1999 and 1998 in Champagne
When I became a wine nerd overnight in the summer of 1986, I cast myself hungrily over all the literature I could find and devoured every single detail over and over again. One aspect that I really swotted up on was the effect of the weather on the character of the vintage. The more I learned the more importance I attached to this subject, intensely exciting as it is on paper. Because of course, the weather is clearly the most crucial of all when it comes to how a vintage will turn out, is it not. The problem is only that in order to acquire the relevant knowledge one has, generally speaking, to keep a check on all the 365 days and nights in the year. There are far too many vintages that seem to be practically identical when it comes to figures, but that differ completely in reality. And just as often I have seen many vintages that are twins with regard to style and character, whose comparative weather profiles are very hard to interpret. Look at 2002 and 1982 for example. Their weather facts and figures are relatively far apart from each other, but they behave in a frighteningly identical way. Actually the two most similar vintages I have experienced.
To put it simply, each and every day influences what the grape will be like when it is harvested and an excess of sun or rain can be rectified in the final phase just as can a deficit. History is full of ”last minute miracles” where an unexpected Indian summer at harvest time has suddenly transformed acidic berries into vigorous, mature fruit. The harvest and the blossoming are themselves the most important stages and one can often generalise about the character of the vintage by analysing how the summer has been. 1947, 1959, 1976, 1989 and 2003 have all been strongly stamped by their hot dry summers, for example. A fact that is easy to trace in blind tastings. Furthermore it is believed that small harvests normally raise the quality. Yet another dogma that does not prove true particularly often. Low harvests are in themselves good, but in certain vintages the volume is not reduced naturally, and gigantic bunches of perfectly mature, beautiful fruit can provide brilliant wines in superabundance now and then.
I have learnt of late when trying to foresee the future of wines to assess a vintage first and foremost by how the wines are composed, structurally and aromatically. One of the few activities that actually get easier with time. The experience and memory of previous vintages is invaluable when it comes to this type of analysis.
During this past winter and the spring of 2009 I have tasted my way broadly speaking through all the wines from 98 and 99 that are out on the market and I feel ready at last to undertake an analysis. 1998 is a somewhat perplexing vintage since most wines have low alcohol content, as did the ones from 95. The first wines to be launched displayed an immediate charm similar to that of the reference vintage just mentioned. After that a whole load of odd oxidative individuals cropped up. At that point I was told by initiated winemakers that this was the result of a slightly problematic harvest and that those who had done their harvesting a bit earlier had produced pure, elegant wines that were however a trifle low on alcohol. Those who waited, often the greatest names, were hit by sudden overripeness with elements of oxidation resembling fallen fruit. This means that certain wines are a blend of healthy and overripe grapes which give them an unstable character.
This entire line of reasoning was for a long time regarded as a truth. After my spring tastings I am no longer convinced by it. A striking number of wines have found themselves and grown into beautifully harmonious Prince Charmings whose exaggeratedness has dried up in a similar manner to what is happening at this precise moment with those monumental wines from the vintage of 1990, so much discussed in Sweden.
I was also convinced right from the start that 99 is a considerably better vintage than 98, with its 89-like honeyish, sweet toffee concentration. Nowadays these two vintages are more even and nobody can say with any certainty which one is going to come out on top, despite the fact that 99 is still the best bet. The wines from 98 are characterised at present by great fruit-governed drinkableness and evenness while the wines from 99 are more compact, slightly more reserved and at the same time more crispily toffee-dominated and concentrated, with lower acidity content and considerably greater oiliness (not fatness, a word that one sees more and more often in descriptions of wine and which is like an illness and nothing else, so there!!).
