchie. Big bold and delicious. — 8 years ago

Chris Sebastiani

9.1

Aurelian did not disappoint. Decent fruity body with an even finish. Should have laid it down longer but still not bad. — 9 years ago

K J

9.5

From Aurelian at Frenchie Deep fruit and pepper. One of the more interesting cdp — 2 years ago

K J

9.6

From Aurelian Frenchie. Smokey. Great finish. — 7 years ago

Josh Graham

9.0

Christmas in a bottle! — 7 years ago

K J

9.8

Recommended by Aurelian the sommelier from frenchie. Great fruit and tannins. Great balance. — 8 years ago

Matthew Cohen

9.2

Aurelian pinheiro st Joseph 2017.

Pretty closed. I’d wait. Or decant at least 45 minutes.

Nose pencil shavings. Some blueberry flower. Super closed mostly

Palate is yummy blueberry juice. Good juiciness. Blueberry licorice in the finish.

Will follow as it opens.

——

Ok 45 minutes in this is getting interesting. Some spice is rounding this out. Blueberry flower internal aromatics. Getting yummalicious. Has good density. Nice palate cling.

Bought from fass selections. — 4 years ago

Aaron Tan

9.0

At first I didn't realise this had no dosage. Perfectly balanced non-dosé - perhaps the partial malo helped toned down the acidity, or maybe some rs in the base/ex-tirage wine. Chalky undertones (perfect expression of terrior imo), nice autolytic characters (2 years in bottle), apple, grapefruit, lemon, honey, and a touch of stinky funk. Really quite a delicious bdb.

Note: Laherte Frères. Grower champagne from Coteaux Sud d'Épernay (slopes to the south of Épernay). Young winemaker, Aurelian Laherte, joining family estate. Biodynamically farmed, wild yeast ferments, 80% of cuvees fermented in old oak (ex-Ben Leroux and Liger-Belair). Focus on terrior. — 7 years ago

K J

9.8

Aurelian from Frenchie pulled special for me. April 2026. Wonderful. Tannins. Balance. Near perfect. — 8 years ago