Fine Champagne makes me rather weak in the knees. I am admittedly a sucker for the great Champagnes of the world. Some might not know about the truly great tête de cuvée Champagne that I will introduce, the Laurent Perrier ‘Grand Siecle Brut’ Champagne. Most of the great Champagne houses produce what is called a tête de cuvée, which is typically a champagne house’s top selection of grapes. The Grand Siecle is Laurent Perrier’s tête de cuvée and it is one of my favorite of any Champagne house. The Grand Siecle is made from grapes sourced from its best grand cru and premier cru vineyards. It is made only in extraordinary years, when the cellar master deems the grapes to be of outstanding quality; most houses will not produce more than three vintages in a decade. These wines spend more time in the cellar than other champagnes; at least seven years (non-vintage champagnes are usually aged for two to three years), which gives them time to develop their special character. Tête de cuvée bottles have extra details such as special bottles, longer aging or special dosage treatments. While most tête de cuvée Champagnes come from specific vintages, the Laurent Perrier tête de cuvée comes from a host of great vintages which are chosen by the winery’s cellarmaster.
A bit on the history now of this historic Champagne house. Established in 1812, Laurent Perrier is located in the heart of Champagne, in Tours-sur-Marne. Vines are set on limestone soil, highly chalky and showing the distinctiveness of the region. The chalk subsoil holds sufficient water, during dry spells and due its porous nature also provides good drainage when it is wet to prevent roots of becoming water logged, acting a bit like a sponge.
To produce Laurent-Perrier's tête de cuvée Michel Fauconnet has captured the blending of different crus (wines from separate villages) and from different harvest years and declared vintages in Champagne. The current vintages which are blended are exceedingly good, 2002, 2004 and 2006. Michel’s new wine is an exceptional wine, up there with the best tête de cuvée wines in the world. The wine itself shows insane range and minerality. It is simply impossible to resist but will also cellar marvelously for decades. Here is my review of the new Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle Grand Cuvee Brut Champagne. Learn more about this historic Champagne house at http://www.laurent-perrier.com/en/the-wines/
NV Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle Grand Cuvee Brut Champagne- The new edition of the Grand Siecle Grand Cuvee by Laurent Perrier is a truly spectacular Champagne. Disgorged in October 2017 the wine is a blend of the top wines made from 2002, 2004 and 2006. The bouquet is simply intoxicating with amazing range from honeydew lemon to citrus rind, brioche and Japanese pear. Once in the mouth, this shows a really good combination of viscosity and tension. Apricot, Challah bread, marzipan and kumquat zest flavors all marvelously combine in the glass. While this is a marvelous Champagne that is built to age, it is simply impossible to resist right now. Drink 2018-2040- 96