Best Champagne under 100 Dollars
6BOTTLZ (Very Rare)
Pol Roger Brut Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $50.00
92 Pointz James Suckling
A complex, reliable Champagne that would show well in all occasions thanks to its freshness and class. Drawing on all three grapes (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier), this has a complex grilled-nut and autolysis character overlayed across red berries and citrus fruits. Definitely a lot of reserve wine character here. The palate delivers lemons, grapefruit, peaches and mangoes in a refreshingly pure, fleshy style. The bright acidity, handy balance and tannins smoothly frame the finish.
92 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Straw yellow and with a golden hue in color, the Pol Roger NV Réserve Brut displays a brilliant, perfectly ripe but also fresh, highly elegant and refined fruit aroma on the nose; think of cooked pip fruits like pears and apples, but also quince-confiture and yellow stone fruits, such as apricots and peaches intermixed with vanilla, brioche (pain aux raisins), some nutty flavors and also some white floral notes.
On the palate, this medium-bodied Brut is as round (if not pretty sweet) and fruit-driven as it is delicate, pure and very elegant. The mousse is deliciously fine and leads this charming and perfectly balanced fizz to a long, aromatic, stunningly dry and slightly mineral, impressively long finish. This is extremely well done Champagne from equal parts of Pinot Noir, Meunier and Chardonnay sourced in 30 different crus. This Réserve includes 25% of reserve wines and was dosed with nine grams per liter.
92 Pointz James Suckling
A complex, reliable Champagne that would show well in all occasions thanks to its freshness and class. Drawing on all three grapes (chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier), this has a complex grilled-nut and autolysis character overlayed across red berries and citrus fruits. Definitely a lot of reserve wine character here. The palate delivers lemons, grapefruit, peaches and mangoes in a refreshingly pure, fleshy style. The bright acidity, handy balance and tannins smoothly frame the finish.
92 Pointz Wine & Spirits
A great disgorgement of Pol Roger’s basic Brut, a blend that includes 25 percent reserve wines, this is a gracious, red-fruited Champagne. Though the wines go through malolactic, this emphasizes freshness, with a tingle of ginger and mineral acidity lifting the flavors in the finish
92 Pointz Wine Spectator
An elegant Champagne, with a smoky, minerally underpinning and subtle flavors of poached pear, toast, candied lemon zest and ginger riding the finely detailed bead. Harmonious, and hard to stop sipping. Drink now through 2020. 10,000 cases imported.
91 Pointz Decanter
Pol is always a great Champagne to serve to your guests: a classy, balanced expression of the three grape varieties allowed by law. It has plenty of rich apple fruit along with a streak of lemon zest and just a hint of juicy tangerine. The palate is round but fresh, and has a long, steely finish which leaves you wanting another sip.
90 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
This is a well-balanced, ripe wine in the producer’s rich house style. A brighter, more mineral crispness and acidity also come through strongly in this bottling. The aftertaste brings together a mineral texture and full yellow and apple fruits.
Lanson le Black Label Brut Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $50.00
92 Pointz Decanter
50% Pinot Noir, 35% Chardonnay and 15% Meunier from 100 villages in all, and including 30% reserves from 10 vintages back to 1995; a small proportion now being produced with malolactic. Black Label remains the confident barometer of Lanson, and Hervé Dantan’s first blend is a class act, a resounding statement of his talent in preserving the style and integrity of the house while meticulously polishing the edges. It’s a very important cuvée in the grand scheme of Champagne: one of the best and most consistent of the bargain set.
92 Pointz James Suckling
A fresh, balanced palate with green apples, pie crust and pears. Medium body, fine bubbles and a crisp, dry finish. Nice center palate. Four years on the lees. Drink now.
91 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
The classic Lanson nonvintage label sums up the dry style of the house, with its emphasis on crisp fruit, a taut, almost mineral texture and an ability to age in the bottle. It can be drunk now although it will mature further.
91 Pointz Wine Spectator
This creamy Champagne is bright and citrusy, offering an expressive and well-meshed mix of ripe blackberry, pastry dough and pickled ginger flavors. Racy finish. Disgorged October 2016. Drink now through 2021.
