Ultimate Champagne Collectibles Tasting to finish off 2016!

If this were the last night on earth these are some of the greatest Champagnes that you could have on the table for this occaision, if you love Champagne this is a tasting that you don't want to miss!

All sparkling wines are not created equal and Champagne along with some of the finer examples of sparkling wines made with this same method established over the last few hundred years in France's northernmost wine region are the only examples of bubbly that you will find on the table tonight.

Champagne is the name of a region and therefore anything inside the boundaries of Champagne can use this name on their label, everything else is just sparkling wine.  The important thing to look for on the label when it comes to sparkling wines outside of the Champagne region is the method of production and if the words, methode champenoise are there were in business, this means that the sparkling wine in the bottle is made with the same standards that are used in the great wines from the Champagne region of France.

The secret to the finest tiny bubbles is that the secondary fermentation that adds the pop to Champagne happens in the bottle that you are serving it out of.  This is a very expensive and labor intensive method, most of the entry level sparklings made with this method spend 3 years aging before they get to the retail shelves.  The top level wines aka "Tete de Cuvee" sparkling wines can see 8-10 years or more in the cellar before release, the current release for most of these top level sparklers like Louis Roederer's Cristal are 2005 vintage or older.

Ultimate Collectible Champagne Tasting at Wine Watch to finish 2016
Wednesday, December 26th
7:30pm

1982 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon Rosé Magnum

"Yellow colour with hints of green. Honey and toasted almond on the nose. Copious, light effervescence. Elegant with a firm finish." Dominique Foulon, January 1988

The 1982 Harvest
Summer was warm, with perfect weather conditions up to and during harvesting, which began on September 17.

1985 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon Magnum

(94 points)  Medium lemon-straw colour. Praline and toasted hazelnut aromas dominate the nose with nuances of lemon curd and butterscotch. The palate is very rich with decadently silken texture and a high level of refreshing acidity. Predominately yeasty, brioche flavours are supplemented by a subtle earthy/savoury character and some minerality. Long, mineral coated praline finish. (LPB) (3/2009) Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

1986 Krug Clos Du Mesnil Brut Champagne
Price: $1475.00  Sale Price: $995.00

(98 points)  *Cellar Selection* Stops you in your tracks. Fascinating-from thebarrel-fermented coconut, vanilla, pineapple andmarmalade bouquet to the incredible richness andconcentration, this is an original. The peach,vanilla, honey and tangerine flavors ride a crest of bracing acidity, dry and forceful, to a lingering aftertaste of spring blossoms and hazelnut. (11/2000) Wine Spectator

1988 Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame Rose Brut Champagne

Price: $279.00    Sale Price: $195.00

1990 Salon Cuvee 'S' Le Mesnil Blanc de Blancs Brut Champagne
Price: $795.00   Sale Price: $595.00

The House of Salon makes no other wine, only this rare vintage tête de cuvée blanc de blancs, with grapes hand-selected from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger Grand Cru vineyard in the Côte des Blancs. Since 1911, vintages have been declared no more than four times a decade. Aged en tirage for eight to ten years and hand-disgorged when a specific order is received, Salon is long and creamy in flavor, slowly revealing its wondrous and unique splendors. Salon's 1985, 1988, and 1990 vintages are among the most highly praised consecutive releases from a single Champagne house.

The 1990 vintage is only the 33rd vintage produced since the creation of the House of Salon in 1911. It is certainly one of the greatest vintages ever produced. The year began inauspiciously in the Côte des Blancs, with an early bud-break severely damaged by two frosts in April; forty-five percent of the vineyards were hit. June was wet and cold, resulting in further losses from coulure and millerandage. A miserable beginning, but as if to compensate, the remainder of the summer was glorious. Exceptional ripening conditions prevailed for the growing season, without cessation even through harvest. The harvest began on September 14th in Le Mesnil, with Chardonnay of unusual homogeneity and high acidity, promising greatness.

Salon 1990 tasting notes: The color is deep gold, with a fine and delicate mousse. An aromatic explosion of lemon, lime, and spices amidst very floral notes greets the nose and gives a freshness to the bouquet. The taste is structured, with an ever-present but not aggressive acidity, which will allow it to age far over twenty years. This wine melds seemingly impossible contradictions – ample yet delicate, creamy acidity, dense yet elegant.

1990 Veuve Cliquot La Grande Dame Brut Champagne

(96 points)  Rich, multidimensional, highly aromatic nose of pear, red berries, apple, honey, toast and spice. Extremely rich and concentrated, with its medium to full body leavened by bright citrus notes and compelling minerality. Great inner-mouth aromas. Conveys an impression of powerful yet remarkably fine raw materials. The spicy finish offers exceptional persistence and richness. (ST) (12/1999) Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

1992 Krug Clos Du Mesnil Brut Champagne

Krug Clos de Mesnil comes from an ancient enclosed walled, 4.5 acre 17th century vineyard! The ultimate Blanc de Blancs, and the most exalted Chardonnay sparkling plot on earth. This legendary Champagne has an initial impression of crisp freshness spilling into notes of biscuit, orange blossom, melon and Frangipane.

