2008 Champagne Laurent-Perrier, Millésime, Brut

The 2008 Brut Millésimé is a gorgeous wine that expresses all of the pedigree of the vintage beautifully. Complex and nuanced, with tons of class, the 2008 has so much to offer. Dried pear, mint, chamomile, crushed rock, dried flowers and pastry overtones are all laced together in this finely-knit, resonant Champagne. At $75.00 a bottle, Laurent-Perrier’s Brut Millésimé is one the best widely available vintage Champagne readers find from this historic harvest.

This is a solid and very dense Champagne with a phenolic and rich texture. Layers of cooked apples and light lemon rind. Brioche and light pie-crust in the aftertaste. Fresh and relatively dry aftertaste.

50% Chardonnay, 50% Pinot Noir. Aged on lees eight years. Dosage 8 g/l. Disgorged June 2018.

Tasted blind from magnum. Big bubbles. Quite a meaty nose – food champagne? Big and brawny and satisfying. Good freshness and light astringency. Bone dry. Substantial. Interesting, quite complex.

Tasted from magnum. As fine an argument for buying magnums of vintage Champagne as one could make, Laurent Perrier's brilliant 2008 is still going strong 17 years from the harvest. It offers serene, crisp white currant, pear and candied lemon fruit over a wonderfully seductive, reductive and sleek bedding of gunflint, toasted hazelnut, sourdough, croissant and the richness of caramel and dried stone fruits. The mousse has settled into satin smoothness, even if the wine itself is still showing plenty of 2008's driving acidity. It's now hitting its peak in magnum, while 75cl bottles are already mature.

A blend of equal parts Pinot Noir and Chardonnay that was disgorged with eight grams per liter dosage, the 2008 Brut Millésimé is showing nicely today, unwinding in the glass with aromas of green apple, pear, orange oil, spices and fresh bread. Medium to full-bodied, bright and precise, with tangy acids and a pillowy mousse, it concludes with a penetrating finish. This is aging very gracefully.