Champagne Warrior brings you the latest Champagne and sparkling wine tasting notes, news, & updates.

Well, the first issue of The Champagne Warrior Newsletter is finally here and clocks in at just over 100 pages of tasty and aromatic info. If you’d like to request a copy of the first issue for only one dollar, click here to go to the Subscribe page. If you choose to give it a go, I hope you find it valuable and please, let me know your thoughts.

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January 19, 2009

There’s more than meets the eye

Say the word Philipponnat to any wine geek and thoughts of Clos des Goisses instantly enter their head and for good reason. Clos des Goisses is one of the greatest Champagnes and a true “first growth”, however a high quality producer is more than just a tete de cuvee and Philipponnat is certainly a high quality producer. It is important for producers to be more than just a tete de cuvee because tete de cuvee production is often a very minor portion of what the house produces. For Philipponnat, Clos des Goisses normally represents between 1-6% of total production. This means that no matter how good it is, the house cannot survive on the greatnes of this wine alone.

Taking the above into account, how many of you are aware of the high quality of Philipponnat’s other wines? The wines have always been good, but the last decade has brought the quality level even higher as Charles Philipponnat’s leadership has made it one of the highest quality producers across the entire range. I find the Basic NV Royale Reserve and Reserve Rosee cuvees to be wonderful wines for the price. The Vintage Brut and Vintage Grand Blanc (Blanc de Blancs) are solid year after year. If you are in the mood for a high quality sweeter Champagne that still has character and complexity, the Vintage Sublime Reserve is one of the few that fit the bill. And, we can’t forget the pure, luxurious, mineral driven fruit of the Vintage 1522 cuvees which delight lovers of both low and higher dosaged Champagnes while excelling at expressing the house style of Philipponnat better than any other wines in the range… and look at the price.

I point all of this out to remind you that there is more to a Champagne producer than just the tete de cuvee and you miss a number of incredible experiences (and values) if that is all you choose to explore. After all, the bread and butter of most Champagne producers are the lower end cuvees. What separates the elite from the average is the ability to make high quality cuvees for a fair price across the entire range. Philipponnat is one of the producers who is a benchmark for this so please try their NV cuvees and then work your way up through the range; you’ll enjoy the adventure and make a few new friends.

January 6, 2009

De Sousa releases a new cuvee “3A”

De Sousa Cuvee "3A" Top notch recoltant De Sousa Champagne has just released a new cuvee called “3A”. This cuvee is named for the villages it comes from which happen to be the well known Grand Crus of Avize, Ay, and Ambonnay (3 villages that all start with the letter “A” hence the name). For 50% of the blend, winemaker Erick De Sousa has taken Chardonnay from 50+ year old Avize vines and fermented it in 225L barriques. Completing the blend are 25% steel fermented Ambonnay Pinot Noir from vines that are all around 60 years of age and 25% steel fermented Ay Pinot Noir.

For this wine, De Sousa was looking to create a high end blend of expression and balance by showcasing an equal amount of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from some of the best sites. As always, strict selection and attention to yield were practiced in order to make a wine that has Erick extremely excited. An Extra Brut dosage finishes the wine off.

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