We are still waiting for Salon, Krug Clos de Ambonnay, Billecart-Salmon Clos Saint-Hilaire, Henriot Enchanteleurs, Bollinger R.D., Duval-Leroy Femme, Jacquesson, Dom Ruinart Rosé and a few others, but I have listed below all those of my favourites that have achieved 93 points or more so far on my rather miserly Juhlin ranking scale. The left-hand mark in parentheses shows the wine’s quality at the present moment while the right-hand one signifies the potentially highest mark for the wine. Worth noting is that the dominance of the champagne houses over champagnes from the growers has seldom been greater than is the case with these vintages. Chardonnay asserts itself slightly better in 1998 than in 1999 and Louis Roederer must be extra proud with their fantastic four wines among the five best in 1999 before Krug put in an appearance.
1999
1 1999 Cristal Rosé (95) 97
This is a wine that seems to be incapable of failing! Probably the most eminent wine of this vintage. Not in any way great or forward, no no, rather an unobtrusive scent of spring, yet with such aristocratic deportment that all the subtleties become conspicuously distinct and discernible. The streak of wild strawberry, the white chocolate, the exotic pink scent of orchids, that magical, whirling pearl necklace mousse and the long strawberry toffee finish all taken together make it possible for one just to lean back and enjoy one of the most seductive wines on this earth.
2 1999 Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Francaises (95) 97
Marvellously creamy and intensively elegant in a modern, polished way despite muscles as great as the Gluteus Maximus on a thoroughbred. Already fantastically long and homogenous with a colossally compact layer of fruit that ranges from pear to fig. Tempting to enjoy it now at once, and that is no crime, but if one is oneself in good shape then one ought to wait until the wine's twentieth birthday before one's next meeting when the complexity of truffles will have developed fully.
3 1999 Cristal (94) 96
I seldom have the opportunity of enjoying a whole bottle on my own, but when I sat down in the Continental Restaurant in Reims on a job trip and saw that this new vintage of Cristal had just been launched in secret, I was unable to resist the temptation. I sat for hours and sipped at it until I had emptied the whole bottle, and with a smile on my lips I strolled out to the magnificently illuminated cathedral in the autumn night. I can sum up my detailed impressions briefly by saying that the aroma was weak and immature while the flavour had a fairytale elegance, concentration and classicism. Time will tell where we finally end up.
4 1999 Louis Roederer Blanc de Blancs (94) 96
Wonderfully generous and developed already with masses of lemon biscuit tones and delectable notes of meringue. At the same time extremely fresh and delightfully caressing. A bull's eye.
5 1999 Louis Roederer (93) 96
An absolutely wonderful, rumbling Wagner opera right from the start! Masses, layer upon layer of fruitiness and tons of Roederer toffee. Classically typical of the house and phenomenally concentrated. Since the vintage wine is always more potent than Cristal it is easier to be impressed by it in its youth than by its more famous brother. Too young and more gunpowdery in the magnum so far.
6 1999 Dom Pérignon (94) 95
An absolutely fabulous, great, broad-shouldered costume with juicy exotic fruitiness and an almost 76-like sensation of essence and fullness of body. A real fruit bomb that is going to give pleasure to many generations of wine-lovers. The funny thing is that this wine does not have even a trace of Dom Pérignon's typically toasted character as yet, despite its sweet mellowness. The most important explanation for this is probably the brief time since being disgorged, but also, paradoxically enough, the wine's gorgeous oiliness that makes it difficult for the toasted aromas to elbow their way out.
7 1999 Louise Pommery Rosé (93) 95
Stunning! Pommery has produced a wine that colour-wise balances close to the white wine. Extremely pale, and it is not only the colour that is reminiscent of the master of rosé, Roederer. Even the wild strawberry cream and the sophisticated, silky mellowness and translucence are strikingly like the neighbour in Reims. The aroma is insanely lovely with young tones of peach, apricot, gooseberry, fennel, white chocolate and vanilla. The balancing act on the palate is of the more impressive kind with oily mellowness and opulent sweet fruitiness, and an uplifting chalky finish created with such awareness by the Prince and Thierry Gasco's team. Do I need to point out that the mousse is fantastically beautiful and gorgeous with the most stylish pearl necklace bubbles that dally for a long while, forming impressionist patterns on the surface.
