“I still have a bottle of Laurent-Perrier Brut champagne left over from last Christmas. Is it still good? recently asked our reader Gisèle Picard. Answer: First of all, an excellent choice than this beautiful aperitif cuvée (with its 50% chardonnay – $69.75 – 340679 – (5) ★★★ 1/2) which, if it was calm during the past year – that is to say in a cool place without light – will only be better. A champagne that is worth its price.
What about his Champagne colleagues whose prices are under the $50 mark? At the time these lines were written, the SAQ offered 23 bottles at this brand. An initiative appreciated in this period of inflation. The duty thanks the many agencies and the SAQ, who lent themselves to the game of sending the samples, 15 in total.
Regarding the methodology used, the wines were tasted blind in INAO type glasses at 9 degrees Celsius in the company of Robert Renaud, sommelier and wine consultant at the Rockland branch of the SAQ. They are evaluated here in the order of tasting. Note that 37 sparkling wines have also been brought together for the occasion in anticipation of a later publication in these pages. For now, champagne! With a sequel on the website of the To have to.
Paul Dangin “Jean-Baptiste” Extra Brut ($36.25 – 14222819) He is one of three candidates under the $50 mark who should fill the shelves all year round at the SAQ! But there are very few bottles left available. An eloquent white of blacks with a beautiful finesse, lightly dosed, consistent without sacrificing elegance. (5) ★★★ 1/2
Émile Leclère Brut Reserve ($39.25 – 13369510) The Chardonnay rubs shoulders here with 60% Pinot Meunier in a tango that the latter masterfully dominates. The bubbles are saline, the dosage appropriate and the character assertive. A bubble for the table. (5) ★★★
Vincent Diaper “Elegance” Brut ($48.50 – 14758816) If we momentarily lose our bearings, we quickly catch up with this singular cuvée produced in biodynamics, where the pinot noir (84%) supplemented with chardonnay rakes wide and with a lot of aplomb on the nose and in the mouth. A lightly dosed wine, for eccentric backpackers taking out-of-the-way routes, with a deep taste of quince and candied lemon, all discreetly enhanced with a woody memory (here at 21%). Beautiful artisanal bottle inspired by fellow winemaker Jacques Lassaigne and his vines near Montgueux. (5) ★★★ 1/2
Jacquart Mosaic Brut ($48.75 – 12034216) This cuvée will titillate the palate of the mother-in-law, the brother-in-law as well as the son who is introduced to the bubble at the dawn of his 18th birthday, which he will never leave. The universal type of champagne that offers the essential, namely finesse, charm (vanilla, toasted) and the most seductive pear fruitiness. All delivered with harmony. Perfect as an aperitif with cheese gougères. (5) ★★★
From St. Gallen 1er Vintage Blanc de Blancs ($48.00 – 14199903) We already feel here the benefits of the stay on slats of this pure chardonnay produced by a “cooperative of cooperatives” of winegrowers leaning on a contribution of great wines and 1ers raw. Floral nuances of toast and linden on a balanced whole, with texture and fine bubbles. The Sunday brunch aperitif par excellence. (5) ★★★
Lallier Grande Reserve Brut Grand Cru ($50.00 – 11374251) Here, a curious lactic note weighs down the wine’s subtlety on the nose (at least in the sample tasted). The continuation in the mouth is happier, in textures and generosity of fruit, although it does not have, however, this subtle and tonic flight of alluring mousses. Meal wine. (5) ★★★
Gardet 1er Cru Blanc de Noirs Brut ($44.00 – 12398600) The “noirs”, including 40% meunier, combined with the terroirs of Chigny-les-Roses give this bubble of character a spicy touch of ginger on a generous background of ripe apples. A champagne which, although rustic, offers a nourished, almost saline, highly tasty foam. Strudel (not very sweet) with apples? (5) ★★★
Louis de Sacy “Original” Brut 2017 ($46.25 – 14400558) What a funny thing this vintage is! We believe we have grasped it, it scurries away elsewhere. One thing is sure: we dive with him in depth. An extra brut under tension, yet rounded under a broad fruitiness (orange, apple, dried pear) and spicy, enriched by a consequent stay on laths. A champagne that assumes itself, with a good length. Note that its price in France (31.40 euros at the estate, or $43.55) roughly corresponds to that of the SAQ here. (5) ★★★ 1/2