Winemaker Notes
Blanc de Blancs translates from French to mean white wine from white grapes. Our Blanc de Blancs is a unique sparkling wine blend combining the traditional Chardonnay grape with Pinot Gris. The Chardonnay provides a crisp acidity and fresh citrus notes, while Pinot Gris rounds out the mouth with stone fruit flavors and rich spicy tones. Extended aging, coupled with the outstanding fruit flavors of Napa Valley produces an elegant sparkling wine that perfectly expresses Mumm Napa: traditional techniques and contemporary Napa Valley winemaking.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Made from 90% Chardonnay and 10% Pinot Gris, this lovely Blanc de Blancs brims with vanilla cream, lime and pear aromas and flavors, with the yeasty, baked bread dough toastiness that mark the best sparkling wines. It’s basically dry and quite high in acidity, which gives it a brisk, clean finish. Drink this fine bubbly now and for the next 6–8 years.
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.
One of the world's most highly regarded regions for wine production as well as tourism, the Napa Valley was responsible for bringing worldwide recognition to California winemaking. In the 1960s, a few key wine families settled the area and hedged their bets on the valley's world-class winemaking potential—and they were right.
The Napa wine industry really took off in the 1980s, when producers scooped up vineyard lands and planted vines throughout the county. A number of wineries emerged, and today Napa is home to hundreds of producers ranging from boutique to corporate. Cabernet Sauvignon is definitely the grape of choice here, with many winemakers also focusing on Bordeaux blends. White wines from Napa Valley are usually Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
Within the Napa Valley lie many smaller sub-AVAs that claim specific wine characteristics based on situation, slope and soil. Farthest south and coolest from the influence of the San Pablo Bay is Carneros, followed by Coombsville to its northeast and then Yountville, Oakville and Rutherford. Above those are the warm St. Helena and the valley's newest and hottest AVA, Calistoga. These areas follow the valley floor and are known generally for creating rich, dense, complex and smooth red wines with good aging potential. The mountain sub appellations, nestled on the slopes overlooking the valley AVAs, include Stags Leap District, Atlas Peak, Chiles Valley (farther east), Howell Mountain, Mt. Veeder, Spring Mountain District and Diamond Mountain District. Napa Valley wines from the mountain regions are often more structured and firm, benefiting from a lot of time in the bottle to evolve and soften.