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By: Philip Roufail | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 6/9/2023 | Send Email
Launois 101: The Launois "Cuvée Réservée" Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut Champagne is the all-time undisputed champion of K&L's Direct Import Champagne portfolio and our largest grower-producer. The Launois champagnes have such a dedicated following amongst customers in the know that it practically sells itself, but for those who are just now discovering these delectable champagnes, here is a quick primer. Founded in 1872, Launois is headquartered in a remarkable chateau in the village of Villers-aux-Bois and is currently helmed by eighth generation vignerons Severine and Caroline Launois. The estate’s Grand Cru vineyards are in Mesnil-sur-Oger and Cramant in the heart of the Cote de Blancs (prestigious neighbors Krug and Salon are nearby). The Launois "Cuvée Réservée" (CR) is the flagship NV champagne and their other Blanc de Blancs (100% Chardonnay) are variations of this unbelievably affordable sparkling masterpiece. So, the “Quartz” is the CR, but bottled under 5 atmospheres of pressure instead of six; the “Clemence” is the CR with an extra year of aging on the lees (4 years total); and the “Maxime” is the CR but a single vintage, currently 2015. The “Dorine” is sourced from a chalky patch of the Cote de Sezanne and is barrel fermented. The “Vinum Dei” (“Wine of God”) is the only blend, 60% Chardonnay and 40% Pinot Noir; and the “Valentine” is a 100% Pinot Noir Brut Rosé. Each champagne has its own distinctive charm and if you hit the cycle you will not be disappointed!
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By: Neal Fischer | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 7/15/2021 | Send Email
Launois is an eternal favorite at K&L, and this all-Chardonnay core of their lineup is always in my wine fridge. It's such a fun Champagne that comes across super fresh with notes of pear, lemon, and chalk. The acid is zippy on the tongue with flavors of lemon meringue pie. It's playful and casual, and it's great for any occasion.
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By: Thomas Smith | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 7/15/2021 | Send Email
Every once in a while, customers looking to explore something new will ask us, “What are you guys drinking? What are you excited about?”. It’s so much fun to hear that question, because it gives us a chance to recommend wines that we’re passionate about, wines that we love and want to share with other people. When recently faced with this question, the answer for me was unequivocally Launois. Not only is it one of our best-selling Champagnes at K&L, it also happens to be the bottle of wine that more of our staff buy than anything else in the store. The reasons for this are clear: all Grand-Cru Chardonnay from Mesnil; clean, powerful and focused flavors; and a price that’s affordable enough to enjoy Champagne on a weeknight. I took a bottle home a week ago and can safely reaffirm that this is exactly as good as we all think it is. With lemon, cream, a hint of smoke and biscuit on the nose, it follows up on the palate with aggressive, mouthwatering acidity, an incredibly prominent minerality and a beautiful finish that carries on and on. An outstanding value.
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By: Diana Turk | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 12/5/2018 | Send Email
Crisp and linear with an incredible, almost creamy, texture, the nuanced Launois Cuvée Réserve over delivers every time. This Champagne is magical: Grand Cru Chardonnay from chalky soils shows minerality, but that racy backbone is balanced by moussy elegance. There's a sparkly acidity that will impress Blanc des blancs connoisseurs while still pleasing a crowd. I've even paired it with weeknight takeout and it's been perfect.
When we say buy as much as you can now, we mean it: this sells out incredibly quickly! I am so proud to support Séverine Launois and her family's tradition of exceptional wines - do not miss this value-driven stunner.
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By: Gary Westby | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 12/5/2018 | Send Email
We are very fortunate to be the importer for this great cult producer of blanc de blancs in the famous village of Mesnil. Launois is the only Champagne that I have sold to someone from Champagne to bring back to Champagne with them! It is that sought after. All grand cru, estate grown Champagne doesn't get better than this, but it is almost always more expensive. This is a wine of depth, finesse and intrigue and yet is about as easy as it gets to drink without engaging the grey matter at all. When we get it, it is always snapped up in a hurry... Don't wait and get disappointed!
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By: Alex Schroeder | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 8/28/2018 | Send Email
This stands front and center as the undisputed staff and customer favorite of the K&L Champagne portfolio. Made entirely from the Grand Cru Chardonnay grown on the Cotes des Blancs outside Mesnil, this is the pinnacle of quality-to-price value in Blanc de Blancs Champagne. It has a zesty, floral bouquet brimming with chalky minerality, bright citrus and melon fruit, creamy richness and a subtle nutty toast. Only Launois gives you this level of richness and balance for such a low price, which is why it sells out so quickly.
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By: David Othenin-Girard | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 8/27/2018 | Send Email
The benchmark wine from this wonderful producer makes big-house Champagne look stupid. Sure there are some fabulous offerings from the great names in Champagne, but none come close to this magical bottle even at a $20 premium. This has everything you want in a Blanc de Blancs. Exquisite structure and vibrant creamy texture. Gorgeous aromatics filled with nuanced mineral, citrus and stone fruit flavors. There's no wonder this is one of our best-selling wines of any kind, but I'm still shocked more people don't stockpile it. Also, these do amazingly in the cellar if you want to put a few years on there.
