Vanessa

9.3

This is the 2018 Marc Hébrart Brut ‘Special Club’ – a beautiful bottle of vintage bubbles hailing from a collection of premier and grand cru sites in the Marne and Montagne de Reims regions of Champagne, France.

When you see “Special Club” on the label of a bottle with this distinctive shape, you’re dealing with essentially a prestige cuvée of a grower-producer who’s a member of the “Club Trésors.”

Marc Hébrart joined the Club Trésors in 1985, which is an association of quality-minded grower-producers. Grower-producers operate differently than the big champagne houses (e.g., Veuve-Clicquot) in that they are smaller-scale vignerons who own the entire production process from the vineyard to the winery and cellar.

They have helped raise awareness and appreciation of artisanal champagne wines that speak to a sense of place and personality, unobscured by extensive, widespread blending.

To achieve the status of “Special Club” a wine must undergo a rigorous application process and meet minimum quality metrics culminating with in two blind tasting panels – the first tasting evaluates the base wine after the first fermentation; the second and final tasting occurs after a minimum of three years aging sur lie.

From our studies we’ve learned the 2018 vintage bore above-average fruit; the warm and dry summer paved the way for a riper expression in an otherwise marginal climate. This wine is made with 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay.

The bouquet has a medium (+) intensity of yellow and green apple, lemon zest, white peach, gardenia, almond biscotti, nougat, pastry, biscuit, and toast notes. The palate is creamy with vibrant acidity, adding lift, a fine-beaded, persistent mousse and long, elegant finish.

— 4 months ago

with Deked1

Irina Che

9.6

Fruity, straighfarward, light — 4 years ago

Ed Tostanoski

9.0

Surprisingly mature. Stewed fruits, tar, leather, barnyard, herbs. More expressive on the palate than the nose. A bit too much heat on the attack for me, and generally just not enough *barolo* in what is a pretty delicious wine but one that I could easily have pegged as e.g. southern Rhône. — 5 years ago

Ginny DeLacey

9.1

Burnt sugar, clove, orchid nose. Three distinct tasting notes. Notes of fig, well loved leather (e.g. a leather chair or a leather jacket), pomegranate. Opened up super well. Drank at The Tell Me Bar in New Orleans. — 2 years ago

with Joseph

Vanessa

9.4

Today we began with a visit to Billecart-Salmon, which has been family owned since 1818. They are 7 generations strong, producing between 2 and 2.5 million bottles per year. We received our informative tour from Jérôme Lafouge. 👏

He explained how Billecart-Salmon grows and manages many of the vines used to produce their wines; they also source grapes 🍇 from other growers, but otherwise own the production process from the pressing of the grapes on… the facilities are pristine and processes are executed meticulously.

Each wine is vinified by vineyard plot. A unique feature of Billecart-Salmon is its decision to have a slow, cool fermentation process for all of its wine - both those vinified in barrels and those in stainless steel tanks - a process that takes 6 weeks to complete.

Each winemaking decision is customized based upon the type and condition of the grapes, e.g., some undergo a malolactic fermentation (where tart malic acid is converted to soft, lactic acid) while others may not, some have a first fermentation in oak where as some are stainless steel, etc.

At the end of our tour we had the pleasure to taste a few beautiful wines (pictured here).

Our favorite was the 2002 Vintage Cuvée Nicolas François comprised of 60% Pinot Noir from Mareuil-Sur-Aÿ, Aÿ, Ambonnay, and Verzenay and 40% Chardonnay from Chouilly, Cramant, and Avize.

This wine was clearly developing lovely tertiary aromas. It also had great complexity retaining its primary and secondary notes. It was disgorged January of 2016, resting over a decade on the lees.

The aromas and palate had caramel, toffee, brioche, pie crust, toast, hazelnut, cream, melted butter, honey, ginger, candied lemon peel, quince, fig, and chamomile notes.

What an enjoyable experience and we loved meeting some new friends on the tour from Savannah, Georgia and Canada.

