It was seven weeks ago when we all hopped aboard a train set for many of Champagne's most revered spots; the exhaustive list of stops have included Taittinger, Perrier-Jouët, Mumm, Laurent-Perrier, Billecart-Salmon, Ayala, Bollinger, Pol Roger, and Louis Roederer! Some names indeed, and whether you had joined us from the get-go, or grabbed your ticket somewhere along the way, we at the Wine Emporium want to express our sincere gratitude for the warmth and joy we've experienced each and every weekend - and that goes for every weekend through what's been a great year! Now with only one Saturday left until Christmas Day, and the final days of the year approaching, we have not one, but five separate famous estates to bring it all to an extravagant finish.
This Saturday (20th) between 12 and 2pm, we'll have two expressions from Veuve Clicquot showing in both their bright and expressive Brut Rosé NV and the La Grande Dame's latest 2018 iteration. On the same table will be a beloved duo from Ruinart, with both their Brut and Blanc de Blancs NV bottles popped and pouring! For something a little sweet, the lineup will also include Moët et Chandon's Ice Impérial NV, bringing a welcome demi-sec style to what will otherwise be a very full-bodied and powerful selection of wines!
As a true end-of-year treat, Dom Perignon's 2015 release and both the 172 and 173 editions from Krug will be pouring and available to taste for a small fee on the day! All bottles are on special for the next week (both Ruinarts are at an ongoing discount), if some last-minute bubbly gifts or additions to the lunch table are in order. See you all Saturday for a fitting final act!
Moët & Chandon Ice Impérial Demi-Sec NV -
$95 on special this week ($110 RRP)
// 45% Pinot Noir, 35% Meunier and 20% Chardonnay
Aged on lees for 3 years before disgorgement
45g/L dosage
"Ice Impérial, the first and only champagne especially created to be enjoyed over ice. A new champagne experience combining fun, fresh and free sensations while remaining true to the Moët & Chandon style, a style distinguished by its bright fruitiness, its seductive palate and its elegant maturity. A generous palate combining roundness and freshness - the broad, fleshy, voluptuous flavour of a fresh fruit salad, the captivating sweetness of caramel and quince jelly, the refreshing acidity of grapefruit and ginger notes." - House Notes
Veuve Clicquot Brut Rosé NV -
$119 on special this week ($135 RRP)
// 50% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier (with 12% added red wine from Bouzy)
Aged on lees for 3 years before disgorgement
9g/L dosage
“This was the first blended rosé created by Madame Clicquot in 1888, by adding some still red wine to the assemblage of white wine. It has a brilliant coppery-pink colour with hints of sunset. A palate of wild strawberries, raspberry, pink grapefruit, yellow peaches with red veins and the pink section of the watermelon. There is a lovely nose of deep pink camellias and lilies. Lots of reserve wines - 35% to 40% and back to 5 or 6 previous harvests, which gives this wine a delectable & enjoyable palate." - Bernadette O’Shea, Champagne Consultant, The Wine Emporium
Ruinart Brut NV -
$139 ongoing this week ($159 RRP)
// 40% Chardonnay, 49% Pinot Noir and 11% Pinot Meunier (20-25% of which are wines reserved from the 2 previous years)
Aged on lees for 3 years before disgorgement
7g/L dosage
"This is a distinctive, softly structured champagne with a smooth palate. The wine has a nose of lilies, hawthorn and white apple blossom, and leads to a palate of white nectarines, stewed golden delicious apple and cooked pears. There are hints of pineapple, lemon sherbet, raspberry, new season cherry and strawberry flavors, followed by a layer of cashews, macadamia nuts, preserved lemon & grapefruit rind, mineral streaks and cooked peaches sprinkled with cinnamon." - Bernadette O'Shea, Champagne Consultant, The Wine Emporium
Ruinart Blanc de Blancs NV -
$195 ongoing special ($219 RRP)
// 100% Chardonnay, entirely Premier Cru fruit (20-25% reserve wines)
Aged for 22-28 months on lees before disgorgement
7g/L dosage
"This is very fresh, harmonious wine with a silky texture and perfect for the hot summer in Queensland! Soft honeysuckle and white jasmine nose, flavours of golden delicious apple, light pineapple, honey-dew melon, lemon rind and pear, followed by a layer of French toast with creamy-honey. There is an edging of roasted macadamia nuts, some lemon rind and hints of salty sea bush. A very refreshing delicious champagne!" - Bernadette O'Shea, Champagne Consultant, The Wine Emporium
"The vibrant yellow green colour is on full display in the clear glass bottle, but it needs to be protected from light. Perhaps complaining at this price is churlish, for the wine rides on the wings of flowery, lemon blossom aromas and an almost razor-sharp linearity to the wonderfully long palate leaving the mouth fresh, thirsting for more." - 95 Points, James Halliday's Wine Companion
Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame 2018 -
$345 on special this week ($395 RRP)
// 90% Pinot Noir and 10% Chardonnay (entirely Grand Cru fruit)
Aged on lees for 5 years before disgorgement early 2024
6g/L dosage
