Dom Perignon 2006

Vinmøte Lars Ivar (Jon) 1. februar 2018

Champagne Blanc de Blancs  Mesnil Experience , Andre Jacquart; Stram og tørr stil, men noe "giving" frukt som gir den en god munnfølelse. Stram og tørr stil og produsenten lager gode champagner til en OK pris. 88 poeng

Champagne Oiry Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru, Suenen;
Mager frukt, bør lagres, stram og vanskelig nå. Litt særegen trang stil. 87 poeng

Besøk på champagneturen 26.10.14:

Aurelien Suenen er en ambiøs ung mann som tok seg god tid til å vise oss både vinmarker og smaking av sine champagner. Vinhuset holder til i Cramant, vi smakte oss igjennom vin clair fra 2014 og husets champagne har en lineær og citrusaktig stil, stramt og korrekt, bare ståltank og moderat bruk av dosage.

Champagne Cuvee Rèserve 2011 Brut
Bare fra 2011 årgangen. 45% pinot meunier, 45 % pinot noir, 10% chardonnay & 8g/l dosage. Mye mousse, 100% ståltank, grønn og vegetal. 84 poeng.

Champagne Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Extra Brut 2011 
Bare fra 2010 årgangen. Gogget 14. januar 2014. 3,5 g/l  dosage. Mye mousse, moderat duft. Frisk og rik, Full malo med litt bitter ettersmak. 88 poeng.

One has to travel back in time to understand the origins of the Suenen Champagne. Since 1898 generations of strong-minded and wine- passionate men and women have succeeded one another…

It is said that our family name comes from “Svenen”, a Belgium family who came to live in Damery… the home of my great grandfather. With his wife Eliza-Victorine Billiard, they gave birth to a son, Joseph, in 1871. Wine was of course not on the agenda yet. Grapes were collected from the Cramant vineyards and sold to the existing reknown wine-making houses.

Joseph and his wife Laurentine Robert settled into the family household and had two children: Paulette and Marcel, my great grandfather born in 1899. Today still and in that same house, my grandmother’s souvenirs attest to the genesis of the Suenen Champagne brand.

In 1924 Marcel married Simone Stourbe. They decided to commercialise a single vat of dry Blanc de Blancs named “Champagne Suenen Stourbe”, hand-bottled and stamped by Simone herself.

Their sons Bernard and André took over the trade. Bernard and his wife soon opened a deli grocery in Cramant. During the fifties, with the birth of my father Daniel and his brother Jean Claude, our family grew bigger. As the latter chose to follow a teaching career, my father showed a great interest in wine growing since a very young age. Both my grandfather and father worked together for 18 years, until Daniel took control of the business. At only 25, his desire to develop the vineyard’s activity flourished and he was soon in search of new land plots to purchase. My father’s work contributed to increasing the quality and sales of the Suenen Champagne. Thanks to his determination, the choice in the range of our champagne widened and the first vintage wines were bottled. Sales increased from 4000 to 20 000 bottles. Then he married my mother Chantal Person de la Villa, and started a new generation to whom I belong…

Champagne Dom Perignon 2006;
Karakteristisk lys kaffe på nesa. Stor nese, litt tomt mellomparti og avslutning. Ingen stor Dom, men deilig å drikke nå. 92 poeng.

Champagne of the Year 2015

Generalforsamlingen Vinklubben Kåte Rhoner 29.5.15

Cristal 1988, Louis Roederer
Lett gylden med epleskrott, Blanc de Blanc aktig og lett oksidativ. Litt slapp mousse med moden frukt. Jeg gjettet 1985. Men en veldig god fruktkonsentrasjon. Holder seg overraskende godt i glasset og blir bedre og bedre. Karakterfull og spennende. Kjerneessensen av årgangen 1988. En stor champagne. Selv om kanskje ikke det var en helt optimal flaske ble det CHAMPAGNE OF THE YEAR !  96 poeng.

Michael Edwards WoFW:

One of the few remaining great family houses of Champagne, Louis Roederer has one priceless asset that its rivals lack: Almost every one of its Vintage cuvées-certainly the magnificent Cristal-is made exclusively from grapes grown in its 230ha (568 acres) of enviably placed vineyards on the Montagne de Reims, the Côte des Blancs, and the Grande Vallée de la Marne; these holdings also supply two thirds of the house's needs for the Roederer Brut Premier NV. Such a high proportion of "estate" grapes is very rare in a grande maison, giving inherently superior quality and control at every stage of production.

This explains why Roederer can often release Vintages earlier than its rivals, based on wine maestro Jean- Baptiste Lécaillon and his team's intimate knowledge of the optimally ripe parcels within the predominantly grand cru structure of the estate.

