Laurent-Perrier "Héritage" Brut Champagne

55% Chardonnay, 45% Pinot Noir. 20% 2014, 20% 2016, 30% 2018, 30% 2019. Aged on lees three years. Disgorged December 2023. Dosage 6 g/l. Tasted blind from magnum. Very fine bead. Quite complex and layered. Tight but satisfying. Lime and blossomy. Delicate but interesting! Rather ethereal. Aperitif wine. 17.5/20 points (JR)

This release from Laurent-Perrier is absolutely stunning in every way I want it to be stunning. The nose is incredibly pretty but also very deep, with a breadth that is just really impressive. There are touches of jasmine, orange-blossom honey, lemon curd, and dried pineapple all accompanied by a combination of ripe green pear and crisp green apple and a really soft and pillowy brioche. This is the kind of wine that you just pause and soak in the aroma for a few minutes before even taking the first sip, the whole bouquet is just that enchanting. The palate is a touch robust, with a kaleidoscopic depth that pulls you down and almost tries to drown you, there's just so much going on. There's fresh and candied citrus, more crisp apple, and a saline sort of nuttiness like in a Manzanilla sherry. This is just absolutely divine and I want to do an exploratory sort of dinner where it's just a ton of different appetizers and finger foods while you drink a couple bottles of this. Bite after bite each compared with the last pairing, sipping in-between and over the food to try it every which way, chatting with each other about your favorite little mixes. That's the kind of experience this Champagne merits, and you'll be doing yourself the dirtiest of disservices if you don't at least give one a try, maybe two to be safe.

Move over, there is a BRAND NEW CHAMPAGNE in town and it's made by Grand Marque Laurent-Perrier (established in 1812)! Laurent-Perrier has not produced a new champagne since its inaugural release of their Blanc de Blanc Brut Nature in 2019. The Laurent-Perrier Héritage Brut Champagne continues Laurent-Perrier's history of innovation. Unique, distinctive, and groundbreaking, the Héritage is a masterful blend of four reserve wines and reserve wines ONLY. There are no new harvest grapes in the blend. The first Héritage release is 55% Chardonnay and 45% Pinot Noir from 2019 (great ripe vintage with zippy acidity), 2018 (also a great ripe vintage), 2016 (vintage has aged beautifully), and 2014 (the last of the "classic cool" years before the onset of the now normal "solar" vintages) and will be available in all of our stores on September 1st, 2025. For those who are familiar with Laurent-Perrier's prestige cuvee, Grand Siècle, may notice a similarity in winemaking methodology. The Grand Siècle is also a multi-vintage blend, but of three vintages that includes the current harvest year. Building on that success (the last release #26 was given 100 points by James Suckling), the Heritage combines Laurent-Perrier's focus on Chardonnay and the art of blending. By the numbers, 40 crus are in the blend, half of which are Grand Cru, fermented in stainless steel tanks, and is aged on the lees for a minimum of 4 years. This new cuvee is already making a splash, racking up 90 + point scores from Janice Robinson, Wine Advocate, and Decanter. Since this is new release, I'm posting LP's official winemaker notes: "A white gold colour with a fine and persistent effervescence. A nose offering notes of lemon, white peach and fruits in syrup followed by aromas of toasted bread and toasted almonds. Fresh at first which gives way to a lively, elegant and complex palate with aromas of white fruits and citrus zest. Héritage offers a perfect balance between freshness, elegance and maturity with notes of floral honey."