Marie Courtin
Efflorescence Extra Brut Champagne Pinot Noir
Aube, Champagne, France
Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of a couple of hours. This bottle of Efflorescence from the 2016 vintage pours a pale, salmon, gold color with a persistent mousse made from the tiniest, most beautiful bubbles. Gorgeous fruit leaping from the glass: strawberries, golden raspberries, white peach, lemons, a whiff of brioche, limestone minerals...oh, the minerals! Incredible freshness. Acid is high, but the fruit does such a great job in bringing balance. The finish is medium with chalk-like minerals. This is a really lovely, biodynamic Champagne. Maybe the pendulums Dominique uses in the vineyards do make a difference? Drink now or over the next 15+ years with ease. Disgorged July 2022.
Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of a couple of hours. This bottle of Efflorescence from the 2016 vintage pours a pale, salmon, gold color with a persistent mousse made from the tiniest, most beautiful bubbles. Gorgeous fruit leaping from the glass: strawberries, golden raspberries, white peach, lemons, a whiff of brioche, limestone minerals...oh, the minerals! Incredible freshness. Acid is high, but the fruit does such a great job in bringing balance. The finish is medium with chalk-like minerals. This is a really lovely, biodynamic Champagne. Maybe the pendulums Dominique uses in the vineyards do make a difference? Drink now or over the next 15+ years with ease. Disgorged July 2022.
Dec 29th, 2023
I’m between a 92-93 here. Second time with this champagne in the last year and it has stayed consistently delicious.
Slightly older disgorgement at July 2021. 100% Pinot noir. Extra year aging and fermentation in used barriques compared to all stainless for the Resonance cuvée.
Almost 6yrs on the lees and it shows with a leesy character alongside rich power (which can be hard to do with zero dosage champagnes, but the vintage and style help). Gold tinged in the glass. Spiced cider, oyster shell aromatically before a honeycrisp red apple, cranberry, red and black berry fruit and a mineral/limestone finish. I’d love to try this disgorgement a few years down the line, as I think it would be doing even better.
Happy Thanksgiving.
I’m between a 92-93 here. Second time with this champagne in the last year and it has stayed consistently delicious.
Slightly older disgorgement at July 2021. 100% Pinot noir. Extra year aging and fermentation in used barriques compared to all stainless for the Resonance cuvée.
Almost 6yrs on the lees and it shows with a leesy character alongside rich power (which can be hard to do with zero dosage champagnes, but the vintage and style help). Gold tinged in the glass. Spiced cider, oyster shell aromatically before a honeycrisp red apple, cranberry, red and black berry fruit and a mineral/limestone finish. I’d love to try this disgorgement a few years down the line, as I think it would be doing even better.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Perfect champagne to start off the weekend
Perfect champagne to start off the weekend
Jun 18th, 2021
Biscuits, rye, miso, whoa. Delicious. Green (unripe) fruit notes. Pleasant acid snap and some primary yeastiness plus a little bitter tannin in the finish that I think will all develop beautifully in bottle. Love this producer and cuvee, though I may prefer the more basic Resonance cuvee, at least for early drinking.
Biscuits, rye, miso, whoa. Delicious. Green (unripe) fruit notes. Pleasant acid snap and some primary yeastiness plus a little bitter tannin in the finish that I think will all develop beautifully in bottle. Love this producer and cuvee, though I may prefer the more basic Resonance cuvee, at least for early drinking.
Apr 6th, 2020
Easy to drink, but not much complexity. 2013 vintage and May 2018 disgorgement.
Easy to drink, but not much complexity. 2013 vintage and May 2018 disgorgement.
Mar 21st, 2020
light gold, coppery overtones; fine mousse, exuberant, long lasting; red berries, lime, jasmine, slight brininess, pie crust; chiseled, impressive acidity, chalky minerality, 12% ABV; made from 100% Pinot Noir, fermented in used French oak barrels, zero dosage, disgorged May 2018; winemaker Dominique Moreau, wife of champagne maker Roland Piollot, named her estate after her great-grandmother, makes a series of single-vineyard, single-variety, single-vintage, zero-dosage Champagnes from biodynamically-grown grapes; $57
light gold, coppery overtones; fine mousse, exuberant, long lasting; red berries, lime, jasmine, slight brininess, pie crust; chiseled, impressive acidity, chalky minerality, 12% ABV; made from 100% Pinot Noir, fermented in used French oak barrels, zero dosage, disgorged May 2018; winemaker Dominique Moreau, wife of champagne maker Roland Piollot, named her estate after her great-grandmother, makes a series of single-vineyard, single-variety, single-vintage, zero-dosage Champagnes from biodynamically-grown grapes; $57
Dec 7th, 20192013 vintage and May 2018 disgorgement.
2013 vintage and May 2018 disgorgement.
Nov 27th, 2019
Weight together with acidity—such incredible mineral density, aromatic nuance, and length
Weight together with acidity—such incredible mineral density, aromatic nuance, and length
Nov 12th, 2019
2013
Herbal, green, vegetal, intensely mineral and tart. Delicious!
2013
Herbal, green, vegetal, intensely mineral and tart. Delicious!