NV Henri Giraud Grand Cru Ay Fut de Chene MV17

Made from 100% Grand Cru Aÿ fruit – 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Chardonnay – with 66% coming from the 2017 vintage. The balance is taken from a perpetual reserve that dates back to 1990. It sees a huge amount of oak, and this forest of staves forms the backdrop to this extraordinary performance. Deep gold in colour, there is a staggeringly full nose of brioche and panettone over an orange zest palate, and toasted almond notes come at you from all angles. The finish is thrillingly long with amazingly bold oak-smoke details. There is an air of luxury here that verges on the gastronomic as opposed to the vinous, and I swear I can detect notes of foie gras and roast chicken jus! I left a small amount of wine in the bottle with a stopper and tasted it a week later – it was incredible. Still sparkling, densely perfumed, hugely impactful and massively rich. If you love the wines of Salon, Selosse, Krug, Egly and other mighty Houses, then you will adore the intense fanfare of flavours that accompanies a bottle of Henri Giraud Champagne.

This is so precise and tight with sharp acidity and very fine, tiny bubbles. Yet, it’s rich in flavors with a broad array of hazelnuts, salted lemons, crushed chalk and hints of wild herbs and flowers. White grapefruit, too. Textured and sleek, almost creamy, while remaining mouthwateringly fresh. Drink or hold.

A vivid Champagne, with lime blossom, graphite and ground cardamom notes serving as a fragrant thread that winds through flavors of baked white peach and pineapple fruit, coffee liqueur, candied mandarin orange peel and fleur de sel. The mousse is fine and creamy, a luxurious layer wrapping the racy spine of acidity. Drink now through 2027. 2,000 cases made, 120 cases imported.