By: AJ McClellan
Champagne is the drink of celebration; it has launched thousands of ships, toasted billions of weddings, and attended countless parties. Champagne has always been the wine of celebration; no other wine has been so closely associated with joy and festivity. What better excuse is there to pop a bottle of bubbly than a Friday?
MV Armand de Brignac Brut Gold Ace of Spades – Armand de Brignac is a unique Champagne in that their Tete de Cuvee is not a single vintage Champagne but rather a multi-vintage combining the vintages of 2002, 2003, and 2006 to make what is, in their opinion, the best blend of what all the different vintages have to offer. Also Armand de Brignac is one of the only Champagne houses to oak age their Dosage. When we tasted this wine it spurred a new tradition here at Graileys – Champagne Fridays. Baked green apples on the nose with sour pears and a clean toast. The palate had a light yeast with slight petrol notes backed by white flowers.
NV Laurent Perrier Rose – I don’t feel that we gave this wine enough breathing room after the Ace of Spades. Next to Armand de Brignac the Laurent Perrier was clumsy and brutish. Like sparkling strawberries with a creamy yeast layer and finished with red roses.
MV Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle – The Grand Siecle is Laurent Perrier’s Premier Cuvee and did a nice job when matched up against the Ace of Spades. The Ace of Spades was all about elegance and finesse while the Grand Siecle was raw power in the glass. Boisterous bubbles that fizzed with excited vigor, the palate was very creamy with caramelized green pears and huge toast tapering out to a long finish.
1986 Opere Franciacorta – We couldn’t let Champagne have all the attention so we threw in a fun little Italian sparkling to even the playing grounds. When we first opened the wine it seemed as if it was maderized, lacking character and showing a huge oxidized characteristic. After some time I revisited our Italian upstart and it was bubbling over with savory aromas. Big butterscotch with green apple jolly rancher, honeysuckle, and creamy apricots.
NV Godme Blanc de Noirs – This is a really fun grower Champagne that I love. Light and crisp with a great complexity of green apple, pear, lemon, summer flowers, and a slight spice.
1996 Pichon Lalande – Hey, even though it’s Champagne Friday that doesn’t mean we can’t drink some fantastic Bordeaux… After drinking the Champagne the wine looked heavy in the glass, but after a moment of contemplating the wine, the aromas lifted out of the glass to tingle my nose, reminding me of freshly dug earth with a slate rock bed underneath. Then came the light licorice and sweet cassis notes, which prompted me to take a sip. The palate was wonderful with tingling spice including cinnamon, allspice, and cloves. A slight saddle leather nuance hung over the wine speared with pencil shavings and graphite and seasoned with tobacco smoke.
1996 Ducru Beaucaillou – One more Bordeaux never hurts. Bolder than the Pichon and with darker fruit. Big black cherries with black raspberries with an avalanche of clay, limestone, and schist. There was a subtle note of spice rack with a predominate rosemary influence and a finish of dark rose petals.