Wine Reviews
Early indications from the first tasting of this wine in summer 2025 were that this may turn out as a milestone for Comtes de Champagne Rosé, which has always been a rather different beast from the more famous Blanc de Blancs. The heady, fruit-forward Pinot Noir focus is still there, but it seems to have been straightened, polished and tightened even in this extroverted vintage. It has yielding a blend that offers abundance of fruit (redcurrant, peach, pomegranate and cherry) but framed in an alluringly silky, racy Chardonnay-influenced texture that pushes through with beautiful length and subtle brown pastry and crême patissière richness. It wears its 14% red wine – high for modern Champagne – deftly, treading a beautiful line between purity and generosity.
A medium yellow hue, the NV Champagne Brut Reserve has a 2021 base and is the calling card of this estate. Offering fantastic, pure notes, it’s a delightful, ripe, and warming wine, with a pillowy mousse and notes of pineapple, orchard fruit, and brioche. Full-bodied, it has a rounded and supple texture, with a long finish. It’s ready to drink now and should also hang on another 6-8 years easily. Drink 2025-2035.
Mostly grand cru as well as 30% from Villers-Marmery and Trepail, I love the nose of the 2016 Champagne Millesime Brut, which is very pretty and offers lots of pleasure and decadence. It has more Chardonnay character at this tasting, with lemon custard, a long, pillowy mousse, and a lovely, balanced feel on the finish. Drink 2025-2040.
The 2014 Champagne Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne pours a bright medium yellow hue and is very pretty, with a graceful floral perfume as well as notes of brioche and lemon curd. Full-bodied but more linear, the mousse is pillow-like, powdery, and perfumed and is followed by a long finish. I love where this is now. It’s quite complete and pretty already, and it’s a great bottle to drink while waiting on the 2012 and 2013. It’s less obvious as a vintage at this stage, but I do see it improving and developing into a very finessed wine. Drink 2025-2050.
A very compelling vintage for Taittinger, the 2013 Champagne Blanc De Blancs Comtes de Champagne is more structured and deeper compared to the 2014. It has an impeccable balance of decadence and tension. Full-bodied, with persistent focus, it has a mouthwatering finish with vibrant driving acidity and saltiness that accents the wine’s core of ripe stone fruit and citrus oil texture. This is going to be a great vintage to drink over the coming decades. Drink 2025-2050.
