BIG Champagne Offer - The Cerebral and the Decadent - Two of Our Best Champagnes, Totally Different

The Cerebral

I love a good Brut Nature but sometimes they can be screech bombs and just brutal. Almost as bad as The NV Caillez-Lamaire Leclats Brut Nature for as little as $34.99 on a 4-pack is just a eerily beautiful and amazingly delicious wine that grabs your attention. It's complex and so dry that I would only drink it as an aperitif or with fresh oysters. Maybe some caviar. It is insanely delicate, yet penetratingly deep. It is 50% barrel fermented and 50% barrel maturation, so despite its skeletal brut nature quality, it has heft and weight to it. But not like something that has sugar. The nose is like Mosel meets Damery with its stony skeletal quality. Airy minerals abound.  Touch of confectionary notes. Even a hint of caramel. Red fruits as well. It's so nuanced and deep and smelling you would never think this is Brut Zero. But also some mild citrus fruits as well that are very clearly defined. So clean and such a fresh nose. The palate is precise as a laser. So crunchy, silky and nutty with terrific and intense fruit. There is sap, yeast and a quiet intensity. Utterly delicious. Stunning flavor intensity for an entry level wine.The wine is not messing around. It is complex like you cannot believe and BONE dry. But for being this dry is is exceptionally balanced and pure. It is assertively dry but has such complexity and mineral lusciousness that it not only works, it is masterful at it. The blend is 50% Chardonnay (vinified in oak barrels) 25% Pinot Noir (a part in oak barrels, a part in inox vats) and 25% Pinot Meunier in inox vats. Just a beautiful nose. Super mineral, This shows so well after 2-3 hours and really picks up steam on day 2. The richness, that is just a part of the wine, and if richness can be precise this wine does it. But still that Brut Nature quality makes this the perfect aperitif wine. This is less a food Champagne, except for those luxury foods that I mentioned earlier, and more of an aperitif. But it draws you in with its terrific precision, depth and complexity. I've sold nothing like this wine before. For me this is a unicorn as it's very hard to find Brut Nature this good at this price. Almost impossible.
unripe Kabinett Trocken from the Ruwer.

I believe in the category of Fass Selections super premium Champagnes we have all the angles covered. We have four, that come and go as availability on these wines can be limited.

The Decadent

1) The Laser: The big vintage Brice (2008/2010 we have offered), which is always lean and minerally. A linear wine.

2) The Eternal: Bollinger RD styled Jean-Baptiste from Perseval-Farge that is old and young at the same time.

3) The Geek: The Perseval-Farge "La Pucelle" covers the 100% geek side of things with it being a Clos and 100% Pinot Noir and Brut Nature.

4) The Deep and Decadent: And the fourth Champagne on the Mt. Rushmore of super premium Champagnes at Fass Selections is today's wine (Caillez-Lemaire's Cuvee Jadis 2007), which is in the deep, bold, rich, opulent, complex and profound style (think Vilmart/Laval) .

It is the new vintage of Caillez-Lemaire's Cuvee Jadis, which is the exceptional 2007. If you have the 2006, open one tonight, as the wine is in a great place now. The 2007, is much better. Leaner, more precise, but with the opulence and decadence that makes this such an outrageous wine. It has deep flavor impact that is hard to find at $57.99 (on 3), much less $80-$90 which is should be. Today I am offering a super special case price of $49.99 a case. 

The nose, right off the bat let's you know this is an elite bottle of grower champagne. The nose is very aromatic. Wafting. Very deep with so many different nuances developing as it interacts with air . There is candied citrus, ripe pear, black fruits, hazelnuts, and fresh grilled bread. It is so pure aromatically in that the aromas are vivid and crystalline. As it develops with air, it begins to exhibit nougat and burnt notes like the top of a creme brullee, cooked fruit and layers of spice. Praline and honey complicate things even more. Oh and gingerbread and wet earth. It is truly all there. They held it back and released it at the perfect time as the nose is just to die for. Aromatic champagne is the best.

But wait, it tastes just as good. Truly a wine where the palate delivers just as much as the nose. The mousse is elegant, refined and super lively. The acidity is terrific and cuts the terrific opulence and richness. The texture is almost silken and the balance between all the components, particularly the sugar/acid balance (5.4 g per liter dosage) is extraordinary. I love the juxtaposition between freshness and vinoussness in this wine. A long, meandering finish that dissipates beautifully. Dried fruits echo on the finish. Total masterpiece. It can be aged for 2-4 more years and then really go into overdrive.

It is 60% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir and 10% Pinot Meunièr. 100% fermentation in barrel gives it the richness. It is aged on its fine lees, which also contributes to the opulence. The grapes come from Cumieres and Hautvillers with no malolactic fermentation no filtration (on the lees) and alcoholic fermentation is in bottles with cork closures and not sealed with crown caps. This is a trend in Champagne as they believe it is qualitatively better.

NV Caillez Lemaire Eclats Brut Nature - $36.99 ($139.96 4-pack) 

2007 Caillez-Lemaire Cuvee Jadis - $59.99 ($231.96 4-pack, $599.88 12-Pack)