8 1999 Bollinger La Grande Année (93) 95
I hope that it is not a trend to make the vintage wine with more and more Chardonnay. It feels extremely important that the world of champagne still has its strongest Pinot outpost left! Enough of criticism. The 99 is super-delectable with lovely balance and easily accessible creaminess, even now with chocolate and nutty undertones. Will certainly keep for a very long time and should, despite its early charm, be stored for at least five more years before being consumed.
9 1999 Jacques Selosse (93) 95
Tasted when newly disgorged before it was launched with Anselme standing among the oak barrels. Extremely high alcohol content of around 14 % according to Anselme, which I was unable to perceive at all. Tremendously concentrated and loaded with sweet fruitiness so that dosage is not missed in the slightest. One of the most Burgundy-like creations from Selosse that I have encountered. Very like Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Premier cru. Buttery and focused with a Cramant feel to it.
10 1999 Paul Dethune a l`Ancienne (93) 95
Goodness gracious, this is a real explosion! 1,000 bottles of the highest quality in an Egly-Ourie style, from 205-litre oak barrels and wine matured with cork. Super-rich with almond, nougat and the beginnings of mint chocolate. The flavour is majestically monumental with caramel, dried fruits and beeswax. A thunderously dark boom afterwards, lasting at least a minute. This wine shows what fantastic vineyards Dethune has in his possession.
11 1999 Clos des Goisses (93) 95
An unusually mellow, toffee-filled, polished style right from the start, thanks to the mellow, sweet charm of this vintage. Slightly smoky and nutty with light citrus and lime blossom tones. Full-bodied, compact and promisingly long, and very pleasurable drinking at once.
12 1999 Piper Rare (93) 95
A fantastic wine in the Thibault spirit! Very reminiscent of Charles Heidsieck Blanc de Millenaires with its fat buttery, and at the same time roasted hazelnut grilling and sun-matured sweet citrus costume. Sweeter and more mellow than Piper usually is, with good hope anyway of a long life.
13 1999 William Deutz Rosé (92) 95
Yet another magical edition of this wine. Please do not drink it yet. Of course the wine is seductively delicious with its focused strawberry essence, but the layers will split up and they have the potential for becoming even more subtle and captivating with time. Be patient!
14 1999 William Deutz (92) 95
It is early days still in the life of this young wine. The fruity loveliness and complexity in this closed bud of beauty are however quite unmistakeable. Yet another magnificent William with which to gild the future.
15 1999 Bollinger La Grande Année Rosé (93) 95
Utterly marvellous right from the beginning. Full of sweet fruit, marzipan, integrated barrel character and several layers of mashed strawberry "Burgundyness". No-one with any sense can avoid falling like a ton of bricks for this splendid, generous specimen. Certain bottles are considerably younger and more introvert.
16 1999 Diebolt Fleur de Passion (92) 95
It is of course incredibly difficult to judge what will happen with this embryo. A somewhat piercing sulfuric tone meets the nose initially because the wine hasn’t undergone malolactic fermentation. Big, round, exotic fruit, and eminent purity. Mineral finesse.
17 1999 Comtes de Champagne (86) 94
Tasted as "prerelease" a few weeks after disgorging. Totally sealed and retiring at present. The structure is however impeccable so we have in all certainty a classical, creamy Comtes to look forward to.
18 1999 Comtes de Champagne Rosé (92) 94
A beautifully focused and creamy champagne with a sensation of delightful butterscotch-like Chardonnay despite the predominance of Pinot. Fine minerality and compact fruitiness that needs a little warmth and time in the glass to display its sweet, charmingly colourful costume. Developing even more positively than I had expected and already showing chocolate and roasted nut tones. Happy drinking! This was Sara's and my first date bubbly in the 1979 vintage, but the year was 1999!
