Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Report from ... Deutz Champage Tasting - November 5, 2013

Deutz Champagne came to town, and who could pass up a chance to sip on Champagne, even if it is ten in the morning.

Philippe Rivet, Export Director
Before even a drop touches our lips Export Director, Philippe Rivet, gives us a visual tour of the winery ...
Rivet starts the tour with an aerial view ...
taking us inside to the elegant guest room
Founded in 1838 by William Deutz - the winery now own 103 acres and has supply of grapes from another 600.  80% of those acres is Grand Cru or Premier Cru, spread out over 60 different types of terroir.  Much of the Grand Cru grapes are located in Ay, known as the kingdom of Pinot Noir, and Deutz using first pressings only for all their wines.

One of the most interesting aspect of the winery ...
3km worth of cellars, 65m deep underground
(10 million bottles are kept in stock at the winery -
that's 4 years worth of inventory)
Deutz's classic bottle shape is exclusive to them - and became the bottle for all Cuvees in 2007
The Wines ...
We'll start here with my a pic of my top three of the tasting - individually reviewed below
Brut Classic - $64.95 (non-vintage)
equal parts Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier - base wine from 2010
a very fresh bubbly: delicate biscuity notes with baked apple and bread crust
good acidity and a long finish (*** 1/2+)
"most important wine in our range and the first we blend" - Philippe Rivet
Brut Rose - $79.95 (non-vintage)
90% Pinot Noir, 10% Chardonnay - three years on lees; base wine: 2010
colour is the result of the addition ~8% of red wine
started making this wine about 10 years ago
pretty red berry nose: raspberry, sweet cherry and a hint of spice
floral and strawberry palate with delightful acidity and nice mouthfeel (****+)
Brut Millesime 2006 - $94.95
60% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay, 10% Pinot Meunier - minimum five years on lees
nose: bread crust, baked apple, touch of floral
palate: lovely complexity with crust and pastry notes (**** 1/2)
Blanc de Blancs 2007 - $109.95
100% Chardonnay aged 4-5 years
nose: biscuity, bready almost croissant-esque
palate: fresh bread, lemon and Granny Smith apple (****)
Amour de Deutz 2005 - $229.95
100% Chardonnay - 7 years on lees
first vintage of this wine made in 1993 - newest wine in the line-up
this one shows all of its 7 years on lees with nice biscuit notes
but more butter, toffee and apple - nice roundness as the acidity has dropped off (*** 1/2+)

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