The festive-tinged tasting train keeps on rolling, this time back into Champagne and over to the beautiful historic house of Laurent-Perrier! The house's new Grand Siècle #26 has just been awarded James Suckling's Wine of the Year for 2023, and is due to arrive in March next year, so be sure to look below for all the stunning acclaim and for a link to email us your pre-order at a limited time special price!
The lineup this Saturday (25th) from 12 to 2pm is looking equally as special, featuring rich Brut and Rosé expressions that include both non-vintage as well as some very good years indeed! As usual, most of these will be on pour for free, including the non-vintage Cuvée Brut and Cuvée Rosé, and two Bruts from 2012 and 2015 respectively!
Then, for those extra keen bubbly fans, we'll be offering more substantial pours of two premium bottles (the previous Grand Siècle #25 release and Alexandra Rosé 2004) for a small price of $15 a ticket! These both hold very limited availability, so to those of you who are keen, be sure to arrive on the early side of things to avoid missing out (tickets available at our counter on the day itself).
To top it all off, we'll have one of our very favourite faces, Todd Rumble (state manager at Gathered Wine), to host and speak about all the details, intricacies and stories behind each of the bottles ?
Rejoice all beer fans as well, for Friday (24th) afternoon will bring the much-loved beers from Black Hops to the tasting table, hosted by their energetic rep Scott Heaydon! Come by between 4 to 6pm, and we'll pour you some cold ones to celebrate the end of the week ?
Pre-Arrival Offer (Bottles due to arrive early March 2024)
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Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle Iteration #26 - $410 on offer ; $480 RRP
// 58% Chardonnay and 42% Pinot Noir
Disgorged February 2023
10 years on lees with 7g/L dosage
“This is really something. Electric on the palate. The aromas are so complex with sliced fresh and dried ginger, subtle pie crust, tarte tatin and hints of nutmeg with some salted caramel. Toasted bread, too. Always subtle. The palate is full- to medium-bodied yet hemmed-in with a freshness and balance that draws you back. Savory and vibrant. It's full of energy. Spectacular. Fascinating. Symphonic blend of 2012, 2008 and 2007. 65% of the 2012, 25% of the 2008 and 10% of the 2007.” - 100 Points, James Suckling (Wine of the Year 2023 Winner)
"Powerful aroma of orange peel and something in the putty/chalk spectrum. It somehow manages to be both tight yet approachable, dense in terms of flavour concentration yet filigree in terms of texture. As usual, it's so Chardonnay! Overriding citrus character and quite amazingly long, a mouthful tingling on the palate for minutes not seconds. Enormous finesse. Massive pleasure. This would make the most luxurious aperitif." - 19.5 out of 20, Jancis Robinson MW
"This iteration of Grand Siècle is almost entirely composed of two of Champagne's greatest recent vintages, so expectations are high. The wine more than meets them, tempering the generosity of 2012's fruit – ripe apricots, white peach, clementines and sunny, zesty citrus – with a pitch-perfect streak of 2008 tautness and structure. There are some fleshy, creamy notes of papaya and toasted white sourdough, but everything is as delicately rendered as expected and impeccably shaped, with a sleek, silky mousse. A little more approachable than Itération No. 25, it will welcome extended bottle age rather than demand it." - 96 Points, Tom Hewson, Decanter
Please click here to email us and place your pre-order
- Free Tasting Lineup -
Saturday 25th November (Four bottles) running from 12 to 2pm
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La Cuvée Brut NV - $80 on offer ; $89 RRP
// 50% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot Noir and 15% Pinot Meunier
Dosage: 8gr/l
Aged for 4 years - Base vintage 2016
"The wine comes from the purest grape juice and it alone allows Laurent-Perrier to craft 'La Cuvée', a champagne of great finesse and a beautiful freshness obtained after a long ageing process in our cellars. Pale gold in color. Fine bubbles feed a persistent mousse. A delicate nose with hints of fresh citrus and white flowers. The wine’s complexity is expressed in successive notes like vine peach and white fruits notes. A perfect balance between freshness and delicacy with fruity flavours very present on the finish. This fresh and pure wine is perfect for an apéritif. Its citrus and white fruits notes and its remarkable balance supported by a subtle effervescence, make it an ideal accompaniment to poultry and fish." - House Notes
"The NV Champagne La Cuvée Brut is aged for 4 years and sees 8 grams per liter dosage. The nose is very pretty and elegant, with floral aromas of brioche and sweet orchard fruits. Fresh with apricot, it is expressive of its lovely Chardonnay character. The palate is soft and approachable, and in line with the nose. This is a great aperitif style to begin with. Drink now or over the following 10 years" - Jeb Dunnuck
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Brut Millésimé Vintage 2012 - $139 on offer ; $149 RRP
// 50% Pinot Noir & 50% Chardonnay
"This is such a beautiful champagne year and the wines from this vintage shine with style and Queensland winter sunshine! All the Pinot and Chardonnay is from Grand Cru vineyards in Côte des Blancs villages Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Oger, Cramant and Chouilly for the Chardonnay and Ay, Verzenay, Verzy and Mailly for the Pinot Noir. The golden straw colour reveals the great quality Chardonnay which is a signature of this great House. Citrus shines with lemons, bitter orange, ripe pomelo and a wonderful mineral backbone. There is a layer of pineapple, some apricot, white peach and a great lemon-blossom flowery nose. The Grand Cru Pinot Noir reflects new-season blueberries and ripe raspberries with a layer of plum. Hints of ginger shine through. It is a finely knit wine - very elegant with a fine effervescence and lively palate. A marvelous wine to drink now or put down for many years to come. There will be some in my cellar! Elegant and divine!" - Bernadette O'Shea, Champagne Consultant
