Bubble, Bubble, Toil & Trouble

Every year ‘The Shaker’ opens a couple of dozen Champers and after making good notes on the wine, he holds a party so as not to waste them. The invited guests are an eclectic lot, as SWMBO and I are invited. We look the serious types, as we make a note or two, but there are others who know what they are on about. There are some who just like a drink, and before you know it, the bottles are empty! I grade the Champagnes into star-quality, based on the briefest impressions, because if I don’t work quickly, the bottles can be drained. In fact, this year I turned up right on the dot, so as to not waste any time. Here are my impressions, from 3 star, working up to 5 star, not in the order tasted, but alphabetically:

3 Star
Boizel ‘Blanc de Noirs’ – full, dry, yellow fruits soft and fleshy
Cattier – light, clean simple and fresh
Drappier ‘Carte Blanche’ – up-front, open and easy to understand, some good weight
Gardet ‘Brut Tradition’ – lighter expression, correct and clean
Lanvin – crisp, dry and acidic, a bit new, without the development yet
Moet & Chandon Vintage 2002 – soft, gentle, honied, a bit matty
Piper Heidsieck – slight sulphide notes, easy, light and clean
Pommery – a little sulphidic on nose, but with fruitiness – Pinot Meunier showing
Pommery ‘Springtime’ Rosé – up-front, sweetish and light

4 Star
Bollinger ‘Special Cuvee’ – rich, complex, tight a new shipment
Gardet ‘Brut 1er Cru’ – intense, yeasty autolysis and some complexity
Gardet ‘Brut Selected Reserve’ – nutty, aldehydic, but with intensity and length
Moet & Chandon ‘Brut Imperial’ – delicate, balanced with it all, in a mild-mannered way, but satisfying
Mumm ‘Cordon Rouge’ – lively, clean fresh, simply sweetish and easy
Mumm Rosé – tight with lovely berryish nose, and fresh fruited palate
Louis Roederer ‘Brut Premier’ – tightly bound, crisp and firm, good concentration but not the usual richness, still fresh
Perrier-Jouet ‘Grand Brut’ – soft, floral, fluffy and delisciously accessible
Taittinger ‘Folies de la Marquetterie’- lovely acidity, finesse and length in a slender style
Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin ‘Yellow Label’ – medium weight, with fruit and autolysis, everything as it should be, just not starring, but more than satisfactory
Jean-Marc Vigreux-Freres – tight, clean good autolysis in a firm style

5 Star
Ayala ‘Brut Majeur’ – tight and concentrated, serious underneath, but fine
Boizel ‘Brut Reserve’ – rich and fruity, in great proportion with developing complexities
Bollinger Rosé – big boned, with fruit richness and complexing yeast, yet with style
Charles Heidsieck ‘Brut Reserve’ –toasty, rich, soft and mouthfilling
Dom Pergnon 2002 – stunning elegance, finesse, freshness, beautiful acidity and floral aromatics
Jacquesson Cuvee 733 – punchy and tight with funky complexities and interest
Pol Roger ‘Brut Reserve’ – very fresh, clean, delicacy personified, yet real character and depth
Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin ‘La Grande Dame’ 1998 – powerful and densely constructed with lovely acidity and great complexity

The list and ratings seem right in place for me, and my usual perspective. There are always some surprises, due to how I’m seeing things that day. But also each house can vary, according to how fresh or old the shipment is. Some of the smaller houses vary year to year, and surprisingly the bigger houses can too. C’est la vie! Thanks to ‘The Shaker’.