19 1999 Larmandier-Bernier Vieilles Vignes Cramant (93) 94
An utterly, improbably full-bodied, concentrated butterscotch wine. In some way this wine feels like a kind of nectar, a concentration of Cramant that one could dilute with Pellegrino and still love anyway! Honey, white chocolate and massive layers of tropical fruits. Delightful drops in which the acid feels less than usual.
20 1999 Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs (91) 94
I do not know whether my nagging at this firm to make a Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs has has any effect on them to release a pure Chardonnay from mainly Cramant grapes at last. Whatever the case, I opened this lovely-as-a-fairytale bottle with great expectations. Unfortunately I was very disappointed by the cardboardy aroma and became even more surprised when the flavour was later fantastic. Any assessment is thus almost impossible to make. Must be tasted again to see if the aroma is supposed to be purer. The flavour is deliciously mellow and caressing with a colossal syrupy intensity of sweet basic tones that at the same time are elevated by lemon and juiciness. Sensual and fascinating.
21 1999 Louis Roederer Rosé (90) 94
Wow! How stunning it is already! Really oily and with super-creamy concentration, an extremely light rosé with Roederer's lovely apricot colouring. Long and focused with masses of well-developed charm right from the beginning.
22 1999 Amour de Deutz (90) 94
I had the honour of tasting this wine four months before its official release. Newly disgorged and a bit tight it was no surprise that the wine had difficulties in showing of at first. But sipping the last few drops thirty minutes later made me convinced of the sheer class and hidden potential of this wine. The bouquet is gentle and shy but with loads of future beauty behind the curtain. The massive structure on the palate is indeed impressive as is the length and concentration. Do not walk in the footsteps of Madonna. This is not a wine for direct consumption. It is made to age in beauty like the singing star herself.
23 1999 Belle Epoque Rosé (91) 94
A voluptuous and generous champagne right from the start, with Burgundy-like fruitiness and a satin-smooth feel. There is also in this wine a lovely, elegant tone of clean sheets that beautifully lifts forth the strawberry essence. Mustier and on its way towards nuttiness on the last occasion.
24 1999 Guy Charlemagne Mesnillésime (89) 93
Tasted long before the wine came onto the market and years before the autolytic character had developed to its fullest. Still, it’s remarkable how well integrated the oak note already is, and how village-typical the pure Champagne is. I’ll be back.
25 1999 Pol Roger Blanc de Blancs (89) 93
It is far too soon to predict the future prospects of this wine with any certainty, since the experience at present is characterised by tough, hard, undeveloped youth. In the midst of the stone dust there is a lovely oiliness that is typical of the vintage, and that is going to dominate this wine later on. Store for a long time.
26 1999 Pol Roger (90) 93
Tasted blind beside a 98 Winston, this wine appeared to be not quite up to the mark. On its own, it seems well-made and typical of the house, with fine balance and a promising structure with a buttery toffee base and just the right amount of dark background tones. Beautiful depth lately.
27 1999 Moët & Chandon Grand Vintage (90) 93
Tasted as one of the wines when I led the world's greatest champagne tasting for 1,000 people on Lexus' account in connection with Pavarotti's wonderful farewell concert in the Globe in Stockholm. I was perhaps not entirely concentrated on the analysis and enjoymnet of the wine, but I had just enough time to apprehend that this is a classical Moët with an extra portion of oiliness and concentration. Perhaps rather too much freshness, but on the other hand extra opulent and oily, a guarantee for pleasurable experiences in the future. Very crispy and honey-mellow already. 94 points in magnums.
28 1999 Taittinger (91) 93
A few months out on the market after the upset of its disgorging have been necessary before this wine has found its way in life. Now it has a feeling of youthful harmony and budding expectation. Nothing great, but everything supremely agreeable in the manner typical of the firm. More and more maturity for each passing month. Gracious me, massively powerful nut toffee and characteristically gorgeous house style during the spring of 2007.