"The long sunny days and warmth of the 2018 vintage has provided glowing stone and citrus fruit to this glorious Grande Dame. While the initial attack plays on various riffs of lemon oil, verbena, orange rind and grapefruit, it's the deeply mineral and tightly wound core that surprises most with this wine, and this is what will ensure its long-term ageing potential. Delectable candied orange rind builds to a crescendo of yuzu and coconut cream. A luminous and energetic iteration of La Grande Dame." - 97 Points, Natalie Earl, Decanter
"The 2018 La Grande Dame is a very pretty wine that shows the contemporary style that is prevalent here these days. Floral overtones lift a core of citrus fruit, while marzipan, anise, mint, dried pear and spice open with a bit of coaxing. The 2018 is a delicate Grand Dame, as most Champagnes are in a vintage in which yields were exceptionally high. I especially admire the finesse here." - 94 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous
*The champagnes below will be available to taste
on the day for a small fee
Dom Perignon 2015 -
$389 on special this week ($435 RRP)
// 51% Pinot Noir and 49% Chardonnay
Aged on lees for 8 years before disgorgement in early 2023
5g/L dosage
"The 2015 Dom Pérignon is terrific. Bright and poised, the 2015 shows terrific energy. Citrus peel, white flowers, mint, white pepper and slate all race across the palate. There's gorgeous tension and backbone here, with bright saline notes that extend the mid-palate and finish. This is a fine showing in a vintage that has proven to be tricky. I am intrigued to see how the 2015 develops in the coming years." - 96 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous
"2015 Dom Pérignon shows a singular, ethereal profile with aromas of white pepper, iodine, ripe orchard fruits, toast, smoke, herbs and spices. Medium to full-bodied, layered, and structured, it’s enveloping and round with a delicate phenolic mid-palate that underlines chalky dry extracts, concluding with a sapid, penetrating finish with gastronomic bitterness. This iteration of Dom Pérignon, though replete with the customary charm and vinous generosity that typify the label, distinguishes itself by its structural delicate austerity and a notably phenolic profile, giving rise to a remarkably linear and well-defined style that diverges markedly from the more familiar expressions of Dom Pérignon. It will age wonderfully and can be enjoyed now or over the next 20 years." - 95 Points, Yohan Castaing, Wine Advocate
Krug Grande Cuvée Edition 172 -
$445 on special this week ($495 RRP)
// 44% Pinot Noir, 36% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier
2016 base vintage, with 42% reserve wines dating back to 1998
Aged for 6 years on lees before disgorgement early 2023
6g/L dosage
"Krug's 172nd edition casts the exuberance of that vintage in a typically complex, heady frame. Some of the heat and ripeness of 2016 is here, with aromas heading towards candied lemon, Seville orange, apricot macaroon and cherry nougat, already expressive. Krug's inimitable depth of reserve wines, here dating back as far as 1998, wraps them in complexities of mocha, baking spice and and baked fruits. Already showing some signs of buttery, browned pastry depth, this is a Grande Cuvée of density and harmony. It is tighter and a little firmer than than the 171ème and in greater need of time to unfurl." - 96 Points, Tom Hewson, Decanter
"The NV Grande Cuvée 172ème Édition is a gracious, sublime Champagne. Light citrus notes, white flowers, spice, marzipan and chamomile inflections all run through this delicate, nuanced Grande Cuvée. The 172eme is a Champagne of understatement and class that is very much a reflection of the base year. Brisk acids pull it all together." - 95 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous
Krug Grande Cuvée Edition 173 -
$469 on special this week ($525 RRP)
// 44% Pinot Noir, 34% Chardonnay and 22% Pinot Meunier
2017 base vintage (with 31% reserve wines going back to 2001)
Aged on lees for 7 years before disgorgement early 2025
4g/L dosage
"Based on 2017, Krug's NV Grande Cuvée 173ème Édition is superb. It is an especially rich, almost opulent Grande Cuvée that very much reflects the personality of the base year in its tropical flavor profile. Lemon confit, baked apple tart, passion fruit, tangerine oil and spice are all beautifully amplified. The Krug team, led at the time by Chef de Caves Eric Lebel and current Chef de Caves Julie Cavil, did an exceptional job here." - 95 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous
"There's a juicy apricot fruitiness evident up front, enlivened by some brightness of ground pepper and charred grapefruit peel, with aromatic details of green coffee and a food-friendly dried mushroom savour following in the glass. The softened, cushioned mousse is already feeling nicely settled, complementing the sense of roundness and ease. There's plenty of cooked lime Chardonnay focus pulling the palate into some length and intensity, even if the quantity of Chardonnay in the blend is not perhaps as high as might have been expected considering its relatively strong performance in the year; the reserves, too, bring a delicious length and intensity to the otherwise up-front palate. This edition may be pitched for earlier drinking than some, but will provide fine gastronomic possibilities in the meantime." - 94 Points, Tom Hewson, Decanter
If you wish to purchase any of these champagnes, please use the links above
Otherwise, if you have any questions, please contact us on (07)32521117 or email sales@thewineemporium.com.au
// Special prices valid until Monday the 22nd of December