"Since the 1950s, only 30 vintages have been produced by the house. The aromatics are reminiscent of a Burgundian feel, with pleasant flinty reduction, smoke, and vibrant green fruits of pear and citrus blossoms. Offering an energetic mousse with green apple, yellow plum, lemon curd, and wet stone, this wine is well-balanced and should continue to improve over the coming 15-20 years." - 94 Points, Jeb Dunnuck
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Cuvée Rosé NV - $169 on offer ; $189 RRP
"Elegant, with colour changing naturally from a pretty raspberry hue to salmon pink. A precise nose of extraordinary freshness and a wide range of red fruits: raspberry, redcurrant, strawberry and black cherry. A fresh and sharp attack for this supple and rounded wine. On the palate, it offers the sensation of plunging into a basket of freshly picked red berries." - Winemaker Notes
"The latest iteration of Laurent-Perrier's NV Brut Cuvée Rosé is showing brilliantly, bursting from the glass with notes of smoky red berry fruit, apples, blood orange, pomegranate and warm biscuits. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied, broad and vinous, with a delicate mousse, good depth at the core and ripe acids, concluding with a sapid, gently phenolic finish. This is a sophisticated, gastronomic rosé that would work well at table." - 92 Points, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
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Brut Millésimé Vintage 2015 - $199 on offer ; $230 RRP
// 50% Chardonnay and 50% Pinot Noir
"This Vintage is the choice of an exceptional year from which only a selection of the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir Grands Crus will enter into a future iteration of Grand Siècle. It is a rare and outstanding wine that expresses the character of the year in the Laurent-Perrier style. The year 2015 is characterised by extreme climatic events: a mild, rainy winter giving way to contrasting weather conditions in spring with an icy period followed by extreme heat and summer storms. Cool, dry weather in September allowed for perfect ripening of the grapes. The wine is white gold in colour with a fine and persistent sparkle. A nose of great complexity offering notes of beeswax, candied lemon, honeysuckle and hawthorn followed by aromas of toast and orange. A lively attack that gives way to a creamy and elegant palate with notes of candied lemon and honeysuckle."- House Notes
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Try these two elite releases at the tasting for $15!
(Tickets can be bought in-store on the day, including more substantial pours of both special bottles)
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Laurent Perrier Grand Siècle #25 - $350 on offer ; $390 RRP
*Limited availability
Blend of multiple vintages // 2008 (65%), 2007 (25%), 2006 (10%)
// 60% Chardonnay & 40% Pinot Noir
"Brilliant in character with a white gold colour. An intense nose of fresh citrus fruits followed by subtle aromas of grilled almonds and brioche. The wine has a fresh and toasted attack. The finish is persistent with notes of citrus fruit. Grand Siècle iteration Nº25 has exceptional aromatic depth." - Winemaker Notes
"A prestige Champagne with great density and depth, yet it remains compact and structured, with a combination of fine phenolics, acidity and extract. Lots of flavors of lemon rind, salt, mineral and honeysuckle with an attractive fresh-herb undertone. Then it turns to candied lemons with some ginger. A triumph in complexity and power." - 99 Points, James Suckling
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Laurent Perrier Alexandra Rosé Vintage 2004 - $599 on offer ; $699 RRP
*Limited availability
// 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Pinot Noir
"As creator of the benchmark Cuvée Rosé, non‐vintage champagne, it was a natural evolution for Laurent‐Perrier, to offer a prestige vintage rosé. Alexandra Rosé is a rare and cherished wine that comes from a rigorous selection of the best plots ; an exceptional marriage between Grands Crus grapes of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Only 7 vintages have been released since its launch in 1987. A delicate, pale salmon pink colour with persistent and fine bubbles. A complex nose with hints of wild strawberries and redcurrant jam, followed by notes of candied fruits. Elegant and refined, this wine shows great minerality. Its soft and dry texture leads into a long finish indicative of berry fruit with a strong presence of red fruit." - House Notes
"From the very first taste, the 2004 is utterly spectacular. Rich, ample and vertical in feel, the 2004 is dazzling. Dried rose petal, star anise, tobacco, dried flowers, red berry fruit and earthy notes all grace this utterly exquisite Champagne. As good as the 2004 is today – and it is fabulous – it will be even better in another few years’ time. The 2004 has been nothing short of magnificent on both occasions I have tasted it so far." - 96 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous
If you wish to pre-order the Grand Siècle, please use the link above or email brent@thewineemporium.com.au
If you wish to buy any of the champagnes, please use the links above ?
Tickets for tasting the premium bottles will be available on tasting day
/// Alternatively, email us at sales@thewineemporium.com.au, or contact us on (07)32521117 if you have any questions // Prices valid until Thursday the 30th of November