Lunch at Daniel Primack’s on a perfect June day. We sat outside, listened to music, ate salt marsh lamb and talked. And drank some lovely wines. Champagne Pierre Gimonnet Blanc…
Champagne Veuve Clicquot Rich
Champagne isn’t a region known for innovation. When you have a product that’s so delicious and so commercially successful, then why would you mess with it? But marketing is critical…
Asda’s £10 Champagne Louvel Fontaine is actually pretty good
Oh, I know I shouldn’t say this. But Asda’s £10 Louvel Fontaine Champagne is actually quite nice. I’s so much safer to slate cheap fizz, but I can tell you…
Taittinger Comtes de Champagne 2002
I do like Comtes. It’s invariably a beautiful wine, and it ages well. I’ve written up a vertical of these wines before, and recently tried the current vintage, 2006. This…
In Champagne, day 3 (part 2): De Sousa and Pierre Paillard
De Sousa is a small Champagne house with a Portuguese name. It’s run by Erick and Michelle Se Sousa, and was established by Erick’s father and mother in the 1950s….
In Champagne, day 3 (part 1): Pierre Peters and Ulysse Collin
Day three began with a brilliant visit with the engaging, smart Rodolphe Péters (above) of Champagne Pierre Peters. He explained that there are three critical elements for him in making…
In Champagne, day 2: Bruno Paillard, Selosse and Gosset
Day two in Champagne began at Bruno Paillard, someone who I have featured on this site before (here and here). Bruno began with an interesting statement: ‘The true richness of…
In Champagne, Day 1: visiting Vergnon and dinner at Bocal
This Champagne trip started gently, with a weekend in Reims that contained just one vineyard visit: JL Vergnon, in Le Mesnil. We were hosted by Christophe Constant (below), who has…
Grower Champagne focus: the remarkable Gimonnet Oenophile 2005
I’m quite a Gimonnet fan, so I was delighted to find this in a wine shop in Reims at a sensible price. It’s just beautiful. 2005 isn’t the best ever…