Delamotte Blanc de Blancs 2002
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Wine & Spirits
Dark toned and rooty at first, this opens into a sunny Champagne that curves past scents of the woods and scents of the earth. If limestone could be wine, it would have the buzz of this 2002. The mouthwatering flavors extend for minutes, providing a glimpse of what this may become with another ten years in bottle.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This new release of Delamotte's 2002 Blanc de Blancs Millésimé Collection is showing as well as ever, wafting from the glass with aromas of citrus oil, lemon curd, crisp yellow apple, toasted brioche and nougat. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and enveloping, it's generous but incisive, with an ample core of fruit, ripe but racy acids and a long, elegantly toasty finish. While it's already drinking well it will show even more complexity with a few more years on cork.
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Wine Spectator
A mineral-driven version, with sleek acidity and a lively bead framing the notes of macerated peach and apricot, candied grapefruit zest and lemon meringue pie. Drink now through 2022. 2,500 cases imported
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The House of Delamotte is the fifth-oldest Champagne house in the region, founded in 1760. It is located in the heart of the Côte des Blancs in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. Delamotte is small (just 25,000 cases annually) and one of Champagne's best-kept secrets. It is the sister winery of the legendary House of Salon. The two wineries sit side-by-side and are both run by Didier Depond.
"Delamotte has always been somewhat of an insider's house, producing high quality at realistic prices. One of the best buys in exquisitely crafted Champagne."
- Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate
Representing the topmost expression of a Champagne house, a vintage Champagne is one made from the produce of a single, superior harvest year. Vintage Champagnes account for a mere 5% of total Champagne production and are produced about three times in a decade. Champagne is typically made as a blend of multiple years in order to preserve the house style; these will have non-vintage, or simply, NV on the label. The term, "vintage," as it applies to all wine, simply means a single harvest year.
Associated with luxury, celebration, and romance, the region, Champagne, is home to the world’s most prized sparkling wine. In order to bear the label, ‘Champagne’, a sparkling wine must originate from this northeastern region of France—called Champagne—and adhere to strict quality standards. Made up of the three towns Reims, Épernay, and Aÿ, it was here that the traditional method of sparkling wine production was both invented and perfected, birthing a winemaking technique as well as a flavor profile that is now emulated worldwide.
Well-drained, limestone and chalky soil defines much of the region, which lend a mineral component to its wines. Champagne’s cold, continental climate promotes ample acidity in its grapes but weather differences from year to year can create significant variation between vintages. While vintage Champagnes are produced in exceptional years, non-vintage cuvées are produced annually from a blend of several years in order to produce Champagnes that maintain a consistent house style.
With nearly negligible exceptions, . These can be blended together or bottled as individual varietal Champagnes, depending on the final style of wine desired. Chardonnay, the only white variety, contributes freshness, elegance, lively acidity and notes of citrus, orchard fruit and white flowers. Pinot Noir and its relative Pinot Meunier, provide the backbone to many blends, adding structure, body and supple red fruit flavors. Wines with a large proportion of Pinot Meunier will be ready to drink earlier, while Pinot Noir contributes to longevity. Whether it is white or rosé, most Champagne is made from a blend of red and white grapes—and uniquely, rosé is often produce by blending together red and white wine. A Champagne made exclusively from Chardonnay will be labeled as ‘blanc de blancs,’ while ones comprised of only red grapes are called ‘blanc de noirs.’