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Any champagne nuts here?
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STANDY
··schizophrenic pizza orderer and watch collectorAgreed, though I don’t mind Epernay. Mostly I stay in a bnb in Cramant.
Sure the big houses are very much about the bling and some spend a lot more on marketing than they to on quality of products. That said a cellar tour of Moet or Billecart is definately worth the effort.
It is very possible though to taste a lot of exquuisite Champanes if you do lots of research amd book far enough in advance. Grab any of the following authors tomes on Champagne ... Kaaren Palmer, Peter Liem, Richard Juhlin, Tyson Stelzer, Michael Edwards or Tom Stevenson.
Pick your marks and start requesting appointments at least 6 month out ... research and appointment making is key to happy hunting in Champagne.
Ive been lucky enough to meet (and taste) with over 200 at Prowein in Germany and in Champagne over the last few years for work... so far we have chosen to import from just 4 ...
Bernard Remy (allemant) tiny producer who also produce an awesome, inexpensive grand cru from Le Mesnil
Roger Brun, small, powerhouse growen who produce a few good champagnes and several world class grand cru cuvees from Ay
Bouche, a mid sized producer with one village vineyard, 4 premier cru vineyards and 4 grand cru vineyards.
these guys make a lot of good stuff, the highlight at the moment an 05 from primarily grand cru vineyards which spends more time on lees than Dom perignon and sells for less than $100
Finally the cooperative Le Mesnil... all gramd Cru, mostly from Le Mesnil, entry level excellent, top level stuff superb
And this is why anyone in Australia should buy wine from @Matty01
Went through a Pinot phase and Matt got us some great bottles
Going through a Champagne stage Matt just sorted us 12 bottles to the door in Darwin
This one tonight
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Larry S
··Color Commentator for the Hyperbole.Honestly as long as it’s dry and has tiny bubbles I’m good. My favorites are cold Champaign and your Champaign!
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Matty01
·
Cramant Grand Cru
With Mr Marguet from Le Mesnil
Krugs famed Clos du Mesnil vineyard
Me being a dick underground at Moet
Sur Lie ... 15 months is the minimum (think cheap nvs like Moet) 2-4 years the yeasty goodness starts to develop (autolysis) but the best fruit will benefit from much longer time on lees in the bottle...
One of my fave travel watches
Lorsa p75, french movement ...
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Mudskipper
·Guys, have you ever try the Salon Champagne?
This is actually my wife’s favorite so we get to drink from time to time. 100% Chard , premier cru grapes
Unlike the big names that are big bold and over emphasisized - she likes the elegant side of it. Her mentor reps that house, so she gets a little more exposer to the brand.
Stepping back from this thread- I feel like the watches we discuss here fit right in with high quality Champagne. As a matter of fact- some luxury brand watches are owned by companies that are tied to the wines.
All of these are tied to Dom Pergion/ Moet, Krug, Veuve Cliq, and Ruinert via the LVMH brand:
BVLGARI - CHAUMET - FRED - HUBLOT - TAG HEUER - ZENITH
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Lowflight
·
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henrikaa
·Those pics look amazing. Maybe we should give it another try some day.
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rcs914
·I don't drink it often, but have a couple decent bottles stashed in my wine fridge that were gifts. The best I'd had at a tasting of inexpensive (less than $50) bottles from smaller producers was a bottle of Deutz. My then fiancée and I were given one as a gift, and a little over 10 years later it is still there. The fiancée is long gone. Most of the time for parties I'll crack open some Prosecco instead.
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Matty01
·Those pics look amazing. Maybe we should give it another try some day.
Yeah, if you have the time and inclination for the research it is worth it. What I neglected to mention in my earlier post is that hiring a car is vip too, otherwise you are limited to the houses on the Ave du Champagne in Epernay, or those in Reims or buying a commercial operators tour pretty much. Hiring a car will get you out to lots of small growers with the benefit that you get to see the landscape too.
Edited:
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henrikaa
·Yeah, if you have the time and inclination for the research it is worth it. What I neglected to mention in my earlier post is that hiring a car is vip too, otherwise you are limited to the houses on the Ave du Champagne in Epernay, or those in Reims or buying a commercial operators tour pretty much. Hiring a car will get you out to lots of small growers with the benefit that you get to see the landscape too.
We are fortunate enough to be able to drive to Champagne with a bit of planning and some hours in the car, so a rental will not be necessary for us.
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henrikaa
·I don't drink it often, but have a couple decent bottles stashed in my wine fridge that were gifts. The best I'd had at a tasting of inexpensive (less than $50) bottles from smaller producers was a bottle of Deutz. My then fiancée and I were given one as a gift, and a little over 10 years later it is still there. The fiancée is long gone. Most of the time for parties I'll crack open some Prosecco instead.
Proseccos are also a bit easier on the wallet and often I think it is possible to find equally tasty prosecco and champagne, but paying 1/3 for the italian bubbles.
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Larry S
··Color Commentator for the Hyperbole.$15 at Whole Paycheck. Dry lovely and from New Mexico.
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UncleBuck
·We only have Beer nuts.....$7 bucks at Walmart but I can't shop there being a Union man, so I pay a little more (without regrets).
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Larry S
··Color Commentator for the Hyperbole.Beer Nuts was a part of a major food group in college. To be consumed with Rolling Rock or Genny Cream Ale.
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henrikaa
·Let’s try twisting it a bit! I have for a while been experimenting with drinking champagne while eating; so like you would normally be served red/white wine.
Anyone else doing the same? What are you eating with your champagne?
Anyone else doing the same? What are you eating with your champagne?
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STANDY
··schizophrenic pizza orderer and watch collectorEasy guide below
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philh
·We did a road trip around Spain last year and were very surprised at how good some of the quality Cava's tasted.Well worth an experiment as they are made the same way as champagne and have lots of smaller artisan producers which is fun to research if you are a bit of an "anorak" like me.
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