De Castelnau

Millésimé Brut Champagne Blend

9.119 ratings
9.13 pro ratings
Champagne, France
Champagne Blend
Squash & Root Vegetables, Meaty & Oily Fish, Shellfish, Crab & Lobster, Cake & Cream, Soft Cheese, Hard Cheese, Salads & Greens, Salami & Prosciutto, Pork, Fish, Chicken, Duck, Onion, Shallot, Garlic, Nuts & Seeds, Fruit & Berries, Beans & Peas, Exotic Spices, Turkey, Pungent Cheese, Shellfish, Oyster
Top Notes For
David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.1

Incredible body with 11 years on lees. Nice and creamy. Lacks a mid palate and finishes short but pleasant.

Green apple, pear, white grapefruit, some lemon…more lime, apple cider notes, dryish white peach, white spice, whip cream, ginger-ale, bread dough, yeast, saline, crumbed limestone, understated chalk, withering spring flowers, racing, crisp acidity and a even wire to wire finish that does come up short. Maybe, some more time will improve things?

Photos of; Castelnau, chalky cave entrance, barrel room and a shot of one of their vineyards.

Incredible body with 11 years on lees. Nice and creamy. Lacks a mid palate and finishes short but pleasant.

Green apple, pear, white grapefruit, some lemon…more lime, apple cider notes, dryish white peach, white spice, whip cream, ginger-ale, bread dough, yeast, saline, crumbed limestone, understated chalk, withering spring flowers, racing, crisp acidity and a even wire to wire finish that does come up short. Maybe, some more time will improve things?

Photos of; Castelnau, chalky cave entrance, barrel room and a shot of one of their vineyards.

Feb 4th, 2024
Shay A
9.2

A purchase from Last Bubbles. Not familiar with this producer, but coming from a nice vintage and spending almost 11yrs on the lees was enough for me to take a flyer.

Paired with a massive spread of caviar, sashimi, oysters. As mentioned below, this was a bit one dimensional upon opening but fleshed out nicely an hour or two later. If comparing against a bigger name, I’d say this is in a vein of Bollinger (slightly big/rich, but balanced; toasty). Fresh lemon scone and puff pastry aromatically, but it goes a bit more salted popcorn, nougat-like on the palate and finish. While this doesn’t sport a ton of layers, it’s tasty and will hang in this drinking window for a while. I’d buy again.

Paired well with the 3L of 1999 SQN “Marauder” behind it!

A purchase from Last Bubbles. Not familiar with this producer, but coming from a nice vintage and spending almost 11yrs on the lees was enough for me to take a flyer.

Paired with a massive spread of caviar, sashimi, oysters. As mentioned below, this was a bit one dimensional upon opening but fleshed out nicely an hour or two later. If comparing against a bigger name, I’d say this is in a vein of Bollinger (slightly big/rich, but balanced; toasty). Fresh lemon scone and puff pastry aromatically, but it goes a bit more salted popcorn, nougat-like on the palate and finish. While this doesn’t sport a ton of layers, it’s tasty and will hang in this drinking window for a while. I’d buy again.

Paired well with the 3L of 1999 SQN “Marauder” behind it!

Jan 7th, 2023
Iwan

Caramel notes.

Caramel notes.

Nov 24th, 2024
Iwan

Slightly oxidative. Medium bodied. Bruised apple.

Slightly oxidative. Medium bodied. Bruised apple.

Apr 8th, 2024
Manj Gunawardane

Lovely mushroomy, round and elegant. Showing its age well, yet fresh.

Lovely mushroomy, round and elegant. Showing its age well, yet fresh.

May 17th, 2023
Mark

Slightly sweet

Slightly sweet

Dec 31st, 2016
Michael Piaker

3 November 2016. Manhattan Wine Company, New York, NY.

3 November 2016. Manhattan Wine Company, New York, NY.

Nov 3rd, 2016
Dean Lapthorne

First Class Lounge British Airways, self pour

First Class Lounge British Airways, self pour

May 6th, 2016
Oscar Aparicio

Bright, but not aggressive. Fruity and juicy and just the right amount of dry.

Bright, but not aggressive. Fruity and juicy and just the right amount of dry.

Apr 1st, 2015
Tomi Mikkonen

Krugimainen (+), mutta vähäkuplainen(-) ja ne vähätkin häipyivät nopsaa. Hyvä kokonaisuus

Krugimainen (+), mutta vähäkuplainen(-) ja ne vähätkin häipyivät nopsaa. Hyvä kokonaisuus

Jul 1st, 2014