Santé mes amis 🥂🥂🥂 — 3 years ago

with Deked1

M. Christopher Roebuck

9.3

A spicy Pinot. White pepper, light red fruit, pine needles, oak, and a hint of motor oil. On the palate, it starts with a mild sweet/nuttiness. I suppose it's almond. It subsides with pronounced nuts, with low tannins..

Had this with baked cod. Nice pair .


UPDATE:
Wow, so Delectable is great. I just learned that I had this wine/vintage last year, and rated it 89+ points. Nevertheless, this disturbed me. I can say that the residual sugar isn't hitting me this time (maybe bottle age is helping) otherwise, some notes are redundant-- e.g., spice. Also, the wood has definitely mellowed and now I find it enjoyable.

93 points — 5 years ago

Barberry Garden

9.0

This is the case when I am not sure if the wine is too complex or just flabby. Buttered croissant with vanilla, chalk, apples, oxidative notes, and pickles. The acidity is as sharp as a well-cared knife (e.g. not mine). Which is nice, but it lacks volume. The flavour is full of pickled lemons. Good, but there are definitely better things in this price range. — 2 years ago

Barberry Garden

9.2

Complex and multilayered Savagning in a clean (e.g. no flor) style. Ouillé! Fried sunflower seeds, lemon peel, sesame, honey, used leaves of aged Bái Mǔ Dān. And what an incredible acidity despite its age. Almost perfect balance, long aftertaste, vigorous and flavourful. Great wine, yet hard to appreciate on a blind tasting. Something I would love to buy and taste again in five or ten years.

Tasted as part of Mixed Bag Vol. 1.
— 3 years ago

Vanessa

9.0

Happy National Red Wine Day!! 🙌🙌

We’re excited to celebrate with this Columbia Valley Syrah blend from the family-owned L’Ecole No. 41 winery in Washington State. 🇺🇸 @lecole41

Washington State is an important region for Syrah within the United States; however, this grape variety finds its true home in northern Rhône Valley, France. 🇫🇷

Syrah can fare well in warmer (e.g., Hunter Valley or Barossa Valley, Australia) and/or cooler (e.g., northern Rhône) climates. The climate has a pretty big impact on the style and expression of the resulting wine. Try tasting a Barossa Valley Shiraz next to a Syrah from Cornas, Rhône Valley and you may see (and taste) what I mean. 🤔 🧐 😆

The Columbia Valley region benefits from what’s called a “rain shadow” effect thanks to its location to the east of the Cascade mountains. 🏔 🏔The Cascades shield the region from the wet, intense weather coming in from the coast. As a result, the climate is warmer, drier, and sunnier, which supports the ripening process and stresses the vines, enhancing concentration of the fruit. 👍👍

This wine is a blend of 77% Syrah, 21% Grenache, and 2% Mourvedre varieties hailing from the vineyards of Candy Mountain, Stone Tree, Estate Seven Hills, Bacchus, and Summitville. It was fermented in stainless steel and was then racked in small, mostly neutral oak barrels over the course of 18 months.🍷🍷🍷

This wine is medium purple with heavy tearing; it’s full-bodied and jam-packed with ripe blueberry, black cherry, blackberry, and black currant notes, also black pepper, licorice, and leather. 💕💕We’re pairing it, initially, with a bite of Gruyère, Manchego, and fig, followed by grilled brats, portabellas, and zucchinis. It stands up well to the intensity of flavors. — 3 years ago

with Deked1

Darren Dittrich

9.3

Another terrific Tavel from a top Rhone producer. Limited availability in Texas. Approx 4-6 million bottles annually are produced by the entire Tavel AOC, which is less some single bottlings of Provence Rosé (e.g. Whispering Angel). 2018 is bit riper than our favorite 2014 release, but this could be due to the blend this year: 60% Grenache, 10% Cinsault, 10% Mourvedre, 10% Syrah, 5% Bourboulenc and 5% ClairetteABV 14.5% ABV, no oak used. Would be nice to try this producer's other two rosés. Red plum, bright cherry, white flowers, and garrigue. — 5 years ago

with K and James