1996 Salon Blancs De Blancs Brut Champagne
List Price: $595.00   Sale Price: $495.00

(98 points)  The 1996 Salon is just beginning to enter the early part of its plateau of maturity. Time in bottle has softened some of the razor-sharp focus the 1996 had when it was first released, but all of the energy it had as a young Champagne remains. A host of candied lemon, almonds and wild flowers punctuate the sculpted, persistent finish. Readers who own the 1996 can look forward to another two decades or more of exceptional drinking. This is the ultimate expression of Champagne as wine. (AG) (6/2016) Vinous

1996 Veuve Clicquot Gold Label Rare Vintage Brut Champagne (375ml)
Price: $59.00    Sale Price: $39.00
Quantity in Stock: 21

Menu
Passed
Caviar stuffed potatoes
Siracha & wasabi deviled eggs
Seared shrimp with jalapeno syrup

On the table
mini cheddar bacon  biscuits with house made creamy salted raspberry butter

First course
tuna carpaccio with grapefruit segments and honey-cardamom aioli

Dinner course
Luau Lamb chops (pineapple-orange-ginger) with indian scented buttermilk mash

Dessert course
lemon infused trifle pound cake with fresh strawberries and house whipped cream

There are only 12 seats available for this event, the fee for this tasting is $395+ tax for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.

Ultimate Collectible Champagne Tasting at Wine Watch to finish 2016
Wednesday, December 26th
7:30pm

1982 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon Rosé Magnum

(92 Points)  "A beautifully mature, mellow Champagne that has lots to offer the serious connoisseur. Almost Burgundian in flavor, with mushroom, spice and almond accents to the core of honey and cherry. The flavors linger and blend on the finish. Drink now." - Wine Spectator (Dec 31, 1994)

1985 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon Magnum

(94-96 points) Greeny gold hue. An aromatic, almost herbaceous nose with greengage and honeysuckle - very complex. Palate is rich and fresh with notes of grass, apple and honey. This is a big, flamboyant champagne. Very long although the 1990 has a bit more style in my humble opinion. Tasted May 2002. (Neil Martin's Wine Journal) (8/2008) Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

1986 Krug Clos Du Mesnil Brut Champagne

(98 points) *Cellar Selection* Stops you in your tracks. Fascinating-from thebarrel-fermented coconut, vanilla, pineapple andmarmalade bouquet to the incredible richness andconcentration, this is an original. The peach,vanilla, honey and tangerine flavors ride a crest of bracing acidity, dry and forceful, to a lingering aftertaste of spring blossoms and hazelnut. (11/2000) Wine Spectator

1990 Salon Cuvee 'S' Le Mesnil Blanc de Blancs Brut Champagne

Salon 1990 tasting notes: The color is deep gold, with a fine and delicate mousse. An aromatic explosion of lemon, lime, and spices amidst very floral notes greets the nose and gives a freshness to the bouquet. The taste is structured, with an ever-present but not aggressive acidity, which will allow it to age far over twenty years. This wine melds seemingly impossible contradictions – ample yet delicate, creamy acidity, dense yet elegant.

1990 Veuve Cliquot La Grande Dame Brut Champagne

(95 Points) I highly recommend the Veuve Clicquot 1990 La Grande Dame. It is exquisitely rich and accessible, yet bursting with potential. Wine Advocate #119 Oct 1998

1992 Krug Clos Du Mesnil Brut Champagne

95(+?) points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar: "Subdued, extremely pure, soil-inflected nose hints at lemon, ginger, smoke, minerals, iodine, nutmeg and hazelnut. From a sniff, I would have been as likely to say Le Montrachet or Corton-Charlemagne as Mesnil, but I would certainly have named one of the planet's elite sites for chardonnay. Very laid-back and dry, even austere today, with an extremely fine-grained texture and penetrating flavors of minerals, citrus skin, flowers and hazelnut. A thoroughly unevolved wine of great intensity and subtlety. Seems to grow even denser toward the back, but the bracing finish suggests that this great Champagne should really be forgotten for another four or five years." (Nov/Dev 04)

1996 Salon Blancs De Blancs Brut Champagne

“Green-tinged gold. Incredibly complex, intense bouquet of smoky, leesy orange, pear, licorice, minerals and bitter quinine. The superconcentrated citrus, quince and pear liqueur flavors convey an almost painful impression of extract and positively explode across the palate. Elegant, poised and precise in a manner rare for a wine with such flavor intensity. The vibrant, minerally, extremely long finish simply doesn't let up. This should age effortlessly for a decade or two.”  International Wine Cellar