French Champagne

VINTAGE

1996 Dom Perignon Brut Champagne $$$$$+

Color:  Medium gold

Nose:  Big with mineral, dough, pear, and apple

Taste:  Explosive with mineral, dough, pear, apricot, pear

Finish:  Long and a wine in complete balance. 

Evaluation:  The best Champagne I have ever had!  94 points

1996 Veuve Clicquot Brut Rose Champagne Reserve $$$$$
Nose: Tropical fruit, cherry
Taste: Lively wine with tropical fruits, cherry and a bit acidic
Finish: Dough with nice fruits on this multi layered finish
Evaluation: Nice overall but not what I would consider to be a great quality to price ratio champagne 88 points

1998 Moet Chandon Dom Perignon $$$$$

Color:  Tint of yellow

Nose:  A splash of fruit, mineral, a touch of mustiness

Taste:  Balanced but not overall impressive.  Pear, dough, and crisp sour apple

Finish:  Medium with pear, apple, dough and mineral

Evaluation:  Not a must buy for the money.  89 points

1998 Perrier-Jouët Brut Champagne Fleur de Champagne Belle Epoque $$$$$
Nose: Pear, mineral
Taste: Mineral, dough, apple
Finish: Medium finish with nothing complex going on
Evaluation: Nice balance but this champagne lacks the wow factor for the price 89 points

NON VINTAGE

Bollinger NV Sparkling Brut Champange $$$$

Color:  Light gold

Nose: Lemon peal, dough, mineral

Taste:  Lemon, orange peal, dough, mineral, acidic

Finish:  Medium and complex with nice fruits.  A little acidic

Evaluation:  Solid effort.  90 points

Duval-Leroy N. V. Brut Champagne $$$

Color:  Extremely clear

Nose:  Apple, apricots,

Taste:  Mineral notes, pear

Finish:  Medium with average complexity

Evaluation:  A wine spectator 91 pointer and top 100 last year. .  It is a well made champagne and a good value at $25.95.  88 points

 

Henriot Brut Chardonnay Champagne NV Blanc Souverain
Color:  Yellowish hue

Nose: Pear, mineral
Taste: dough, mineral, pear, little acidic
Finish: Multi layered with dough, mineral and pear and a medium finish
Evaluation: A little dry on the finish but overall a well made effort. 90 points

Nicholas Feuillate NV Brut Champagne $$$

Color:  Clear with tiny bubbles

Nose:  Citrus fruits

Taste:  Citrus, dough, dominate flavor was grapefruit.

Finish  30 seconds of enjoyment with the citrus notes throughout.:

Evaluation:  This is a nice champagne which sells in the mid to upper twenties.  Celebrate a birthday or anniversary with this.  89 points

 

Perrier-Jouet Grand Brut NV Champagne $$$$

Color:  Light yellow hue

Nose:  Mineral, pear, apple, dough

Taste:  Mineral, honey, crisp green apples and

Finish:  Multi layered finish with mineral, pear, and apple

Evaluation:  Crisp champagne with a pleasant variety of flavors.  91 points

Duval Leroy NV Brut Champagne $$$

Color:  Pale yellow

Nose:  Dough, musty, grass

Taste:  A bit tart, spice, dough

Finish:  Medium with spice, balanced acidity, dough

Evaluation:  Well made.  Not a fruit forward style.  88 points

Piper-Heidsieck NV Brut Champagne $$$

Color:  Light yellow

Nose:  Dough, apricots, lemon peal, mineral

Taste:  Apple, pear, dough, acidic in a positive way, mineral

Finish:  A burst of mineral mellowing into pear, apple and dough

Evaluation:  The best Champagne I have had in a while and an incredible QPR Champagne.  91 points

Available at Hennepin Lake on sale for around $20

Montaudon NV Brut Champagne $$$

Color:  Light yellow

Nose:  Fresh with mineral and citrus

Taste:  Mineral, citrus, very crisp acidic quality

Finish:  Mineral and citrus elements on this medium finish

Evaluation:  A very nice Champagne for the money.  89 points

Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label NV Brut $$$

Color:  Light yellow

Nose:  Mineral, dough, grapefruit, pear

Taste:  Crisp with Dough, mineral, lemon, grapefruit

Finish:  Medium to long and balanced.  Dough, mineral, grapefruit.