90 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Disgorged in January 2018, the latest release of Lanson’s NV Brut Black Label is showing well, offering up aromas of warm biscuits, crisp orchard fruit, dried citrus rind and toasted brioche. On the palate, it’s medium to full-bodied and crisp but fleshy, with the house’s non-malo style tempered by a generous core of fruit, concluding with a long, chalky finish. This is a very creditable non-vintage cuvée that has the cut and structure to evolve in the cellar.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits Best Buy
With brisk flavors ranging from green apple to orange and red raspberry, this wine emphasizes fresh fruit and chalky limestone acidity. It’s clean and simply presented, ready to pour with briny oysters.
Billecart-Salmon Brut Reserve Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $60.00
95 Pointz Decanter
A fine straw-gold colour with great finesse of bubble flow and mousse. Joyful aromas of apple blossom and ripe pear. A full, defined palate demonstrates richness that will help to give this a long life in the cellar.
91 Pointz James Suckling
Plenty of ripe strawberries and wild raspberries on the nose here. Really attractive and vibrant in the mouth with fresh wild strawberries. It also shows a fleshy, fresh-fruit texture. Drink now.
91 Pointz Wine & Spirits
This blend includes 40 percent pinot meunier, the balance equal parts pinot noir and chardonnay. Its remarkable fruitiness might be tied to the firm’s long, slow, cool fermentations, which, they believe, allow meunier to maintain its perfume. This is a graceful, vinous Champagne with dramatic high notes of roses and red fruit, finishing clean with a grounding of pale earthiness. It’s a lovely prediction of what Champagne might become in a warming climate.
91 Pointz Wine Spectator
A harmonious Champagne that’s satiny in texture, framing flavors of Asian pear, star fruit, pastry and honey with mouthwatering acidity. Offers a fine and creamy finish. Drink now through 2021.
90 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
The cuvée from this great Champagne producer is dry, fruity with a fine line of minerality. That is balanced by the apple and crisp citrus-fruit flavors coming together in a vibrant, textured wine.
90 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
The Billecart-Salmon NV Brut Réserve is a blend of 40% Pinot Meunier (sourced in the Vallée de la Marne and the Coteaux Sud d’Epernay), 30% Chardonnay (from different villages along the Marne) and 30% Pinot Noir (from the Montagne de Reims and the Grande Vallée de la Marne). The recent disgorgement from January 2018 is straw-yellow in color and based 40% on the 2015 harvest, with 60% of reserve wines. The result is a light and delicately fruity flavored cuvée with aromatic and spicy
Pinot Meunier and redcurrant aromas intertwined with chalky expressions and notes of ripe pears and yeast. Round and fresh on the palate, this is a light, finessed, elegant, very delicate and harmoniously fruity Brut with a stunningly intense, persistent, well-structured and purely salty finish. Very stimulating as a soloist, aperitif or with lighter dishes.
Bollinger Brut Special Cuvee Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $80.00
96 Pointz Decanter
60% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay, 15% Meunier sourced from more than 300 crus, including 85% grands and premiers crus; 15% fermented in old oak barrels. The complexity and richness of Special Cuvée is unparalleled among the entry non-vintage blends of every Champagne house, short of ascending to the mesosphere of Krug. Its grand recipe explains why, built on incredible depth of 50%-60% reserves. Triumphant complexity is a given at Bollinger, but it’s the dynamic freshness and vitality that really set it apart as one of the most affordable Champagne benchmarks.
93 Pointz Wine Spectator
This harmonious Champagne is wonderfully vibrant as it dances across the palate, with the satinlike mousse carrying flavors of white cherry, Marcona almond and ground coffee that show accents of candied kumquat, ginger, aromatic verbena and graphite. A streak of racy salinity emerges on mouthwatering finish. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier.
92 Pointz James Suckling
Fine bubbles combine nicely with the cooked apples, pie crust and lemon rind. Some biscuit, too. Full body. Layered and creamy with a crisp finish. Always delicious. Drink now.