29 1999 Gosset Grand Millésime (88) 93
A young wine that froths and snorts in a peevish manner for ten minutes before harmony and the Gosset aroma spectrum make their arrival. We Gosset enthusiasts are going to supply ourselves properly and excitedly wait for the gorgeous maturity we are expecting on the other side of the 10-year mark.
30 1999 Paul Bara Comtesse Marie de France (89) 93
Quite unbelievably exotic in its youth as usual, with tones of passionfruit, melon, sour sweets and cloudberry. Beneath this wild explosion of fruit there is as usual an oceanic depth from which to create new interesting tones in the future.
31 1999 Guy Charlemagne (89) 93
Goodness, what a bull's eye! Apart from the ordinary characcter of stony Mesnil and perky citrus acid with a timed butteriness, there is also an unexpected but fairytale-lovely taste layer of purple lilac and violets. This additional extra colour gives the wine a fascinating depth and a personality that makes me long already for the next bottle.
32 1999 Belle Epoque (88) 93
Somewhat weak in the nose thus far, but very compact and coherently focused. The fruitiness is impressively sweet and the vintage style reminds one not a little of the 1989. A broad, full-bodied wine with good potential despite low acidity.
1998
1 1998 Krug Clos du Mesnil (98) 99
12,000 bottles and 489 magnums of this jewel to fight over. Of course it is unusually developed and more accessible than usual which could indicate that the wine is not as great as a number of other vintages. I shall chance my arm anyway and allow myself to have my breath taken away in raptures where everything is in the correct place right from the start. It always feels slightly meaningless to try and describe one of the formost wines in the world so let us just state that this is a generous, opulent, mellow issue of the most perfect Chardonnay wine in the world along with DRC Montrachet.
2 1998 Jacques Selosse (95) 97
The Master has done it again! The entire, unparallelled fireworks of personal aroma and flavour showed up right from the start when the wine was launched in the autumn of 2007. Delightfully balanced and loaded with fruitiness. Insanely, exotically spicy and juicily refreshing. A great wine that will need to be allowed a few years to develop the creaminess that will be its next asset. Perfect balance and harmony.
3 1998 Mumm Verzenay Collection (91) 96
A delightfully crazy wine from the best situation below the windmill at Verzenay and made in a preposterously small issue only for Mumm's winemaking team. I have never been more convinced that my thoughts about terroir have been bang on! It is really true that Verzenay delivers the stoniest and most toughly mineral-headed Pinots in Champagne. A kind of Mesnil in the hills of Reims. In this wine the almost intrusive stoniness meets a Mumm mellowness that smiles its broadest smile at the receiver. Instructive and conquering.
4 1998 Krug (94) 96
Enormously fascinating to see how Krug has succeeded in avoiding a single oxidated grape this risky year, despite their extensive procuration of grapes from different sources. This wine is fantastically focused and unmistakeably stamped with the Krug trademark. Seductively mellow right through the elegant, classical flavour that is as united as a well-trimmed Russian machine team from the 70s. Somewhere between 89, 95 and 96 in character.
5 1998 Comtes de Champagne (95) 96
Not even the importer knew that the new vintage was on its way when they found a magnum 98 among their bottles. It is clearly a bit wrong to start tasting a new vintage in a magnum since the size of the bottle makes the wine even less ready. So far this is a fresh, lemon-crispy package of mineral without the slightest "Comtes" maturity. Store!!! All right, not as sharp any longer, some toastiness started to appear during the spring of 2007, and butterscotch plumpness in the spring of 2008.
6 1998 Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Francaises (94) 96
Unfortunately I had a cold when I encountered this newborn eminence for the first time. I was however not alone in describing the nose as delicate and undeveloped. The flavour on the other hand is precisely as usual in this wine at a comparable age. Enormously rich and overwhelmingly charming. The fruit bomb detonates with colourful elements of liquorice, smoke, chocolate and wood. Impressive!
