Suzanne Hulsey

10

Had the distinct pleasure of enjoying this lovely vintage this evening with a nice bolognese - excellent! Initial taste after opening was nice but the longer it sat the more smooth it became. — 9 months ago

David Stein

9.4

Drinking better than the Baron on this evening. — 4 years ago

with MRM and Bruce

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

Well...this was one hell of a week. There is only one way to wind it down. Reach for an excellent bottle of vintage Champagne.

My first thoughts are how delicate this is on the palate. Further, how unbelievable it will be with another 8-10 years in bottle.

The nose shows; slightly sour lemon, the good parts of lemon Pledge, lemon meringue, white stone fruits, pineapple fresh with lots of juice, grapefruit, lime pulp, honeysuckle, soft, haunting caramel, brioche, limestone & slightly, dirty, grey volcanics, saline, sea fossils, sea spray, bread dough, vanilla, white spices-light ginger with spring flowers, mixed floral greens & lilies.

The body is light on its feet and dances on the palate. Delicacy abounds. Its soft, gorgeous mousse right there with the best money can buy. Slightly sour lemon, lemon meringue, green & with more bruised golden apple, white stone fruits, pineapple fresh with lots of juice, grapefruit, lime pulp, touch of apple cider, honeysuckle, soft, haunting caramel, ginger ale into cream soda, brioche, nougat, toffee notes, lighter nuts without skin, limestone & slightly, dirty, grey volcanics, saline, sea fossils, sea spray, bread dough, vanillin, marzipan, white spices-light ginger with spring flowers, mixed floral greens & lilies. The acidity is mellow yet lively, gorgeous and as good as it gets. The finish is all luxury. So well knitted & balanced, elegant, rich but not overpowering and gently persisting several minutes.

Photos of; The House of Taittinger, their caves so chalky white and built on the famous Crayères Cellars of Reims: 2.5 miles of tunnels (they own 1/4 to 1/3 of it) cut out of chalk by the Romans, the portrait of Thibaud IV who was a king, lord, manager, singer, conqueror, explorer & 11th century Crusader all rolled into one from which, this Cuvée was the catalyst creation and part of the 600 plus hectares they own in Champange.

Some producer notes; Taittinger's history can be traced back to 1734, when it was originally known as Forest-Fourneaux, founded by Jacques Fourneaux who worked closely with local Benedictine monks to learn how to produce wine. They were just the 3rd Champange house.

The estate was bought by the Taittingers – a family of wine merchants – in 1932, and thanks to the great depression and subsequent low land prices, the family also picked up huge swathes of vineyard. From 1945-1960, Francois Taittinger established the cellars in the Abbey of Saint-Nicaise, and after his death in 1960 his brother Claude took over, pushing the estate into a Champagne house of world renown. Such was the status of the label that the Taittinger family soon expanded its business into other luxury goods. However, this eventually led to financial difficulties, and in 2005 the Taittinger brand – including the Champagne house – was sold to the American owned Starwood Hotel Group. The sale was badly received by the Champagne industry, with many fearing the new owners – unfamiliar with the culture of Champagne – would put profit ahead of quality.

Just one year later, Claude’s nephew, Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger, who had always been opposed to the sale, negotiated a €660m deal with the Starwood Group, and the Taittinger family resumed ownership of the company.

In 2017, Taittinger planted its first vines in England, near a village in Kent, for its venture into English sparkling wine. The first bottle will be ready in 2023.

1/8/21 — 4 years ago

Neil Kudler

9.1

90% dark chocolate, black plum, long finish. Opens up with 20-30 minutes in the glass. — 7 years ago

T Hammond

9.0

Gift from Abigail and Nicholas — 7 years ago

Christian Fischer

9.3

The usual. Crisp and aromatic with a typical Krug touch. Great for a late summer evening — 9 months ago

Charlie Frago

9.0

Nice moderate priced red blend. Medium plus fruit forward, and tannins. Will buy another. — a year ago

MaJ CappS

9.0

Open for just an hour is all that is needed.

Carefully decanted, this has a nose of raspberry cedars.
Big boned, substantial, raspberry, blueberry, cedar stave, eucalyptus, classic Napa flavors here. A great showcase of the evening. — 4 years ago

Eric

9.3

Masking up and scanning your menu sucks but washing it down with a nice Pinot makes it better. — 5 years ago

Shay A

9.4

Monthly WTF wine group night. Our theme was American oak vs French oak. All wines tasted blind. We started off with two bottles of bubbly and finished with two non-themed reds.

My contribution for the evening. I’m posting my previous review of this wine below as it’s been consistent the few times I’ve had it over the last 12-18 months. Love these wines!

Youthful. Icredibly perfumed with typical sweet dill and coconut American oak on the nose. Gosh, I could smell this stuff all day. Aside from needing time away, it needs roughly an hour of decanting to hit stride. Tobacco, cherry tart, and great herbal nuances on the finish. — 6 years ago

with Jack, Ryan and 4 others

Randy Stilley

9.5

Very youthful for a ‘94. Awesome wine. Perfect for dinner on a cold evening. — 7 years ago

Martin G Rivard

9.8

Our buddy Bill Derrick on the left with the one and only David Page!!! Opened this 63 port from his cellar for us to enjoy at the end of a glorious evening. You can’t help but have a continuous shit eating grins when you are hanging out with these 2!! Great times., great times!! The one & only Ted Mandes structured this evening at David’s home and brought a team of culinary experts to prepare the feast. @Ted Mandes What Ted was able to structure was nothing short of AMAZING!! I believe 4 chefs were in attendance whom all created an individual course. Spectacular to say the least!! — 8 years ago

with Christine and Ted

Delectable Wine

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9.4

A smoky blend of crushed raspberries, sage, cola and crushed stones creates a seductive bouquet as the 2019 Pinot Noir La Source comes to life in the glass. This is soft yet lifted in feel, with tart red and blue fruits that swirl throughout as violet inner florals resonate toward the close. The 2019 finishes perfumed and long with an air of lavender and a tart blackberry twang that lingers over a bed of well-rounded tannins. This is the first vintage in which Sashi Moorman was entirely happy with the structural balance achieved in the Pinot Noir La Source. I must admit, it's a compelling wine. (Eric Guido, Vinous, August 2024)
— 9 months ago

Vino Joe

9.3

Excellent. Crisp savory and rolls across the tongue. Layers here and it is a great compliment to the special evening. — 3 years ago

Blair Campomizzi

9.1

Dark and rich. Red berry and cherry pop with some dried herd nots in the back ground. — 4 years ago

with Marilea

Jakub Kalinowski

9.4

Toscana wine evening #5
Infanticide, I know.
Reductive in the nose, even after 6h decanting. Very slowly, some bright, ripe cherry emerges, plus some tomato leaf and uplifting herby whiff.
Beautiful mouthfeel with finely grained tannins & bright cherry acidity. Currently the sun dried tomatoes and tomato leaf overpower the cherry, but this is really, really good. Just don’t open it for (at least) the next 5y.
A beautiful wine. — 5 years ago

Kurt Peterson

10

Excellent stuff — 6 years ago

Velma Cooper

9.2

Velma had this 6 years ago

Paul H

9.3

This was a missed photo from the birthday evening a couple of posts ago. Wonderful evening of indulgence and great conversations. Enjoying the life long efforts of the pursuit of excellence by two incredible men, Robert Mondavi and Jose Padrón — 7 years ago

Junaid Mohiuddin

9.4

Classic Pinot. Soft on the tongue but full of flavor. — 7 years ago