92 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Disgorged in May 2021, the latest rendition of Bollinger’s NV Brut Special Cuvée is showing beautifully, offering up aromas of ripe orchard fruit, citrus oil and peach, mingled with hints of walnuts and freshly baked bread. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and enveloping, with a generous core of fruit, lively acids and a pillowy mousse, it’s seamless and complete, concluding with an expansive fin
92 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
As always with this producer, this iconic nonvintage cuvée is dominated by Pinot Noir that gives impressive richness as well as ripe stone fruits. Wood fermentation adds further complexity as does the age of this bottling before release. Drink this Champagne now.
92 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Disgorged in May 2021, the latest rendition of Bollinger’s NV Brut Special Cuvée is showing beautifully, offering up aromas of ripe orchard fruit, citrus oil and peach, mingled with hints of walnuts and freshly baked bread. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and enveloping, with a generous core of fruit, lively acids and a pillowy mousse, it’s seamless and complete, concluding with an expansive finish.
91 Pointz Wine & Spirits
Cool and generous, this is a bold, lusty Champagne with pinot-inspired scents of violets and flavors of dark berries, the wine structured by its time in oak. It’s a vinous Brut, Foodsuited to roast fish and light game.
Food
5BOTTLZ
Ayala Brut Majeur Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $40.00
91 Pointz James Suckling
Peaches, dried raspberries, croissants, toasted hazelnuts, lemon curd and some honey on the nose. Medium-to full-bodied and round with bright acidity and fine bubbles. Flavorful, with ripe and honeyed character. Relatively dry. Chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier. Drink now.
91 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
Part of the Bollinger group, this nonvintage cuvée is sophisticated, with ripe fruit, acidity and tangy orange-zest flavors all in balance. A final fresh twist gives a great lift.
90 Pointz Decanter
Broad, expressive nose – lots of yeastiness on display, plus spice, floral and some toffee and caramel notes. The palate is clean and precise, showing elegant fruit characters and some burnt biscuit flavors too. Classic Champagne style, very conventional but decent complexity.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits
Luscious ripeness lends this wine a quince-like flavor, feeling round and generous against the chalky briskness of Champagne. For all its fruitiness, this is dry, firm and grounded, a clean aperitif or the first-course wine for a rabbit terrine.
90 Pointz Wine Spectator
Smoke and forest floor notes lead the way here, with the chalky texture carrying subtle flavors of grilled nut, lemon meringue and dried currant. Balanced, offering smoke details on the fresh finish.
Laurent-Perrier La Cuvee Brut Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $50.00
93 Pointz James Suckling
The brioche and cooked-apple and cream character really comes through here. Full-bodied and round with fine bubbles. Flavorful and intense. Vivid, bread-dough finish. This is four years on lees. 55% Chardonnay and the rest Pinot Noir.
90 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
The Laurent-Perrier NV Brut is a blend of 50% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot Noir and 15% Meunier, and is based on 2009 plus 15-30% reserve wines from two or three vintages. Citrus colored, this signature LP has a refined, fresh and elegant nose with brioche and delicate citrus flavors. Lean, refined and elegant on the palate, this is a dry and silky textured, vivacious, and perfectly fresh and balanced aperitif Champagne. It does not have the opinion-dividing thrill and tension of the Ultra Brut, but will probably find more friends.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits Best Buy
This wine’s fresh fruit and firm structure match bright lemon zest flavors with limestone severity. The fine bubbles add to the clean sensation of the finish. It’s spicy, tight and formidable, a wine to kick-start a dinner party.
90 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
Fresh and crisp, this is bright with acidity as well as warmer fruitiness. It brings out the dry Laurent-Perrier style, balanced by soft creamed apples and fragrant acidity. Light and fruity at the end, it is ready to drink.
90 Pointz Wine Spectator
Lightly toasty and vibrant, this balanced Champagne carries flavors of melon, black currant, lemon preserves and smoky mineral on a fine, lively mousse.
Henriot Brut Souverain Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $50.00
92 Pointz Decanter
Toasty nose. Well-mannered with a creamy mousse, an impressive light texture, bready flavours and light mineral notes on the finish.
91 Pointz James Suckling
A fresh, clean champagne with sliced apple, pear and lots of mineral character. Full to medium body, crisp acidity and a long finish. Lots of citrus undertones. Bright and steely. This is mostly 2009, with the remainder from reserve wines. Four years on the lees. This is very focused. 50% Chardonnay and 50% Pinot Noir.