7 1998 Pol Roger Blanc de Blancs (93) 96
Very lovely and stylish right from the start. Like Chablis with a reserved, mineral-impelled style. Fine floweriness and an extremely crispy lightness through and through. And the butterscotch is here already. Wonderfully delicious, but certain bottles are still too young and in the bud.
8 1998 La Grande Dame Rosé (92) 95
15 % Pinot Noir from Clicquot's best location at Bouzy. Clos Colin is added to the delicate white blend from Verzy, Bouzy, Verzenay, Ambonnay, Avize, Oger and Le Mesnil. A fairytale, elegant and beautifully scintillating champagne with brilliant intensity of colour and felicitously aromatic opulence. A sensual beauty to be drunk at once, but also a superb old lady in the future. Only 10,000 bottles for our thirsty world.
9 1998 Sir Winston Churchill (93) 95
My spontaneous impression was that the nose and aftertaste were suffering from youth syndrom while the middle taste was stunningly concentrated and typical of Winston, with a translucent layer of orange-like fruitiness and a darker layer of liquorice. After more careful tasting I am inclined to agree with those who find dosage in youth rather disturbing, but I am very attracted by this multi-facetted beauty who arouses one’s interest and promises masses at the prospect of future rendezvous.
10 1998 La Grande Dame (92) 95
A fantastic wine that enchants the bon viveur with its gorgeous panache of acacia, white chocolate and hazelnut essence, and its tropical passion fruit finish. Clicquot hesitated for a long time before I went in and convinced them that the wine was good enough to fly the cuvée de prestige flag. Its purity and straightforward charm are delightful.
11 1998 R. Lalou (92) 95
After having given no sign of life since 1985, this fine old brand has now reappeared in a lovely new form. One can see that they have concentrated hard on creating a super-cuvée de prestige from the absolutely best locations in Champagne. Avize and Cramant as well as Verzy, Ambonnay and Bouzy for Pinot Noir. The whole lot from 7 sites. The storage is almost 9 years in the cellar and the style is beautifully polished and seductively, mellowly elegant. The aroma bears witness to white peaches, lime blossom, vanilla and caramel. The flavour is fantastically mellow without forgoing any of its elegance. A bull's eye in a refined form in comparison to earlier issues.
12 1998 Billecart-Salmon Elisabeth Rosé (93) 95
Wonderful right from the start! So mellow and delightfully balanced with compact, scrumptious layers of the most delicious, vanilla-soused fruitiness. With aging, the bouquet will also become concentrated bringing the wine to absolute perfection.
13 1998 Diebolt Fleur de Passion (92) 95
Surprising style that differs completely from other vintages of this wine. It is extremely easily drunk, even though it still has a few years before being released onto the market. Lightly roasted, smiling Dom Pérignon-ish flavor with a large dollop of passion fruit. Very good and charming.
14 1998 Belle Epoque (93) 95
I have difficulty in imagining a bottle of Belle Epoque that does not pass the 90-mark or that ravishes one in a mature phase later on in life. I am however slightly dubious in this case. Because despite this being a delicious wine it is far too mean and plain at present. There is an earthiness in it and a rather coarse tone that remind one of Pommery Brut Royal. At the end of the bottle one can divine the lime fruitiness, the vanilla layer and the floral elegance, but oh dear how one must search. Perhaps I may have to eat up my criticism, and out of fear of this, 90 points should be seen almost as a safeguard. No, no, this wine is already much lovelier and bursting the banks of the 90-point level at the beginning of 2007, and just at present progress is very rapid!
15 1998 Billecart-Salmon N.F. (90) 94
Up until now slightly disharmonious and ambivalent about its own future, but be patient and then you will be richly rewarded! Well now balance and fantastic harmony have already appeared. Superbly elegant and true to Billecart. Slightly ungenerous in the aroma to start with and many years away from full maturity, but wonderful if one is allowed to take large gulps!
