Aaron Tan

9.4

Every champagne lover should get to know Fabrice Gass! His tiny estate in Damery, Alexandre Filaine, was a great discovery for me this year. Age-old story of minuscule production, biodynamic farming, and upholding tradition. This older bottling of his NV was stunning and perhaps one of the best I've had recently.

2012 base, with some 2011 blended in as reserve. 2/3 Pino, the rest Chard, and a touch of Meunier. No dosage, no malo, and fermented in old Bollinger barrels - Fabrice's keepsake from his last gig.

Elegant, with laser focus but impressive body. On the nose, super chalky, floral, green apples, pears, and brioche. The palate's incredibly vinous. A complexity that ebbs and flows, with a length that matches. Quite rich and showing some oddly fresh grassy tones. Citrus pith and really mineral on the back notes. What a joy to sip on! — 7 years ago

Hayley McCord

9.8

My go to rose. Reminds me of my birthday during the spring! Vibrant, joyful and fresh- the nose brings a delicate floral note and strawberries. The palate has lime zest, candied/salt dipped strawberries, ripe raspberries and cherry blossoms. Very balanced and tastes structured for such a young wine. If I was stranded on an island with one wine for the rest of my life this might be it. — 7 years ago

Chris England

8.9

Bargain quality Chablis @ £12 & it's hard to beat on price - 88-90 every vintage & my go to @ this price 👍 a true ☀️ glugger 😎

🍷 Light golden yellow w/ lime hue

👃 Fresh wet rock mineral mist, citrus, green tart & sweet apples, melon & white flowers with a touch of fuel, grapefruit & pear

👄 Crisp refreshing med bodied full fruit palate of slight creamy sour green apples, citrus & touch grapefruit w/ medium tart acidity

🎯 Long dry finish of citrus & sour green apples smashed over wet mineral rocks — 8 years ago

Hugh Preece

9.1

Bright straw green. On the palate melon, green apple, peach apples. clean long fresh honeyed note at the back. lovely & one of my favorite Souve
— 9 years ago

Bradley Brown

Owner/Winemaker Big Basin Vineyards

9.1

Awesome fresh and vibrant lunchtime bistro wine — 9 years ago

Andrew Fortgang

9.8

1996. drinking fresh and vibrant. Tons of minerality and crisp citrus in rear. Lucious midplate — 10 years ago

Matt

9.2

One of my favorite wines. Fresh and vibrant fruits. Ripe pears, tropical tones like pineapple, meyer lemon, and chalk. Smooth and seamless on the palate. — 10 years ago

Jason Heller

Master Sommelier

9.3

Extra credit since the other Michel didn't carry its weight. Fresh, vibrant and singing with secondaries. #napaearthquakelabels — 10 years ago

Andrew Lampasone

Owner Wine Watch Selections

9.1

Fruit cocktail pears apples and tangerine dry Riesling 6 grams of residual. Fresh and fruity with crisp green apple fruit and white flowers the fruit is from sagemoor farms. Finish 35+ excellent — 11 years ago

Tom Higgins

Owner/Winemaker Heart & Hands Wine Company

10

Incredible. Apricot, honey and fig hanging on the nose and pushing through the palate. Beautiful balance with the sweetness and acid. Fresh and vibrant - can last another 50. — 12 years ago

Greg Koslosky

9.5

Wow the best young Gimmonet special club I have tasted . Perfect balance , mineral driven with stone fruits , apples , lots of depth but super elegant and fresh as well . — 7 years ago

Loren Grossman

Vintner Wilde Farm Wines

9.4

Fresh, Fuji apples, oleander, peach and lavender. So good! — 7 years ago

Daniel Wisner

9.0

Pale straw color. Is that term overdone? Oh well, it fits.

Golden delicious apples and buttered bread.

Smells more acidic than it tastes, but it's doing a good job helping to wash away the last old fashioned. Has a warm, fresh bread invitation luring me in.

From other folks, looks like it is sub $40 champagne. Will have to acquire some for regular sipping. — 8 years ago

MattDamone

9.0

Bread, Yeast, Fresh Apples, and Lime. Mild and nice bubbles. — 8 years ago

Ron Siegel

9.5

This was a great old Dom, showing some tea & tangerine citrus along with toffee & brioche still very vibrant and fresh. — 9 years ago

Bradley Brown

Owner/Winemaker Big Basin Vineyards

9.8

So fresh, vibrant and perfect. Could last so much longer — 9 years ago

Stephen Mandy

9.5

Remarkably fresh vibrant and classic. Rich fruit with notes of cedar and cassis. Haunting finish - will go many more years! — 9 years ago