91 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
Bright white fruits and a fine balance between richness and crisp acidity are the hallmarks of the nonvintage Champagne from this producer. Perfumed and with delicious apple and peach fruits, the bottling is ready to drink. Editors’ Choice.
91 Pointz Wine Spectator
A touch of vanilla-laced pastry cream sweetness accents this fresh and focused Champagne, with a fine mousse. This is well-balanced by crunchy acidity and flavors of lemon peel, green pear and spring blossom. Drink now through 2022.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits Best Buy
Brut Souverain is almost equal parts chardonnay and pinot noir, with five percent pinot meunier; reserve wines account for 30 percent of the blend, enriching it with bready notes and almond-like touches of maturity. The richness gives it a sweet impression, integrated into the tangy notes of cider and mint, then lasting on chalky savor. This would make a rich aperitif, or a partner to thinly sliced roast veal.
Louis Roederer Brut Premier Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $55,00
94 Pointz Decanter
42% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay, 18% Meunier from 55% estate vineyards; 16% fermented and matured in oak casks; 30% malolactic. The rise and evolution of this cuvée over the past 15 years, and particularly since the construction of its dedicated facility in 2007, has showed no sign of slowing today, as Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon continues his fanatical regime of experimenting, tweaking and refining every detail. I’ve long adored Brut Premier, a grand pinnacle and dependable bargain in the non-vintage Champagne stakes.
93 Pointz James Suckling
This has a core of fresh, extremely fleshy and attractive peaches and lemons from a ripe year. The delicacy and purity of this Champagne is stunning, as is its gently powerful nature. Such great purity here. In great form!p>
92 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Based on the 2015 vintage, complemented by 25% reserve wines, the latest rendition of Laurent Roederer’s NV Brut Premier is showing nicely, opening in the glass with aromas of crisp yellow orchard fruit, Anjou pear, white peach, pastry cream and subtle hints of freshly baked bread. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and complete, with a delicate pinpoint mousse, ripe but racy acids and exquisite balance, this is a beautiful Brut Premier that will age in style; indeed, it will be even better with some bottle age. This is among the finest examples in its category and comes warmly recommended.
92 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
Always a fine nonvintage cuvée, this richly textured Champagne has weight to go with the wine’s structured fruitiness. White fruits are laced with lime juice and this bottling has a hint of age in its nutty background.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits
Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon allows some malolactic conversion in the wines for Brut Premier, which include some purchased fruit (all of Roederer’s vintage wines are estate grown). That buttercream note is immediately apparent in this latest release, but if you give it time to open—or a year in the cellar—the initial richness gains tension and chalky savor. It’s a generous aperitif.
Bruno Paillard Premiere Cuvee Reiews
Suggested Retail Price $55.00
A blend of 45% Pinot Noir, 33% Chardonnay, 22% Pinot Meunier
92 Pointz Decanter
A whiff of flint precedes fresh lemon notes that pervade the entire wine with vivid freshness. The palate is taut and bright, with a rather salty, iodine savoriness. Lovely depth from the great proportion of reserve wines. The finish is brisk, with citrus and umami.
91 Pointz James Suckling
An attractive, fresh mix of citrus and peach fruits here. The gently spicy, biscuity complexity sits amid nicely played autolysis characters that make this fresh and lively. The palate has plenty of bright and sweet-peach and melon-fruit flavors. It’s really easygoing, in fact, displaying generous punchy flavors and zesty acid crunch that holds it all together.
91 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
The NV Brut Première Cuvée (Disgorged 07/2016) has a bright straw-gold color. The blend of Pinot Noir (45%), Chardonnay (33%) and Pinot Meunier (22%) opens with a clear, fresh and open, very elegant and generous bouquet of bright, ripe fruits (melons, lemons) with beautiful chalk, brioche and toast flavors as well as emerging notes of sweet cherries and wild strawberries. Nice purity. This is a highly elegant, fresh, textured and tightly woven but very well balanced cuvée with lovely purity and a persistently salty, citrus-fresh and cleansing finish with good grip. This is an extraordinary effort.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits
This blends pinot noir (45 percent), meunier (22 percent) and chardonnay, creating a round and generous Champagne with a ghosting of red fruit. Those flavors of red apples and strawberries are cut by the wine’s mineral acidity, then they open up again in the finish, lasting on chalk, nuts and crisp fresh fruit.