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By: Scott Beckerley | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 8/27/2018 | Send Email
Yikes! I just found that after working here since 4 B.C., I have never written a review for this Champagne. It's very strange because I love it so! In any case, this one of my perennial favorites. It exudes classic Mesnil citrus (lemon/lime) and also has the additional "house style" cream and cantaloupe scents. On the palate, oranges, green melons and (you guessed it!) vanilla cream. The small bubbles give away its Launois origins, as they are renowned for this (and the familiar "bomb" bottle). This particular cuvée should please almost anyone and I suggest buying a magnum and having a dinner party!
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By: Shaun Green | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 8/23/2018 | Send Email
There's not a lot more to say about this one, it a no-brainer! Grand Cru Champagne of this quality at this price is just not to be missed.
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By: Mari Keilman | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 5/18/2016 | Send Email
From the first sniff of the Launois Cuvee Reserve, the Grand Cru Cotes des Blancs minerality is upfront and present. The Cuvee Reserve can be enjoyed in its youth with notes of clean chalk, bright meyer lemon and a surprisingly long finish of toasted brioche.
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By: Kyle Kurani | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 5/17/2016 | Send Email
Simply put, Grand Cru Chardonnay for this price is ridiculous. Coming from some of the highest quality vineyards in all of Champagne, there is so much wine in this bottle. Fresh green apple and tangerine peel great you on the nose, followed by a crisp and refreshing palate. Fine bubbles deliver a vibrant mouth feel, more Granny Smith, a hint of hazel nut. Hard to get better for Blanc De Blancs lovers!
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By: David Driscoll | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 5/17/2016 | Send Email
An absolutely delicious, world-changing, life-altering experience. When you taste Launois's Cuvee Reserve and you realize that you only paid $35, you start to wonder what else you've been overpaying for? What about those shoes you ordered online? What about that special cheese you bought from the artisan market? Maybe there are other secrets like this out there that you just don't know about. Credit our own Gary Westby for the epiphany. Just don't bother him once we're sold out again. This is bright, clean, refreshing, and stunningly elegant 100% Grand Cru quality fruit and it's TO DIE FOR.
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By: Andrew Stevens | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 5/17/2016 | Send Email
This is one of the most highly anticipated bubblies we carry, both from our customers and from our staff. Stone fruit and minerality play against the bright citrus notes and lively acid carries the wine to incredible length without being too tart. This bottle just drinks so well and goes down so smoothly that it always seems a shame that we cannot carry more of it. Pick it up soon because it will sell out fast.
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By: Jim Barr | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 5/14/2013 | Send Email
Produced from Chardonnay [obviously, since it is “Blanc de Blancs”], this amazing Gem throws tons of yeasty, nutty, creamy fruit at you both in the nose and on the palate, with brilliant complexity, and a lush, broad, and rich finish. The Bean has ordered me to bring at least one case of this home for our consumption in the next one to three-plus years. I will probably bring home more than that. 12.0% ABV
Drink from 2013 to 2018
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By: Mike Parres | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 12/14/2011 | Send Email
This is one of the best Champagnes in our entire stock, all Chardonnay and all Grand Cru from the villages of Mesnil, Oger, Cramant and Avize. Buy now, it will be gone soon !
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By: Jeff Garneau | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 12/9/2011 | Send Email
I am embarrassed to admit that before I met Gary Westby, our Champagne buyer, I was not a drinker of Champagne. I probably had had one or two bottles of mediocre, bulk-produced sparkling wine (not Champagne) and dismissed all sparkling wines on that basis. Then Gary introduced me to grower-producer Champagnes like the Launois "Cuvée Reserve" Brut Blanc de Blancs Champagne. The quality--the authenticity--of the wines was a revelation. And the great prices made possible through our direct import program made it impossible not to try as many as I could. If you want to learn about the Côte des Blancs--the home of the finest Chardonnay in Champagne--about Grand Cru sites like Mesnil and Oger, then this is a tutorial in a glass. Fine bead. Clean. Crisp. Wonderfully mineral in its expression, while still rich in texture. Try it on its own as an aperitif or, better yet, with our local Dungeness crab.
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By: Steve Greer | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 6/7/2011 | Send Email
Every year this is one of my favorite Champagnes. Green apple and mineral on the nose and palate and the 3 years on the lees provides a fantastic mouth feel with plenty of acidity keeping it very crisp and clean. 100% Grand Cru fruit for only $34.99. Crazy.
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By: Kirk Walker | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: 7/9/2009 | Send Email
It is hard to miss this wine with its great packaging, but more importantly it is the juice between the bubbles. Ever since I started working for K & L, first bottle I took home was this wine!, I have been a big fan. Broad rich on the palate with a great bead. The flavors lean towards white Burgundy, what's not to like?
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