At the high end of Champagne, you have your geek Champagnes that the Champagne geeks love. Complex. Almost brooding. But often austere and verging on charmless. They are interesting but rarely delicious. Then you have the more approachable Champagnes that are delicious and forward with lovely fruit and the classic Champagne acidity, but they can be less interesting. There are very few Champagnes that have the stuff to appeal to both worlds; this is one of them.
If you bought the 2008 Brice Bouzy Grand Cru and have not had it, leave work, go directly home and open a bottle. I opened one just today and the wine is just ridiculous. I had it alongside one of the top geek Champagne producers and the Brice blew it away.
At $50 the '08 is one of the greatest Champagne values I have ever had. Now comes the very very worthy successor, which is the 2010 Brice Bouzy Grand Cru, which can be had for $52.99 on a 4-pack and a special $49.99 on a 12 bottle case. Brice's style is as elegant as it gets in Champagne. This wine is at the same qualitative level as its stylistic cousin Pommery Cuvée Louise ($100-150 at traditional retail). It has an incredible level of finesse and sophistication. There is density, sap and incredible concentration all wrapped in the most elegant package you can believe.
First, the nose. The nose is so complex you basically need slo-mo technology to fully appreciate it. There is so much going on m the brain cannot fully process it. Intense and powerful aromas of red fruits and compote. Honestly, I can't even describe everything that is going on. I was swirling and sniffing it for 15 minutes before I even tasted it.
The palate has a sharp beginning with a delicious juiciness that makes you shake your head; there is stunning balance. Again, there is a lot going on. It has a level of across the board impact as great Grand Cru Burgundy or top Grosses Gewachs with waves of fruit, acidity and minerality that just hit the palate like repeating shock waves after an explosion. There is superb structure. A salty, saline, biscuits mineral goodness just envelops the 2010. It has absolutely some of the finest mousse out there. It's not DP/Krug mousse, but the level below which is super impressive for a vintage Champagne for $50 (it would be $80-$100 3 tier). The fruit is there but more of a suggestion but the tart tangy cherries bring to mind wonderful Beaune reds.
The long, sappy finish lingers for about 30 seconds with complexity that vanishes like a sunset. OK, I'm waxing poetic but I absolutely love this wine. It has the length of Grand Cru Chablis which is what comes to mind most when drinking the 2010.
This is a Champagne to sit and contemplate like a great bottle of Burgundy. It is 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Chardonnay.
I cannot explain how great this bottling is. Brice is exactly what I look for in Champagne. Not bone dry, exquisitely balanced, speaks of place, has a sense of harmony that only high end Grand Cru/Tete de cuvee Champagne has. And the price for Brice reflects the fact that they are new to the US.
The mineral expression of Bouzy fruit is just remarkable and Jean-Rene captures it perfectly in the 2010. The concentration is very impressive. The complexity is just spectacular if that is what you are after, but besides being complex, which is appealing in a cerebral way, it is also just ridiculously delicious because of the soft mousse and exquisite balance. After it airs the nose has just a mineral stank that is right in my wheelhouse. Umami for days. And the length. It has the cling that truly great wines have. It becomes a part of your palate but in an ethereal way. It has the structure for 10-15 years evolution in the bottle. Do not miss this. For $50 in Champagne there are very few values like this. Jump on this.
If you normally spend $80-$120 and up on Champagne, buy as much of this as you can and drink it once a month. Serve it at parties. If you splurge once a year on a great bottle, this should be it. It will give you an entree into the normally unaffordable world of top tier Champagne.
The family that runs Champagne Brice has been in Bouzy since the 17th century. Their wines are made from grapes grown in incredible terroir including including vineyeards in Aÿ, Bouzy, Cramant, and Verzenay. Bouzy is a Grand Cru Pinot Noir village. In Champagne they will classify a whole village as Grand Cru or 1er Cru versus Burgundy as in Burgundy where they have classifications within the village. Brice, for me, is a terrific producer. I like every single one of their Champagnes. They are using only Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and block the malo, which, Mr. Brice explained to me ensures that the wines have utmost finesse. He is right and then some. This estate and its wines across the board have ridiculous finesse. I'm very proud to be working with them.
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