Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Lemons, pears, sweet pastries, oyster shells and pie crust on the nose of this beautifully balanced and complex Champagne. Creamy and rounded with salty-sweet pastry elements and wonderful continuity. Silky bubbles. This is a blend of reserve wines.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Disgorged in March 2024 with four grams per liter dosage, based on the 2018 vintage (50%) and complemented by a perpetual reserve component that dates back to 1988, the NV Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Réserve Oubliée goes through partial malolactic fermentation (as the rest of Péters wines) and is matured for about 18 months in a variety of vessels: large wooden casks, stainless steel tanks and concrete (roughly one-third each) before aging under cork in the bottle. Péters observes, and the wine confirms, that long aging on the lees contributes to an aromatic range of complexity that evokes associations of maturation in barrels. Opening in the glass to reveal notes of baked bread, toasted nuts, vanilla pod and dried fruit, it is harmonious and enveloping, laden with vibrant acidity and marked by lip-puckering salinity. It’s a perfect blanc de blancs for enjoying now, while laying down Les Chétillons in the cellar.
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Wine Spectator
This vinous Champagne is subtle at first, more about the plushly creamy texture and underlying minerality, but lightly mouthwatering acidity buoys notes of ripe white raspberry, salted almond, macerated cherry and hints of spring blossoms and blood orange zest to expand on the palate. A deftly knit and focused version, with a sense of finesse.
A term typically reserved for Champagne and Sparkling Wines, non-vintage or simply “NV” on a label indicates a blend of finished wines from different vintages (years of harvest). To make non-vintage Champagne, typically the current year’s harvest (in other words, the current vintage) forms the base of the blend. Finished wines from previous years, called “vins de reserve” are blended in at approximately 10-50% of the total volume in order to achieve the flavor, complexity, body and acidity for the desired house style. A tiny proportion of Champagnes are made from a single vintage.
There are also some very large production still wines that may not claim one particular vintage. This would be at the discretion of the winemaker’s goals for character of the final wine.
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.’