Book 5

This was the enlightening surprise of the line-up – and very hard to find – but I wasn’t then surprised to see an article …

Which was the front-label and which the back? Who knows… but stylish packaging for a stylish wine. Moderate moose and sparkle, given its pétillant …

The Krug influence of Graham Beck’s winemaker is evident here again, delivering a rich, oxidative style, with barrel fermentation influence. Deep, burnished gold, with …

The interloper, courtesy of Tina! Really interesting to drop this in after some very good Champagnes. The acidity really stands out (though not unbalanced). …

Also a mature vintage Champagne, and ultimately the wine of the sparkling line-up = just had more refinement and length than Le Mesnil. Mid-deep …

Good quality, mature vintage Blanc de Blancs. Complex tertiary development of mushroom, nutty almond and toast on the nose, over creamy vanilla and cereal. …

An interesting side-by-side comparison with a Muscat d’Alsace. Leaving aside the notably more ‘basic’ quality level (albeit still a well-made wine), the key differences …

A decent Condrieu, though perhaps not as high up the scale as Villard’s 2010s, that stood on the knife-edge between fullness and crispness; ripe …

As Michael Moosbrugger himself describes, this is a classic single vineyard, top-class Grüner, with the spiced tropical fruit profile thereof. Mid-deep gold. A little …