By the time the clock struck 5 last Friday, I was ready for a sip of something. Luckily for me, my sanity was restored not by one, but a trio of markedly different Champagne cuvees.
My first sip was a NV Krug Grande Cuvee which was showing magnificently well. Beautifully crafted and impressed with its balance. You can’t deny the structure in this wine; firm and full-bodied. The power here is backed by a depth and range of flavors (lemon peel, yeasty, freshly baked bread, toasty/smoky, chalky minerality) that continue to build in intensity in the mouth. A very impressive Grande Cuvee, indeed.
The next tasting stop was the exotic, ripe and toasty 2002 Piper Heidsieck RARE. I’ve had this wine more than a few times and as far as I can recall, this is most charming 2002 I’ve had the pleasure of drinking. The nose offers a mix of showy peach, honeycomb, brioche, roasted hazelnuts and lemon meringue aromas and flavors. In the mouth, it has a lush and creamy mid-palate with a rich structure that seems to expand as the wine travels from the front to the back. A nice backbone of acidity keeps the wine balanced; zesty lime/lemon notes hang around in the long finish.
The 2002 Lanson Gold Label Brut, in my opinion, held court. The wine was beautifully focused and detailed with a nervy acidity that I loved. Powerful yet elegant; subtle and layered flavors of citrus, white blossoms, under ripe peach, ginger spice, and minerality. Persistent length marked by a saline-like minerality. WOW!