Shay A

9.2

2019 disgorgement. For being 80% Pinot meunier (and 20% Pinot noir) this sure drinks like the percentages are opposite. Whenever I’m drinking Pinot meunier heavy champagnes, I normally find a distinct gummy fruit/fruit snacks note. And while this is no Jerome Prevost La Closerie, it is in that vein of rich and espresso driven. The use of perpetual reserve (dating back to 2003) certainly helps with the richness and beautiful golden color. Golden raspberries, creamy espresso and cranberry scone aromatics. Great mousse with caramel dipped Granny Smith apple and chalky limestone highlight the palate with the kiss of nougat showing at the finish.

It’s not often a meunier champagne has me intrigued, and up until recently, that short list contained Jerome Prevosts’ La Closerie, Egly-Ouriet’s Les Vignes de Vrigny and Laherte Freres’ offerings, but this Mousse Fils L’Or d’Eugene is undoubtedly in that company, especially at its price (cheaper than the others). — 4 years ago

Mike Obley

9.4

Purchased on the recommendation of North Berkeley Wine where I source Egly-Ouriet — 5 years ago

Michael Herzog

9.3

Love this wine. In the same style of Egly-Ouriet and Selosse. Really had some great barrel char going on. Singular but defined. — 6 years ago

with Kuan

Bob McDonald

9.6

My first 1911 and it will not be the last. 100% Pinot Noir. Pale Gold with a fine persistent bead. A powerful concentrated Champagne straight out of the Wine Fridge at 12 degrees Celsius. Notes of burnt orange and mineral and the palate has an oxidative solera type quality. Interestingly the next day coming out of the regular fridge and being a bit colder green apple notes were more pronounced. I love Blanc de Noirs after the Egly Ouriet blew me away earlier in the year. Ridiculously Good QPR for a wine of this quality with a production of only 1911 bottles. — 8 years ago

Ben de Vin

9.3

Getting ready for NYE with this stunning wine, drinking it slowly and letting the bubbles dissipate allows it to truly express itself. Before exploring a few grower Champagnes recently I really had no interest in bubbles as I'd only experienced the large houses. Wines like Egly and Vouette are enlightening and make me want explore growers more, the Fidele is the entry level but by no means a simple wine, incredibly complex and intriguing, most importantly delicious! Disgorged Jan 2015. — 9 years ago

Shona Claremont

9.3

The best grower producer there is at the moment — 10 years ago

Yoon Ha

Master Sommelier/Wine Director Benu

8.9

A nicely priced ambonnay in the style of egly. — 11 years ago

Lee Pitofsky

9.6

2019 Disgorgement is in the zone with its ultra complex aromatic profile and chiseled palate with riveting energy and a seamlessly balanced expression of layered red berry fruit and chalky minerality. VO base with a touch of still Pinot from Francis Egly. Always a treat ❤️ — 4 years ago

Shay A

9.3

My last of the 2014 Ultramarine’s. Sad day. Thankfully 2015s are up next, and I was able to secure extra 2016s during the release a few months back.

This was one of three bubblies (2010 Larmandier-Bernier VV du Levant, Egly Ouriet Rosé) opened alongside a lineup of some fun wines when a buddy, @Shawn R , was in town. As always, my experience with these wines is so unique. You can always tell this is like grower champagne from first smell and sip. Gorgeous golden color in the glass. I normally pick up aromas of cream soda with Ultramarine (aside from their rosé), but didn’t get that here. Caramel dipped golden delicious apples, spiced cider, brioche, a little shaved almond, sporting a gentle “oxidative” flair. On the palate it’s zippy and racy with a distinct herb crusted yellow fruit profile (which I get on some Heintz Chardonnays), alongside more apple, poached pear, and kiss of ripe red Berry fruits. There is also a backbone of limestone/mineral here. When compared to the Larmandier-Bernier, this drank more new world, though if I had tried this blind and not next to a true champagne, I may have been able to get there.

As an aside, we drank half of this bottle (and of the other two bubblies as well) and then put a champagne stopper on it to revisit the next day. Upon opening, the bubbles seemed to have diminish quite a bit and it drank closer to a still wine...and then 30mins later, it was like this roared back to life for one last hurrah, full of bubbles and totally vibrant. Not sure I’ve seen a bubbly do that before. The last glass on the second day was just as good as the first glass on the first day. — 5 years ago

with Shawn

Jeremy Shanker

Sommelier at RN74

9.5

Reminds me of Egly. Seriously epic wine and out of magnum! — 7 years ago

Aaron Tan

9.5

Exceptional balance. Rich, but so fresh. Pears, orange, flowers, lemon curd, cream, brioche, nut. Long, powerful palate, underlined by a driving acidity.