16 1998 Dom Ruinart (90) 94
Very pleasant, but too young at present. The beautiful, subtle spectrum that blossoms out when the wine is mature is also there now however. So stick it out and let the faint floral tones be transformed into tones that arouse more interest, and wait for increased concentration and intensity. The toasty notes came February 2009.
17 1998 William Deutz (90) 94
A bit mean and apple-tinged up to now. The almost earthy stoniness of this vintage is not something that contributes to giving the wine charm, either. It will certainly improve well and truly, but it is hardly likely to be one of the great Williams, is it? The sudden strawberry maturity in the finish makes me ask the question.
18 1998 Louise Pommery (90) 94
What translucence and brilliance as of precious stones! Its appearance and entire figure radiates youth and falling in love in the spring. Floral and coolly scented with undertones of vanilla and lemon. In the fresh, to some degree mellow flavour I find lemon liquorice again, just as I did with the first vintages of Louise in my youth. A wine with the elegance of a mountain stream, whose tingling finish encourages one continually to take new gulps.
19 1998 Dom Pérignon (92) 94
I tasted this wine for the first time in connection with the launch of ”4000 Champagnes” at the French Embassy in New York. The wine gave the impression of being classical and rather light though with a long, impressive aftertaste. Very long, pure and classical, with mineral in the lead, but up to now rather weak.
20 1998 Pol Roger (92) 94
Probably one of the most predictable and ingratiatingly "Pol Rogerish" champagnes to have been made. With that I wish to say that the craftsmanship is superior and the result classical. Seldom has it been so easy to hit on the firm in a blind winetasting. Stylish breadiness, majestic fruitiness, magical mousse and an undertone of cellar mushrooms in a terrifically successful way.
21 1998 Louis Roederer Blanc de Blancs (91) 94
With this young, unobtrusive creation one must be very alert and receptive in order to apprehend the subtle variations that constitute the greatness of this wine. Floral, light and elusively buttery.
22 1998 Deutz Blanc de Blancs (93) 94
I was anything but impressed by this prematurely decent creation, but it has marched rapidly onwards to greatness. The latest bottle was brilliant with all the beauty one can expect of this stylish, ultra-sophisticated wine. Pearl-necklace mousse, subtly floral, with a slight biscuity aroma and sweet citrus-splashed breezes that whirl onwards with the same lightness as a midsummer fairy.
23 1998 Billecart-Salmon Blanc de Blancs (90) 94
Tooth-grindingly acid and anything but ingratiating in its austere feather costume. Enormously pure and in every detail a shapely future beauty.
24 1998 Dom Pérignon Rosé (90) 94
It is possible that I have misjudged the greatness of this wine, but should it not be more spectacular if it is going to make the claim of being one of the foremost, and since it is absolutely one of the most expensive champagnes? Balanced and harmoniously stylish without anything extra of the sort that I hope will come with storage. Subtlety has already begun to make its appearance.
25 1998 Louis Roederer Rosé (91) 94
A classical Roederer Rosé with pale colouring, a lovely buttery elegance that is typical of the house, and a substantial portion of strawberries and whipped cream. Refreshing and gorgeously summery with undertones of grapefruit. A wonderfully pleasurable wine for us romantics.
26 1998 Clos Cazals 94
At first I was unable really to understand the early tones of oxidation and the paradoxical, acidic, mineral-rich structure of this wine. I do not really understand how those unpleasant tones were eliminated and how the elegance of a clear mountain stream with lovely orange blossom tones has suddenly turned up. But that is the way it is. A great wine once more.
