Vanessa

9.5

Happy New Year’s Eve to you all! 🎉

To celebrate the holiday, we’re popping this special bottle of bubbles we’ve been eager to try. 😝

It’s Champagne Philipponnat’s 2004 vintage champagne made with 65% Pinot Noir and 35% Chardonnay hailing from a single clos – Clos des Goisses – surrounded by a traditional stone wall in the Village of Mareuil-sur-Aÿ.  🍾

Talk about a singularity of place!  It was first produced as a single vineyard wine in 1935, a pioneering approach for a Champagne House in a land known for regional blending.

After fermentation, this wine aged on the lees for 10 YEARS in Philipponnat’s historic cellars in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ; a Premier Cru Village of the Grand Vallée de la Marne, located on the southerly flank of the Montagne de Reims, where Pinot Noir dominates like in the Grande Montagne.

Okay for the tasting note!  Wow. 🤯 It has pastry, brioche, nougat, and marzipan for days, next to toasted almond, lemon curd, white peach, baked yellow apple, dried chamomile, blossom, and wet slate notes. Despite its unequivocal richness, it has a spine of acidity lending balance and brightness.
 
Cheers to 2025; may it be filled with hope, health, joy, adventure, and amazing sips! 🍾🥂 — 14 days ago

with Deked1

Sipping Fine Wine

9.3

The largest Champagne house in France, founded in 1743 by Claude Moët, blend of 41% Chardonnay, 38% Pinot Noir & 21% Pinot Meunier. Golden straw color with aromas of stone and citrus fruits with notes of nutty toast. On the palate flavors of apple and peach with lemony tones and floral notes. Great balance, good bubble bead flow and mousse, lively acidity, long finish ending with crisp toasty mineral tones. A Fav! — 2 years ago

DAL 9000

9.5

2Lads winery. Mild aroma of citrus minerals. Citrus ( and pears?) minerals upfront and in the middle. A quick finish. A hint hint of tartness. Lingering citrus minerals — 2 years ago

Dawn E.

9.0

Zippy, quaffable, stone, and tropical fruits! Gooseberry, limestone, and fresh cut grass. Crisp and refreshing on a hot summer day.
WS gave this a 90, I will go with that — 7 months ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.5

The House of Louis Jadot has been producing exceptional Burgundy wines since its founding in 1859 by Louis Henry Denis Jadot. Medium lemon with aromas of rich stone fruits with subtle toasty notes. On the palate flavors of apple, pear and lemon with earthy nutty notes, gentle oaky spice, great mouthfeel on long finish ending with an earthy mineral character. Nice! — a year ago

Jess

8.9

Pale lemon color.
Aromas of tropical fruit, pineapple, mineral.
Dry. Flavors of tropical fruit, pineapple, kiwi, wet stone.

Intensity: 4/5
Complexity: 2/5
Balance: 4/5
Finish: 4/5 — 2 years ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.4

Mid 20th century fashionable country resort, popular with Hollywood due to 1892 stone Manor House & historic gardens. Blend of 81% Cab Sauv, 11% Merlot, 4% Malbec, rest other Rhone varieties, aged 20 months in 37% new French oak. Dark Ruby, aromas of ripe berry fruits, herbs & spice. On the palate flavors of black cherry & black currant with vanilla oak and earthy notes. Well balanced, fine tannins long finish ending with fruit, espresso notes and sweet spice! Nice now and will drink well over next decade. — 2 years ago

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

Straight up my wheel house for Old World Syrah.

It is called Cote-Rotie or translation roasted slope for a reason.

The nose has beautifully, lightly floral fruits that are; blackberries, dark cherries, plum, black raspberries, poached strawberries and hues of blueberries. Some black pepper, steeped black tea, hues of roasted chestnuts, sandalwood, some dry tobacco, used leather, red cola, dark, rich earth, dark, red, blue withering florals framed in amazing violets.

The body is smooth as silk. The fruits are ripe & juicy; blackberries, dark cherries, plums for days, black raspberries, poached strawberries and hues of blueberries. Some black pepper, shades of lightly, grilled meats, steeped black tea, hues of roasted chestnuts, sandalwood, some dry tobacco, crushed rock powder, river stone, dry top soil, used leather, red cola, dark, rich earth, dark, red, blue withering florals framed in a. amazing field of violets. Rainfall acidity, soft structure & tension, well balanced and an elegant, beautiful, lush finish. Damn beautiful wine.

Sofia & I walked the La Landonne vineyard with Pierre and tasted in the cellar w/ Rene & Pierre.

Excellent with both Tri-tip’s…rubbed & marinated. — a year ago

Tom Casagrande

9.3

Truncated family party notes. Absolutely delicious. Still got the ripe Zin fruit but savory and crushed stone notes abound. Everything in balance. Only 13.6%. — 2 years ago

Shengli Hu

8.9

Visited the vineyards with Tim Mosher on a hot late summer day at noon - Sep 3 2022. Drove through and tasted berries from the OG ungrafted DRC vines, old and new Pinot Noir vines, Grenache, Syrah and Carignan vines. It was a blast.

Barrel fermented, 10 months aging on lees which were stirred once a week, full malo. Yearly contract with Pride Mountains for making wine. Since 1996. 13.2% abv. Yellow delicious apples and other stone fruits, hazelnut, stony characters, butterscotch, Brioche, lemon curd, yeasty sea salt, smoke and flint. A mix of new Francis Fevre medium toast barrels (they get 12 new barrels every year) and 1 year old barrels from Pride Mountains. Ever since 2016 elevage was down to 10 months (instead of 18 months) for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. — 2 years ago