2004 - Moet and Chandon, Grand Vintage

Pear, spices, yellow stone fruits and smoke meld together in the Brut Grand Vintage. Rich and ample on the palate, the 2004 impresses for its balance, richness and volume. This bottle is quite a bit fresher and more vibrant than the bottle I reviewed last year. Early signs of development are just now starting to appear, but the flavors remain on the bright side for a ten year-old Champagne. If anything, the 2004 needs a bit more time to fully come together. Overall. this is a terrific showing. The blend is 38% Chardonnay, 33% Pinot Noir and 29% Pinot Meunier. Disgorged 2012.

Assembled from surprisingly close to one-third each of Champagne’s trio of major cepages, Moet & Chandon’s 2004 Brut Grand Vintage delivers a delightful aroma mingling chamomile and honeysuckle, pear and white peach, green tea and quinine, all anticipating the lusciously juicy, refreshingly tart and subtly piquant but also silken and buoyant palate impression that follows. As with the corresponding rose, I was surprised to find a decided sense of sweetness from just five grams residual sugar, but the ripe generosity of the vintage no doubt goes far toward explaining this, and I don’t find it at all misplaced, much less obtrusive. Its soothing texture complements this wine’s invigorating vivacity, levity, and transparence to herbal and floral nuances in a lingering finish. I would not be surprised to witness it offering some additional – or at least, new – delights over the next couple of years in bottle. Imported by Moet Hennessy, New York, NY; tel. (212) 251-8200

The first release of the Grand Vintage (the Grand Vintage Collection 2004 saw longer lees-ageing). Disgorged in 2010. Dosage 6 g/l.Tasted blind. Palest of the three Moëts, with a little greenish tinge. Very youthful and promising. But it’s still tucked in. (JR)