2008 Saint-Chamant "Cuvee de Chardonnay" Blanc de Blancs Brut Champagne

The recently released 2008 Brut Cuvée de Chardonnay from Saint-Chamant is a brilliant young wine, though it's unsurprisingly more reserved out of the gates than its 2006 predecessor. Offering up aromas of hazelnuts, lemon oil, wheat toast, iodine and fresh peach, complemented by subtle hints of cane sugar and cognac, it's full-bodied, deep and concentrated, with a deep and tensile core, racy acids and a delicate pinpoint mousse. Long and sapid, the alliance of lively fruit with complex secondary and tertiary nuance evokes the Champagne of yesteryear. 95+ (WK)