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 — 3 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.6

Nice regal gold hue. Amazing pit fruit and wet stone nose. Plus notes of apricot, white clay soil, salty ocean breeze and some Raveneau honey on the finish. Rich and powerful in the mouth. Coats the palate with lots of fruit and fine grained acidity. I’ve had this a few times and this was at its best. Great Raveneau at age 30 is an amazing treat. — 4 years ago

Thomas koelblen

9.1

Fruity and strong — 5 years ago

Rob Sternthal

9.2

A lighter Cabernet with a slightly sweet taste. Not overpowering in any way. Slight tannins. — 6 years ago

Kathleen Phan

9.2

Brunch in Palm Springs for Tara’s 40th. Smooth and light! — 6 years ago

Phillip Antley

9.0

Dark fruits, chocolate, some pepper. — 7 years ago

Jason Case

9.0

Mag #1 - age, soil, berries, beauty. Central coast star — 7 years ago

with Alex

Jonathan Bleasel

9.0

Smells a bit swampy, deep red fruit, fine sweet bright minerally palate. — 8 years ago

with Kate

Joe Carroll

Owner/Wine Director Spuyten Duyvil, Fette Sau, St. Anselm & Gotham Artisanal Provisions

9.2

Odd for a restaurant (with a Michelin star) to sell wine like this but not have decanters or stemware. — 9 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.4

Medium gold, heavy in the glass. Awesome aged Raveneau nose. Notes of citrus, kimmeridgian white stone and light colored dirt, some honey, some spice. Great mouth feel, with acidity that powered up over 4-5 hours. Awesome with some angel hair pasta and shrimp, looking out over the Kohala Coast. — 3 years ago

caleb tenenbaum

9.2

liked enough to buy again! — 4 years ago

Peter A. Muth

8.9

I had a fruity to oak/earthy experience. Fruit up front Oak to Earth on the finish.
$10.+ at Costco.
Went well with my steak-filled salad...as well as with my chocolate-covered walnuts afterwards. — 4 years ago

Avery Plank

9.3

2016 is 83% Zin & 17% Petite Sirah. More Zin than 2015. Again, if you miss the old Prisoner this is the wine for you. — 4 years ago

Chris Reilly

8.9

Really solid orange wine. Lots of tannins, not too much funk. Really nice. — 5 years ago

Sean Christensen

9.0

Like a flat sour beer — 5 years ago

Alexander Miller

8.9

Cab Franc is so underrated. Usually like French ones better but this one is awesome for Ca. Still has that vegetal quality but rounded out with tons of big Cali vibes fruit. Medium tanin. Yum. — 6 years ago

Jörgen Lindström Carlvik

Owner, Brix Wine Consultants

9.2

Gideon Beinstock produces some of the worlds most exciting wines and this vintage has now finally entered the plateau of pleasurable drinking. Complex and layered with smoke and tarry notes. — 6 years ago

Martin G Rivard

9.4

My favorite Napa field blend. Huge dark fruit nose., not for the faint of heart!! It is drinking incredibly well. Decanted 6 hours prior to drinking... was silky smooth yet with incredible intensity and depths of flavored. 😍 love it! This was the 3rd wine opened — 8 years ago

with Roderic, Cindy and 3 others

John Skupny - Lang & Reed Wine Company

8.9

2013 - very nice Chenin with some substance and charm. — 9 years ago

Kelsey Dean

9.0

From their new Stone Flat Vineyard-Sonoma Coast.
Young but really balanced, buttery Chard. — 9 years ago

with Benjamin

Mike Saviage

9.6

Light gold. Looks young. Took 5 hours to open up and show its stuff. In hour 6 this was cruising. Saline and sea shells, wispy lemon fruit, some honey, some white stone. The guesses from the fellas were 2002 Rav Clos and 1996 Rav Valmur. Shows how these properly stored aged Raveneaus can age effortlessly. — 4 years ago

Alton Komori

9.2

2015 - Luscious honey nectar like bouquet, golden hue, medium heavy body, slightly acidic, pineapple notes, medium long finish. — 4 years ago

Eric W Brown

9.1

Very good chardonnay — 4 years ago

G

9.6

2009 is perfect! And, I love these tiny bottles! — 4 years ago

Connor Smith

9.1

Finger. Lakes. Saperavi.

If this ain’t American winemaking in the 21st century we don’t know what is! 🇺🇸🍷🇬🇪🍇

At least, that’s what we were thinking before reading up on Standing Stone and founders Marti & Tom Macinski. They actually first planted this fascinating Georgian grape here in ***1994*** (just 3 years after Georgia left the USSR, for those keeping score at home) intended for blending.

Increasingly impressed by the quality of the grapes, they offered their first varietal Saperavi in 2010 - as “The Dark Red”, since the grape name was as yet unrecognized by the federal government. Once it was, they became the first American winery to release a wine labeled Saperavi.

Fine tuned to the cold, high mountains of Kakheti in eastern Georgia, it makes sense why it would thrive in the Finger Lakes! The name Saperavi literally means “ink”, a sensible name for a grape with pitch-dark skin AND flesh! 🖤

Marti and Tom sold the winery and retired in 2017. But their enduring legacy may just be budding. We’ve heard of Saperavi planting projects underway in New York, Virginia, and Oregon.

Saperavi’s runaway affinity for the Finger Lakes may have been a bit of a happy accident, but the Macinskis deserve every bit of credit for thinking outside the box, putting it in motion, and bringing it to fruition! 🙌🙌🙌 — 5 years ago

Amanda Thomas

9.1

Mineral and floral notes. Not very much fruit. Super refreshing! — 5 years ago

with Tim

Jason Gaffner

9.3

Like if Margaux had a lil sonoma baby — 6 years ago

TheSkip

9.8

Finest IPA in the land. #micdrop — 7 years ago

Amanda

10

Spoon and stable. Great food, better company — 8 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.4

Boyz Raveneau tasting. Light straw color. Honeyed nose with light fruit. Soil and stone notes in the mouth to go with lovely Chablis fruit Tight at first but really opened up nicely. — 9 years ago