Ivan Georgiev

9.3

Crisp and fresh acidity, with a light fizz and light body. Notes of apples, pears, herbs like sage and floral notes. A champagne like feel but without the prolonged carbonation. — 10 years ago

Carlo Mondavi

Owner/Winegrower RAEN Winery, Partner Continuum

9.4

Great texture... Mouth filling and delicious. fresh white peach, lime blossom with vibrant but not over the top acidity. Lovely wine — 10 years ago

Tim Parkhouse DWS, CWE

9.5

Amazingly fresh & vibrant. Haunting! Hard to beat classic Barolo with age. Chambolle silk meets tar & roses. — 10 years ago

Peter Marks

Master of Wine, Educator Constellation Brands

9.9

8+ years on the yeast. Incredibly complex - bread doughy, spiced apples, pear and fresh cream. Wow! — 11 years ago

Chris England

9.2

A new Blanc de Blancs champagne recommended to me in St Emilion @ £50-£60 and I was ms told “When the great Champagne house Salon choose not to produce a vintage, all the grapes go into Delamotte!” 😮

🏵 92-93 points

📍 Delamotte BdB Champagne 2008

🍷 Light golden straw yellow

👃 Fresh baked shortbread biscuit, saline over crushed rock minerals, baked whole lemon, green apples & creamy honey infused vanilla custard

👄 Med bodied fine bubbled mousse of citrus, grapefruit sours, green apple & dry minerals

🎯 Long sweet, sour & dry mineral filled citrus & tart green apple creamy refreshing finale

🌞 Suntastic 😎
— 7 years ago

Kevin Cahoon

9.4

The nose is fresh and youthful with lemon peel, green apple, blood orange with a herbal tinged, mineral accent. Really develops with air and gets fresher and more mineral with lime zest, lemon verbena and green apple flavors. Super focused finish. Juicy, vibrant mineral citrus fruit finish., This should continue add complexity and weight. — 7 years ago

Jeff Henderson

9.3

Wow... everything you love about a great Brouilly and more. Ultra fresh, vibrant red and a touch of underlying black fruit. Minerality and acidity were excellent. Delicious! — 8 years ago

Lee Pitofsky

9.5

Vibrant and intense....notes of toasted brioche, golden apples, ripe pear, spices — 9 years ago

Kyle Groombridge

9.3

What a delicious and aromatic Pinot noir. Speaks to oregon's elegance and nuance. The nose is so gorgeous with floral tones, market cherry, pomegranate, and ethereal tones that I can't even describe. The palate is fresh, lean, and vibrant, with pomegranate and a touch of cinnamon spice. Cranberry on the finish. This wine gave me an experience - something wine should do, but hasn't lately. Phenomenal value for the money, showing the vintage, lean but precise and edgy. — 9 years ago

Rajiv Ayyangar

9.5

Expressive fresh baguette with tremendous complexity. Apples - green, browned, and apple core. Flinty toast notes, slight impression of dark berries (Meunier!).
In the mouth, a moderately fine-bubbled, powerful mousse. Detailed apple fruit, with more brioche autolytic hints. Bone dry with crazy high acid (zero dosage and tastes like it), but the ripeness makes it work. A strong impression of stony mineral notes with faint tannins - it actually seems chalky on the finish. 

I like this more than any champagne I’ve had - the palate is mineral and acid-driven, and there’s more aromatic complexity here than I’ve ever gotten on Champagne.  — 9 years ago

with Tim

Martin Redmond

9.1

Pale yellow color with plentiful active tiny bubbles and marzipan, almond, pear, subtle citrus and a hint of smoke aromas. On the palate, it's refined, lively and fresh with a delicate creamy mousse, and apricot, apples, pear and lemon curd flavors dominate but hints of grapefruit, black currant and an appealing smoky minerality play in the background. Long finish. Cuvee 2011 Disgorged 2014. 40% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir, 20% Pinot Meunier 5% of wines matured in oak cask with weekly battonage - 10% of reserve wines matured in casks. Partial ML. Assemblage of 6 vintages from 40 different plots. Matured 3 years in cellar and 6 mo after disgorgement. Dosage between 10 adn 11 g/L. My favorite under $40 Champagne! — 10 years ago

Benton Wong

9.5

Still young. Fresh, vibrant, lemon and chalk. Very focused. — 10 years ago

John Kemper

9.8

I dug deep in the cellar for this one, but the '93 Joseph Phelps Red Bordeaux Blend 'Insignia' amply delivered. Decanted for three hours, this dark purple/crimson blend was remarkably fresh and vibrant with lovely scents of black currant, red licorice and eucalyptus. Tons of black cherry, black pepper and cigar box flavors on the palate. Well-balanced and silky smooth on the long aromatic finish. Still plenty of life remaining and I luckily have two more bottles. — 11 years ago