Score : 88/100
The Brut Réserve Cuvée is Champagne Palmer & Co main non-vintage sparkling wine and best-seller.
Grapes are sourced predominantly from Grand Cru and Premier Cru vineyards of the Montagne de Reims area of the Champagne region.
The blend is composed of the 3 main grape varieties of Champagne: 50-55% Chardonnay, 35-40% Pinot Noir, and 10-15% Pinot Meunier.
Reserve wines (aged wines from previous vintages) represent 25 to 35% of the final blend.
After fermentation in bottle (as per the Méthode Traditionnelle), the Brut Réserve cuvée is aged on lees for 3 to four years, quite long compared to the minimum of two years often found in Champagne non-vintage bubblies.
Tasting Notes:
Bright lemon color, the bubbles look fine and like they’re in a hurry, speedy to get up to the surface!
A delicate pleasing nose, citrusy, full of lemon scents blended with brioche aromas. Like a lemon essence flavored bake. It’s elegant, fresh, and inviting.
The upfront palate is actually a lot more ‘in-your-face’ spicy than anticipated from the aromas. As soon as you put it in your mouth, it’s a burst of spicy and slightly vegetal flavors: fennel, lime, and a lifted spice like white pepper.
The wine then develops with an oily mid-palate, sustained acidity, always fine bubbles and a relatively long finish on herbal and citrus (again, it’s definite trend in that wine) notes.
Overall
An enjoyably fresh and refined Champagne wine, filled with citrus and peppery spices, fine bubble and solid body and tension from a good acidity.
It’s quite complex and more importantly aromatically explosive, in a good way, yet approachable thanks to it’s freshness.
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