2008 Billecart-Salmon "Cuvée Louis" Brut Blanc de Blancs Champagne
98DC
96JS
96RP
95VN
$199.99
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98
Decanter
Reviewed November 2022A ripe and intense style, showing energy and vibrancy. Flinty, slightly earthy aromas that are more suggestive of long ageing in bottle. Sublime balance between salivating acidity, coy sweetness and richness. A reference for delicacy and refinement.
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Professional Reviews
96
James Suckling
Complex and rich nose of dried apricot, lemon pith, dried pineapple, praline, hazelnut, white cocoa, chalk and nutmeg. Creamy and delicious fruit here, yet it’s mineral and refined with very fine, precise bubbles. Structured, with a sharp, persistent backbone of acidity. Long and very focused.
96
Wine Advocate
Disgorged in October 2020 with seven grams per liter dosage, the 2008 Brut Blanc de Blancs Cuvée Louis Salmon is showing beautifully, unfurling in the glass with scents of crisp yellow apple and stone fruits mingled with dried white flowers, freshly baked bread, buttery pasty and mandarin oil. Full-bodied, ample and fleshy, it's a textural, racy, penetrating wine endowed with considerable cut and concentration. It's derived from the villages of Cramant, Mesnil-sur-Oger and Chouilly, with the latter accounting for some 40% of the blend. (WA)
95
Vinous
The 2008 Brut Blanc de Blancs Louis Salmon (formerly the vintage Blanc de Blancs) and named after the maison’s first cellar master, is fabulous. Rich and ample, the 2008 is beautifully resonant in the glass. It offers up an enticing mélange of lemon confit, marzipan, dried flowers and spice. It’s a terrific 2008, especially for readers looking for a relatively affordable option to some of the super high-flyers in this celebrated vintage. (AG)
Staff Reviews
GW
This Champagne had a white gold color that still had a flash of green after 14 years and a tight bead of dancing bubbles. I found both fresh, Puligny-Montrachet like lime and generous brioche on the nose and on the palate. This has the magic of 2008 with plenty of ripeness and expression but also huge acidity and freshness. The back end is kaleidoscopic, swelling and as long as any champagne I have ever put in my mouth. Will this be the greatest of 2008’s? It is hard to say now, but I am sure it is a contender and I am signing up right now to try it at 20, 30, 40 and even 50 years of age! Sadly, it tastes so good right now that I don’t think much will be kept.
SB
Scott Beckerley
Scott Beckerley
At long last, this bottling has arrived. Another fantastic 2008 to add to your collection! A fragrant and delicate nose of wet stones, seashell, lemon, coconut and tangerine. A LOT going on here! On the palate, freshly cut oranges, key lime, pine nuts, minerals and bright spice. This bottling pretty much has it all and though you can enjoy it today, it will also be a welcome cellar edition. Re-tasted on 11/26 of this year and it continues to flesh out and a couple of minutes air time is very beneficial. It is starting to flesh out very nicely!
LM
Lilia McIntosh
Lilia McIntosh
Billecart-Salmon has outdone themselves with this new vintage of Cuvee Louis! I am not afraid to say it's the best Champagne for this price. It has it all: beautiful aromas of meadow flowers, white blossom, freshly baked brioche. Palate is bursting with supple citrus, hazelnut, brioche, crisp mineral notes and brisk acidity. Finish goes on forever. Balanced to perfection, it will take your breath away!
Notes
This incredible 2008 is composed of only grand cru sites; 33% Cramant, 30% Chouilly, 20% Mesnil and 17% Avize. It sees more wood fermentation than past vintages, a full third, and also one third of the total has blocked malolactic fermentation for more freshness and ageing potential. Is it the best wine of the great 2008 vintage? I am not sure, but I know that it is in the running, and these wines have proved themselves to be the most ageable of all champagnes. -Gary Westby
Details
| Type | Sparkling Wine |
|---|---|
| Varietal | Chardonnay |
| Origin | Champagne, France |
| Bottle Size | 750 mL |
| Alcohol Content | 12.5% |
| SKU | 1604873 |