The gentle sparkle of this wine carries scents of honeyed apple and red-apple skin. It’s fragrant and clean, and lasts on fruit, a rich style with balance. Great with crab cakes.

Wine & Sprits Rating: 90

[Issue: August 2009]

The 2006 Llopart Brut Rose was produced by the traditional Champagne method and is composed of 60% Monastrell, 20% Garnacha, and 20% Pinot Noir. Salmon pink-colored, it has a lovely perfume of strawberry, rhubarb, and biscuit. Crisp on the palate with a persistent stream of small bubbles, this tasty Cava would be the ideal match for Spain’s legendary Joselito jamon when Dom Perignon Rose is unavailable. Historical documents trace the ownership of this property by the Llopart family to 1385 A.D. They produced their first Cava in 1887 making them the second oldest Cava house in Spain.

Wine Advocate Rating: 90

[Issue: #181 / Feb 09]

This is Mumm Napa’s workhorse brut. It’s a beautiful sparkling wine that satisfies the basics of elegance and lusciousness. Shows raspberry, lime, brioche and smoky flavors, with a slightly sweet dosage and a refined mousse.

Wine Enthusiast Rating: 90

[Issue: 12/31/09]

leek and lively, with rose petal and raspberry aromas and crisp, layered citrus, strawberry and vanilla spice flavors that are wrapped up with vibrant acidity. Drink now through 2012. 49,000 cases made.

Wine Spectator Rating: 90

[Issue: Dec 15/09]

This is expressive, exuding coconut, lemon, fresh ginger and toast aromas and flavors. Balanced. Builds to a long aftertaste of toast and hazelnut.

Wine Spectator Rating: 90

[Issue: Oct 15/07]

The 2000 Brut Special Club is even better than the 2000 Brut Millesime. Here, the Chardonnay also comes from Ay, which adds an additional dimension of weight and density. The wine offers up an exotic array of pineapple, passion fruit and dried apricots, with incredible depth, creaminess and nuance. Menthol and wild flowers linger on the long and deeply satisfying finish. The 2000 Special Club is firing on all cylinders today; in fact it is one of the finest wines I have ever tasted from Chiquet. Disgorged: December 11, 2008. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2020.

Wine Advocate Rating: 93

[Issue: #186 / Dec 09]

Greenish-gold. Gently nutty apple, pear, peach pit and dried flowers on the nose. Light-bodied orchard fruit flavors are deepened by subtle marzipan and pecan notes. A broad, fleshy Champagne with very good finishing breadth and sappy cling. This will pair nicely with food and would be great with a buttery fish or poultry dish.

Int'l Wine Cellar Rating: 90

[Issue: Nov 08]

Yellow-gold with a delicate, steady bead. Gently pungent aromas of poached pear, yellow plum and lemon. A sweet marzipan note gives depth to the racy citrus and orchard fruit flavors, which pick up a note of peach skin with air. I like this wine's blend of raciness and power. Finishes with very good grip, a hint of smoky minerals and lingering pit fruit character.

Int'l Wine Cellar Rating: 90

[Issue: Dec 09]

A dry style, boasting malt, whole-grain toast and yeast aromas and flavors, with hints of grapefruit and apple. Light-weight and intense, with a firm finish. Drink now through 2011.

Wine Spectator Rating: 91

[Issue: Oct 31/09]

The estate’s 2003 Brut Rose is a very delicate rose, in fact it is one of the more understated roses I tasted. The color is a light tone of salmon. Layers of sweet perfumed fruit flow onto the palate effortlessly as this sexy, feminine wine opens up in the glass. This is a fairly accessible style of rose, but it has the signature Roederer finesse in spades. The 2003 Brut Rose is 70% Pinot Noir from Cumieres and 30% Chardonnay from Mesnil, Avize and Oger. This is Lot: 030993C 100006, disgorged January 17th, 2008. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2011.

Wine Advocate Rating: 90

[Issue: #180 / Dec 08]

Roederer’s 2002 Cristal is still in its infant, fresh stage. Subtle notes of pears, flowers, spices, mint, minerals and oak are woven into a cashmere-like frame of extraordinary grace and elegance. This beautifully-sculpted Champagne possesses notable clarity but with the additional depth of fruit that is characteristic of this vintage. It is a gorgeous, seductive Cristal of the highest level. In 2002, Cristal is 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay with 10 grams of dosage. 20% of the wine was fermented in oak.

Wine Advocate Rating: 96+

[Issue: #180 / Dec 08]

A powerful, well-toned Champagne, featuring coconut, toast, grapefruit and coffee aromas and flavors. There are plenty of bass notes, punctuated by crisp acidity, and it all comes together on the fine texture, with aftertaste of roasted hazelnut and coffee.

Wine Spectator Rating: 95

[Issue: Nov 30/09]