Champagne Etienne Lefèvre – Cuvée Prestige NV – Grand Cru Brut

Sparkling wine, with a quite creamy intense mousse, and a medium towards deep straw colour, I would say. Quite rich and intense notes here. First of all it is showing off some intense floral notes, come hints of the lees, then I get some notes of pear, ripe apple, ripe citrus and some red berry notes as well. Bone dry on the palate, this is probably extra brut, not a lot of dosage there. There could be a little hint of oak as well, according to my palate. Much more of I would say, vinous, small grower style, in terms of dryness. Fairly ripe fruit, good purity of fruit, quite persistent. In this one, I would say I get the freshness of Chardonnay, but I also get some more of that depth and fruitiness of a Pinot Noir. Very crisp, high level of acidity there, but well integrated I would say, thanks to that richness of fruit. Creamy mid-palate, well rounded, the mousse is finely integrated there. It keeps lingering, it really has a good length. Interesting, personal champagne. Let’s say with a good balance, a certain maturity and complexity due to those leesy notes. Finely drinkable today and should easily evolve as well.

Tasted by the Best Sommelier of the World, Andreas Larsson.