Some thoughts: In my eyes, RMs tend to fall into "extreme" categories e.g. Laherte - austere, Egly - rich (lees), Agrapart - rich (oak), Selosse - oxidative; but this wine doesn't fit here. NM-like, but not (I think of Chartogne-Taillet when I say this). Compare to Krug's Grand Cuvee, the Grands Vintages is definitely richer and broader (fair comparison, given how both wines are constructed).

From Chain Bridge Cellars:
As the name suggests, Eric Rodez’s Grand Vintages is a rich, powerful and very much “grand” wine in the tradition of Krug (where Eric learned his craft). This year's release is a blend of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay from seven great vintages going back to vintage 2000. Eric ages all of these base wines in used oak and blocks malolactic fermentation to maximize freshness and vibrancy. Then the carefully crafted blend spends 8 full years on the lees before being disgorged this October. The dosage is ultra-low - 2 or 3 g/l - so this could be labeled "Extra Brut," but there's so much richness and depth here that "Brut" seems more appropriate to Eric.

Past releases have earned plenty of critical praise, including 17.5/20 points from Jancis Robinson, 93 from Vinous, and 92 from Wine Advocate. This year’s release is explosive on the nose and palate, pumping out big notes of lemon curd, caramel, toasted nuts, baking bread, crushed chalk, and more. The flavors just balloon out to fill your entire palate and finish with layer upon layer of mouthwatering pie crust, lemon curd, hazelnut, crushed stone and salty caramel flavor. Try holding some for even more richness! — 9 years ago

Morgan Wang

9.1

Had this poured into a cantaloupe for dessert 😂 — 9 years ago

with Darren

Jeff Rothrock

9.4

Fantastic. On a completely different level than Egly-Ouriet's Les Vignes de Vrigny, my only other great experience with 100% Pinot Meunier. Lightly oxidative, loads of passion fruit and lemongrass flavors on the palate. Toasty nose and the prettiest rose-gold hue. — 10 years ago

Rubychick

8.9

17yrs on lees, Russian River, in the realm of Egly Ouriet — 11 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

Very different with this kind of age. Super soft micro-oxidation. This is well aged. Dry; apricots, yellow peach, marmalade, dry pineapple, blood orange, tangerine, malt, wheat, sun tea, aspects of fruit brandy/port, yeasty, bread dough, beautiful, powdery chalkiness, oyster shells, crumbled alluvials, withering yellow &,white lilies, beautiful round acidity, rich mello, smooth, polished finish.

Very different side of N/V bubbles.

Degorgement, April 1997. — 5 years ago

Daniel Layfield

9.5

Fantastic - incredible fruit, less pressure / not quite as effervescent (creates ability for very robust taste, per Lolly), 100% Pinot noir, best vineyard area, “once you have Egly it ruins other champagne”. — 6 years ago

with Liza

Peter van den Besselaar

9.1

NV / vibrant, very nice champagne to accompany food. Lively acidity, refreshing. We paired it with sushi as a starter. — 6 years ago

Matt

9.3

Wow, just gorgeous for the price. Generous, balanced, layered. Intelligent use of wood here, adds a subtle richness and intrigue. Asian pear, melon, citrus, cherry blossoms, wet chalk, hazelnut, cured meat, sea spray, brioche, cream. Noticeable autolysis character. Nice weight and concentration for entry NV, reminiscent of Ouriet, and there’s an influence from Krug that’s apparent to me. 50 PN 50 CH (1..17-08?) 11/2016 disgorgement — 7 years ago

Toni Zablocki

8.9

Aubrey says "cured meats" on the nose - I say "Nay! Fruit cobbler, maple syrup-drenched french toast, and hotel continental breakfast." But maybe a hint of meat. The palate is soft and flatter than the Egly, but - it's also *much* cheaper. Golden apple textured finish. — 9 years ago

with Aubrey and Tim

BurgundyFan

9.5

Schwarzriesling "R" QbA - also known as Pinot Meunier. Yummy, berries and cherries. Präzise und reintönig; Achtung: streng limitiert, less than 0,2 hectares, maximun production per year 100 botlles. It has reminded us of Coteaux Champenois from Egly-Ouriet — 10 years ago

Michael Knisley

9.5

This is MARGUET - NOT Egly-Ouriet — 10 years ago