90 Pointz Wine Spectator
This lively version offers bright, citrusy acidity, with flavors of nectarine, toasted almond and lemon curd, layered with a streak of smoky mineral. Crunchy finish. Disgorged March 2015. Drink now through 2019.
Deutz Brut Classic Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $60.00
93 Pointz Wine Spectator
Bright and harmonious, with a fine, creamy bead and finely woven flavors of currant, biscuit, preserved lemon and pickled ginger. The plush finish echoes a note of smoke-tinged minerality.
92 Pointz James Suckling
A creamy and fresh NV with lightly cooked apple, some brioche, lemon rind, and a fresh finish. Drink now.
90 Pointz Decanter
Superbly appetising floral, peach and patisserie aromas. Opens to a honeyed mouth, with crystallised ginger, golden peaches and nutmeg. Medium finish.
90 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Open and expressive, the latest NV Brut Classic from Deutz offers up aromas of green pear, peach, pastry cream and flowers. Medium to full-bodied and fleshy but precise, it’s elegant and charming, with a seamless profile and considerable immediate appeal.
90 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
The elegance of this nonvintage cuvée sums up the style of the house, balancing acidity with a dosage that is just right. The white fruits and tangy edge are refreshing and intense. Drink the bottling now.
Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $70.00
93 Pointz Decanter
One of the best value grandes marques on the market, a blend of 60 crus, with roughly a third each of Pinot Noir, Meunier and Chardonnay, vinified individually by cru and variety, in stainless steel. Compared to other grandes marques, it is high (40%) in reserve wines, averaging 10 years old and dating back to 1990. Quite a floral style with lemon sherbet intensity and bready, leesy characters. It has great concentration and complexity, with a lovely grip of acidity on the finish.
93 Pointz Wine Spectator
This vibrant version shows a range of toasted brioche, baked cherry, crystalized honey, grated ginger and coconut flavors, remaining light-footed and lively throughout. Beautifully balanced, with a lasting, mouthwatering finish..
92 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Based on the 2014 vintage, complemented by fully 40% old reserve wines, the new release of Charles Heidsieck’s NV Brut Réserve was disgorged earlier this year. It’s showing very well, opening up in the glass with notes of green apple, dried white flowers, pear, candied peel and walnuts. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, with a textural attack and a racier, tighter-knit core than either the 2012- or 2010-base renditions, displaying good concentration and underlying richness. This is a bottling that continues to punch above its weight and which both merits and rewards a few years in the cellar before opening.
92 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
Editors’ Choice
This ripe Champagne is deliciously balanced between the rich white fruits and good acidity. Zingy texture gives it a crisp edge. Full, fruity and with the ability to age, it is ready to drink.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits
A rich style based on 40 percent reserve wines, this is substantial and elegant at once. Scents of orange blossoms and honey add to the wine’s impression of richness, while firm acidity keeps it structured. It has the fine abrasion of limestone to take on any roast shellfish.
Philipponnat Royale Reserve Brut Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $70.00
A blend of 65% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay, 5% Pinot Meunier
92 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Disgorged in June 2020 with eight grams per liter dosage, the latest release of Philipponnat’s NV Brut Royale Réserve is based on the 2016 vintage, with 27% reserve wines. Offering up aromas of peach, pear and plum mingled with apple blossom and sweet pastry, it’s medium to full-bodied, fleshy and expressive, with a pillowy mousse and a generous core of fruit, underpinned by bright acids.
92 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
A dry style, this classic nonvintage from Philipponnat is showing well, with greater depth than in the past. The wine has maturity, with toast, almonds and cookies, but retaining the acidity to give a wine that is mouthfilling and also refreshing.
92 Pointz Wine Spectator
An apple-accented Champagne, with enticing notes of ripe and juicy Jonagold apple and honeysuckle, weaving grilled nut, ground ginger and lemon glaze flavors on the finely detailed bead. Bright and mouthwatering finish. Disgorged November 2017. Drink now through 2022.