Evaluation:  The best Champagne I have had in a long time and at $39.95 at Hennepin Lake a steal!!!  93 points

Sparkling Wines

Australia

Seaview Brut $

Color: Light yellow hue

Nose:  Pear and mineral

Taste:  Mineral, bright acidic taste

Finish:  Medium with mineral and tropical fruits.  Little acidic

Evaluation:  For around $8 this is a nice everyday sparkling wine. 82 points

Wolf Blass Sparkling Brut $$

Color:  yellow

Nose:  Mineral and citrus

Taste:  Dough

Finish:  Short and disappointing

Evaluation:  Simple. 82 points

Italian Sparkling

 

Freixnet NV Brut (Italy) $

Color:  Light yellow hue

Nose:  Mineral, mild citrus note

Taste:  Mineral, bit acidic

Finish:  Short little bitter

Evaluation:  A simple sparkler 80 points

Martini and Rossi Asti NV $$

Color:  Clear

Nose:  Citrus, mineral

Taste:  Sweet, fruit, high sugar content

Finish:  Short, sugar rush

Evaluation:  Simple sweet sparkler 82 points

 

US Sparkling

1996 Argyle Extended Tirage (20% Pinot/80%Chard) $$$

Color:  Light gold

Nose: Mineral, apple pie, lemon

Taste:  Mineral, sour apple, little bitter, creamy dough notes

Finish:  Medium but complex and multifaceted with dough, pine nuts, baked apple pie, lemon

Evaluation:  Very exciting to see this quality from America.  92 points

2000 Argyle Brut (Oregon) $$$

Color:  Light yellow hue

Nose:  Pear, mineral and tropical fruit

Taste:  Solid with pear, orange peal and mineral

Finish:  Crisp with tropical fruit and mineral

Evaluation:  Well made and balanced.  89 points

1997 Argyle Extended Tirage (20% Pinot/80% Chard) $$$

Color:  Light gold Tiny bubbles

Nose:  Pear, dough, mineral, lemon

Taste:  Great acidity with dough, lemon pie, custard, mineral, chalk

Finish:  Wow, with mineral, lemon pie, dough, apple, pear, great acidity on this long finish.

Evaluation:  This is the best US Sparkling Wine ever and it is as good as the 96 Dom Perignon for one fifth the price.  94 points

2002 Argyle Brut Sparkline Wine (2007) $$$

Color:  Light gold

Nose:  Pear, mineral, apple

Taste:  Pear, apple, dough, mineral, floral

Finish:  Medium with pear, mineral, floral, dough

Evaluation:  America's best Sparkling Producer!  90 points

Domaine Chandon Sparkling Brut (2007) $$

Color:  Light yellow hue

Nose:  Apple, pear, mineral, and dough

Taste:  Crisp apples, pear, mineral

Finish:  Mineral, apples, and pears on this medium finish

Evaluation:  Sure to please a crowd and very affordable.  88 points

Hennepin Lake

Gloria Ferrer NV Sparkling Brut (2007) $$

Color:  Light yellow hue

Nose:  Pear, light acid, citrus

Taste:  Light acidic, dough, crisp with pear and mineral

Finish:  medium with citrus, mineral, and floral

Evaluation:  Very nice value for a US Sparkler 89 points

Hennepin Lake

Gloria Ferrer NV Blanc de Noirs Sparkling Brut $$

Color:  Light pinkish hue

Nose:  Melon, dough, mineral

Taste:  Mineral, strawberries, floral, peach

Finish:  Mineral, floral, peach and dough notes

Evaluation:  A great introduction to a Blanc de Noir Sparkling Wine.  88 points

Hennepin Lake

2002 J Brut Sparkling Wine $$$

Color:  Light yellow

Nose:  Apple, pear, fruit forward

Taste:  Crisp acidity, dough, pear, sour apple, mineral

Finish:  Medium with mineral, sour apple, nice acidity, dough

Evaluation:  Very complex for a $30 Sparkling wine.  90 points

Roederer Estate Anderson Valley Brut (2007) $$

Color:  Light yellow

Nose:  Crisp apple, pear and tropical fruit

Taste:  Sharp acids with orange, grapefruit and dough

Finish:  Medium with sharp acidic taste on the tongue along with mineral, citrus fruit and dough

Evaluation:  A great value that should living up any party.  89 points

 

2002 Dolce Napa Valley Late Harvest Wine $$$$

Color:  Medium Gold Hue

Nose:  Honey suckle, little musty

Taste:  Sweet and thick with butter scotch, carmel, honey, maple syrup

Finish:  Medium with carmel, butter scotch, honey, brown sugar

Evaluation:  Very complex wine but not a good buy at $60 for 375 ml.  91 points

 

 

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