27 1998 Larmandier-Bernier Vieilles Vignes Cramant (88) 94
A wonderful wine that shines from the get-go. Here we encounter a lively, witty beauty combined with an unexpected depth. Looks are faithful to their heritage, but the nose is actually a bit Bollinger-like, with intense notes of ripe apples side by side with the citrus-oriented fruit aromas. This must be due to the old vines that give the wine such exceptional concentration. The wine is long, balanced, pleasant, and aristocratically built.
28 1998 Mumm de Cramant (90) 93
A wine that I adore, made in gorgeous magnum bottles and often used as an aperitif at our home. It is just in the magnum that a lovely tone of toast evolves, and an extra potent minerality along with the butterscotch-flavoured basic tones that are always so mellow and creamy. Magnum bottles are rare but distinctly superior to ordinary bottles.
29 1998 Egly-Ouriet (92) 93
Super concentrated power and superb tart finesse. A brilliant grower’s wine that, with all the clarity one could want, exhibits Ambonnay’s greatness and beauty. One of the most interesting growers in Champagne has done it again.
30 1998 Veuve Clicquot (92) 93
They have succeeded yet again in creating a classic vintage champagne at Clicquot. The wine is very beautiful with its brilliant golden colour and green splashes. The finely-adjusted aroma is complex and filled with incipient opulence. Floral and citrus-fresh elements are blended with more mature fruitiness tending to apricot, while tones of hazelnut and oven-fresh bread are elegant cornerstones. The flavour is of course full-bodied and great, but at present I am mostly struck by the balance and the fine, lissom mousse that blends in an exemplary manner with the fruitiness and the stylish mineral tones. More and more buttery as time passes. Impressively great and gloriously ready for duck liver att the beginning of 2007.
31 1998 Henriot (88) 93
Young and undeveloped, but already clearly a classic Henriot which with its lovely house style is certainly going to show its brilliance in the future. And yes indeed, as though on order, beauty came dancing along on a weekday in 2007. Classic Henriot!
32 1998 Gosset Célebris (88) 93
All winemakers strive for equilibrium in one way or another. Gosset, with their oxidative, opulent style, must battle to achieve equilibrium by having a high level of acid and low dosage. In this case they have chosen to make an Extra Brut, which is a choice that I would not have made. I think that a slightly higher dosage would have made the wine rather more pleasing to the public and more harmonious from the start as well as protecting it against future oxidation. There is a great deal to indicate that its maturity will reach a slender peak, which one will have to aim at in order to be completely satisfied. This wine is otherwise clear and beautifully golden with lively mousse and a pompous Aÿ-Pinot aroma of a gamey and red fruit type. Full-bodied and quite divorced from its actual grape composition at present. A short, dry finish on an otherwise lovely taste trip in the country of Aÿ.
33 1998 Amour de Deutz (89) 93
A very successful, ultra-elegant blanc de blancs, with superb finesse and concentration. Several classes better than the ordinary blanc de blancs of this year.
34 1998 Paul Bara Comtesse Marie de France (89) 93
The style is retained in a brilliant way from year to year. Always a very impressive champagne. This time I am impressed above all by the intensity of its floweriness and the aromas that resemble passionfruit in both the nose and the flavour. Not in any way viscous or gamey. Instead a cannonade of hawthorn, acacia, cloudberry and invigorating freshness.
35 1998 Clos des Goisses (87) 93
An unusually straightforward and charming Goisses that seduces with its perfect harmony and layers of intensive, sleekly mellow almond aroma in both bouquet and flavour. This is of course its strongest feature, but toasting, walnut essence, floweriness and impressive elegance are also already there from the start. Reminds one to some degree of the 86 at the same age. Now in a difficult phase.
36 1998 Vilmart Couer de Cuvée (93) 93
I must take off my hat and bow my knee before the masterpieces that Vilmart produces every year, nowadays. This wine is delightful and is right from the start one of the most beautiful and harmonious wines from 1998 to be launched in France. There is however a strange oxide tone in the two bottles I opened. So a small question mark concerning its development should be noted. A fantastic bottle last time I tasted it.