91 Pointz James Suckling
A very attractive and quite flavorful style with vibrant citrus and peachy stone fruit, leading to a palate that carries gently toasted cashews and quite a vibrant, fleshy mid-palate. Drink now
91 Pointz Wine & Spirits
Rather than the structural tension of the non-dosé version (also recommended here), this wine offers voluptuous texture, the dosage pointing up toasty brioche scents and notes of beeswax. It’s sophisticated and luxurious.
4BOTTLZ
Chartogne-Taillet Cuvee St. Anne Brut Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $50.00
92 Pointz Vinous
The NV Brut Cuvée Ste.-Anne is one of the best Champagnes readers will find in its price range, or any price range, for that matter. Bright and beautifully focused, the Ste.-Anne has so much to offer. The purity of the flavors is just remarkable. If anything, it needs more time on the cork to soften, as it is quite reticent at this stage. This release is based on 2017, with reserve wines from 2016 and 2015. The blend is 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay and 20% Meunier, with the Chardonnay very much in evidence at this stage. Dosage is 5.15 grams/liter. Disgorged: February, 2020. Drinking window: 2020 – 2026
92 Pointz Wine Spectator
A bright, finely meshed version that shows beautiful harmony throughout, offering flavors of Gala apple, spring forest, almond pastry and lemon curd riding the creamy mousse. Lasting, spiced finish. Disgorged February 2016. Drink now through 2022.
91 Pointz Wine & Spirits Best Buy
Scents of ginger and chalk hold this wine to a long, narrow frame. The flavors are precise and floral, yielding scents of cherry blossoms and supple apple notes. It feels tight and austere, classical in its profile, a mouthwatering Champagne for salmon tartare.
90 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
The latest release of Chartogne’s NV Brut Sainte Anne is based on the 2017 vintage, complemented by 40% reserve wines. Disgorged in September 2020 with five grams per liter dosage, it opens in the glass with aromas of crisp yellow orchard fruit, white flowers and fresh pastry. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and enveloping, it’s elegantly textural, bright and precise, with a seamless, harmonious profile.
G.H. Mumm Brut Grand Cordon Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $50.00
92 Pointz Decanter
Fresh, clean, pure, and sappy with an orchard fruit and gently yeasty nose and palate. Very pure, rather slender but intense with a long finish.
91 Pointz James Suckling
This super, non-vintage cuvée has plenty of lemons and guava on the nose with some flinty reduction. The palate has a richer, sweeter feel and delivers peach and melon flavors, in an accessible mode.
91 Pointz Wine Spectator
Bright and graceful, with a lively bead and delicate flavors of Granny Smith apple, grated ginger and toast point. Lacy, citrus-laced finish.
90 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
The distinctive bottle with its indented red stripe contains a style of Champagne that is getting better and better. This latest bottling is crisp and full of citrus and apple flavors that are bright and tangy.
Moet & Chandon Imperial Brut Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $55.00
90 Pointz Decanter
Toasty biscuit, plush apricot and a hint of zesty lemon peel, the palate is braced with bright lime and soft spice.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits
Tart red-fruit scents give this a vinous profile, fragrant with cranberry, root vegetables and ginger. It finishes clean, with cool limestone minerality. Cellar this for a year to let the flavors develop further.
90 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
The lower dosage of this famous brand has produced good balance between the crisply textured white fruits and the light minerality. The Champagne just hints of some bottle age. It is totally ready to drink.
90 Pointz Wine Spectator
A rich note of grilled nut meets flavors of Asian pear, preserved lemon and mineral on the palate of this creamy Champagne, driven by a firm streak of refreshing acidity.
Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label Brut Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $65.00
94 Pointz Decanter
Lemony richness on the nose, a struck match character that falls in with lemon vanilla note. Toffee apple allure on the palate with chalky coolness & savoury nutty finish.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits
Brisk lemon-lime flavors and floral apple clarity lend this wine its freshness and mineral-tinged refreshment. It smells like chalk, then the flavors are enriched by toasty brioche and spiciness from the lees aging. Simple and saturated, finely made in a grandmarque style. Best Buy
90 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
One of the most popular of all Champagnes, this is now showing a freshness that wasn’t always there. The crisp texture and green-apple flavors give it an immediate drinkability as well as perfumed acidity and a vibrant aftertaste.