Actually, the modern trend toward a more parcel-by-parcel approach to Champagne-making is nothing new at Roederer. As early as 1845, the family realized this concept in its choice of vineyard sites in creating a highly distinctive Vintage style based on the chalkiest, coolest, and most durable plots of the northern Montagne at Verzenay and Verzy: V & V, the heavenly twins, have always been about density of texture, intensity of mineral flavors, and potential for long aging. Such is their strong personality, says Lécaillon, "the terroir takes over from the varietal characteristic."

Introducing this tasting, Lécaillon also gave us his thoughts about ideal disgorgement dates and adaptions in vineyard husbandry and winemaking techniques-set against the backcloth of climate change in warmer autumns but also mercurial weather patterns, especially chaotic distribution of rainfall. "Our wines are much riper than they were 15 years ago, so they don't need to remain on lees (for the richness these give) for much more than three to four years now." A diplomatic way of saying that he is not a fan of latedisgorgement. To guard compensating freshness, several of the best Vintage cuvées are made wholly or partially avoiding the malo. But Lécaillon's real long-term achievement is likely to be his measured introduction of organic viticulture. Going further, Roederer's 40ha (100 acres) of biodynamically cultivated plots within the estate is the largest development of its kind in Champagne. No one understands better than Lécaillon's team the fundamental paradox of winemaking in the Marne, subject as it is to maritime and continental influences in contrasting vintages. "In an 'Atlantic' vintage like 2011, I've no doubt that the biodynamic parcels were the most successful; in riper 'continental' years (2005, 2002) I'm not so sure," is Lécaillon's insight. 

The Vintage rosés were shown rightly in the bloom of youthful fruit. At Roederer, they are made in a special way: the Pinot Noir berries are cold soaked in their juice, to which is added a touch of Chouilly Chardonnay. The encépagement for Vintage whites is 70% Pinot Noir / 30% Chardonnay. Dosage nowadays is 8-10g/l 

Cristal 1990, Louis Roederer
Ikke så utviklet som 1988, breial og stor i munnen. Autolyse og moden frukt. God kompleksitet og lang ettersmak. En veldig vinøs burgunderaktig Grand Cru champagne. Litt lettere i munnen med touch av marmelade, honning, herreskuff og møllkuler. Litt mere brun frukt enn 88, kanskje litt kork også. En ikke helt optimal flaske ? Men godt var det ! 95 poeng

Krug 1996
Sjø, syrlig og slank. Saltaktig, nonmalo, papp, citrus, "mother earth" med stålskjelett. Bør lagres og denne champagnen har et enormt potensiale. Sitronsyra vasker bort alt ved hver slurk. Forfriskende med bivoks, honning og jeg var på Salon eller Cristal. Fine nyanser her, veldig detaljert og ungdommelig. Takler fatet utmerket. Mineralitet, stein og grus. 96 poeng.

Champagne Brut 1976, Roualet-Crochet
Vanilje, kremet og kompleks nese med marsipan og endel fat. Rik og en fantastisk nese, men mangler endel friskhet vs. Krug 96. Forførende og "up-front", nesten litt "Heidsiecks" i stilen, men best den første halvtimen. Korrekt og fast med et godt munngrep. Kaffe med bitterhet og er nok relativt nygogget. Viser årgangens storhet. 94 poeng.

Cuvèe des Archives 2002, Collard-Picard 
Lys strågul, yngre vin på nesa med fat og endel dosage. Fet ettersmak, dør endel i glasset og den bør fortsatt lagres. Mister endel spenst i glasset inntil ny skjenk kommer. Kormokjeks, litt bitter og vanskelig i munnen. Vi hadde denne også på champagneturen i oktober 2014 og den virket da som en bedre champagne. 93 poeng.

Fra champagneturen 2014: Cuvèe des Archives Brut Millesimè 2002, Champagne Collard-Picard; delikat, uendelig lang og god munnfølelse, perfekt balanse, litt syltet frukt, presis og konsentrert. Litt uenighet om kvalitet, men jeg syntes dette var fabelaktig ! Men til 300 euro da.  95 poeng.

Jacquart Brut Mosaique NV
Blek farge, snev av strågul med uelegant nese som bør lagres. Litt sødme og dosage, rik i munnen med ivrige bobler. Brioche, trang og lite utviklet. Kremet, spenstig og denne klarte seg overraskende godt i et krevende selskap. Og Kim og Knut likte denne spesielt godt... Til kr. 350,- er dette et bra kjøp. 92 poeng.