90 Pointz Wine Spectator
A crisp and lacy Champagne, with a hint of smoke underscoring flavors of poached apricot, pastry cream and pickled ginger. An overtone of Mandarin orange peel ties it all together.
Perrier-Jouet Grand Brut Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $60.00
91 Pointz James Suckling
This offers fresh and attractive fruit aromas with a gently flinty, white-peach and white-flower fragrance on offer. The palate has an attractive, fresh and crisp feel with creamy, crispy texture at the finish. Good NV. Drink now.
90 Pointz Wine Spectator
Meyer lemon peel, poached apricot and pastry cream notes are tightly meshed with a minerally underpinning and racy acidity in this vivacious Champagne. Creamy finish.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits
This wine updates an old-fashioned grand-marque style of Champagne with a bright, spicy approach. Its meaty, sweet umami notes bring to mind morels, while cool, zesty acidity keeps it clean and savory. Chill it down for aperitifs.
90 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
With crisp acidity and layers of apple and citrus fruits, this attractive wine still has some of the higher dosage typical of this house. Together the fruits and the soft texture have produced a wine that is ready to drink.
Gosset Grande Reserve Brut Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $70.00
A blend of 45% Chardonnay, 45% Pinot Noir, and 10% Pinot Meunier.
94 Pointz Decanter
The nose opens with the fresh ripeness of yellow apple and highlights of Granny Smith. It has beautifully subtle autolysis on the palate, deepening into notes of creamy apple crumble, Golden Delicious and Mirabelle plum, while remaining utterly strait-laced. Elegance, length and absolute freshness are inherent and quietly convincing.
93 Pointz Wine Spectator
A tightly knit Champagne, backed by racy acidity, this is fresh and harmonious, with a finely detailed mousse and a delicate range of black raspberry, pickled ginger and chalk flavors, offering a touch of salted almond that echoes on the finish. Drink now through 2024.
92 Pointz James Suckling
This is very fresh and has attractively flavorful, punchy fruit presence, in a very pure mode. Strawberries and grapefruit and some pastry and spiced-biscuit to close. Drink now.
91 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
There is some fine bottle age on this cuvée. It has delicious delicate toastiness that still leaves room for the apple and white peach flavors. With its style, the Champagne is perfectly ready to drink.
Billecart-Salmon Brut Sous Bois Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $90.00
95 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
Cellar Selection
Fermented and aged briefly in wood, this is dry, intense and toasty while still giving space for white fruits and some citrus. Richly endowed, spicy, and tangy, its structure and tight texture mark it out as a Champagne for long-term aging. The aftertaste is brisk, packed with acidity and with reminiscences of the oak-aging in the vanilla finish. Drink this bottling from 2018.n.
94 Pointz Wine Spectator
A finely honed, mouthwatering Champagne, featuring a minerally underpinning of saline and chalk accents. Lacy in texture, offering wild cherry and pear fruit flavors, with toast point, lime blossom and lemon pastry cream notes. Drink now through 2025.
94 Pointz James Suckling
A dense Champagne with a tight and linear structure. Compressed and very pretty. Hints of nuts and cream with some pie crust. Some nougat, too. Very long and flavorful. It’s one for a meal. One third of pinot meunier, pinot noir and chardonnay. Fermented and aged in barrel for about six months. Disgorged July 19, 2020. It’s aged six years on lees. Drink or hold.
92 Pointz Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
The latest release of Billecart’s NV Brut Sous Bois is excellent, unwinding in the glass with notes of lemon oil, crisp stone fruit, buttery pastry and freshly baked bread. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and elegantly vinous, with chalky phenolic structure and an enlivening pillowy mousse, it’s impressively deep and concentrated, with fine tension and grip. Early renditions of this cuvée tended to be at their best on release, but this impressive effort appears to be built to age. Rating : 92+
3BOTTLZ
Moutard Brut Grand Cuvee Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $40.00
92 Pointz Wine & Spirits
A Côte des Bars pinot noir Champagne based on the 2013 vintage, this has the vinous red-fruit character and seashell minerality of a Marsannay. The acidity makes it feel austere and tense, as well as focused and bright, a line drive of flavor that brings you back for more.
91 Pointz Wine Spectator
This well-cut Champagne is lacy in texture, carrying well-meshed flavors of white raspberry, verbena, pastry and honey. Focused, with a lightly juicy, minerally finish.
90 Pointz Robert Parker’s
Wine Advocate
I was quite taken with the wines I tasted from Moutard this year. The NV Brut Grande Cuvee (Pinot Noir) emerges from the glass with high-toned notes of Mirabelle plums, kirsch, crushed flowers and sweet herbs. There is an exotic quality to the Grande Cuvee that is totally beguiling. Intensely aromatic and layered through to the finish, the Grande Cuvee impresses for its delicate, feminine personality and overall balance.
Pierre Gimonnet Selection Belles Annees Brut Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $50.00
Mase from 100% Chardonnay
93 Pointz Wine Enthusiast
A blending of recent good vintages, this young-tasting Champagne is at the delicious fruit stage. It is crisp, citrus-flavored and bright with fruitiness. As it develops, the more mineral texture will come through, giving a richer, impressive wine that retains a zesty character. Ideally wait a few months after purchase before drinking.
93 Pointz Wine & Spirits
Didier Gimonnet focuses this wine on his premier cru vineyards in Cuis, with 20 percent of the blend coming from his grand cru parcels in Cramant, Chouilly and Oger. It’s a classical Côte des Blancs Champagne, a peak expression of chardonnay grown in chalk. Bright and youthful, with clear notes of lemon and white flowers, this turns ornate in the end, bringing a complex hint of aged Gruyère. It’s the freshness and clarity that lasts.
90 Pointz Wine Spectator
A rich and creamy Champagne defined by lively acidity, with anise, pastry cream and salted almond notes, and fruit flavors of baked apricot and lemon curd. Minerally finish.
Duval-Leroy Brut Reserve Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $50.00
A blend of 60% Pinot Noir, 30% Meunier, and 10% Chardonnay.
91 Pointz Decanter
Broad and indulgent quince, verbena and lemongrass nose with a hint of tobacco and peach kernel in the mouth. Fresh vinous finish.
91 Pointz Wine & Spirits
This delivers a lot of fresh fruit through the lush feel of its bubbles, bringing scents of raspberry, plum and juicy pear up out of the glass. For all its generosity, the wine follows a clean, crisp line. It’s a fine aperitif to serve with saucisson.
91 Pointz Wine Spectator
A finely knit Champagne, this layers vibrant acidity and a lacy mousse with delicate flavors of patisserie apple and pear, biscuit and ground ginger. Shows a subtle smoky note on the lasting finish.
Francoise Bedel Dis Vin Secret Reviews
Suggested Retail Price $70.00
94 Pointz Decanter
Pear, plum and spice nose, then a honeyed palate with golden peaches and strawberries, plus fresh green herbs. Rich and velvety structure.
92 Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Bedel’s overwhelmingly Meunier-dominated NV Brut Dis, Vin de Secret Brut DB051012 (this batch harbors 15% Chardonnay and 5% Pinot) received partial barrel-elevage, though it was fermented in tank. Its greenhouse-like evocation of flowering and leafing things is typical for Meunier, with scents of coriander and mint prominent, and those of apple, winter pear, and almond anticipating the dominant flavors on a coolly restrained, silken textured palate. Cleansing yet clinging, the lusciously lingering finish subtly glows with an aura of herbal essences. Having no experience with this wine before now, I can only hazard a guess that it will continue to delight for a couple more years – and for all that I (don’t) know, perhaps significantly longer.
90 Pointz Wine & Spirits
Earthiness dominates this wine when first poured; it needs hours of air to yield a beautiful white truffle scent. It grows to be creamy and lush, like a meringue of lemon dusted with hazelnuts. There are also deeper bass notes of red fruit. An unusual, vinous Champagne to serve with rabbit sausage.no bottler info
