x
  • Country ranking ?

    1 745
  • Producer ranking ?

    20
  • Decanting time

    15min
  • When to drink

    Now - 2025
  • Food Pairing

    scallop tartare with truffles

The Tb points given to this wine are the world’s most valid and most up-to-date evaluation of the quality of the wine. Tastingbook points are formed by the Tastingbook algorithm which takes into account the wine ratings of the world's best-known professional wine critics, wine ratings by thousands of tastingbook’s professionals and users, the generally recognised vintage quality and reputation of the vineyard and winery. Wine needs at least five professional ratings to get the Tb score. Tastingbook.com is the world's largest wine information service which is an unbiased, non-commercial and free for everyone.

Close

The Story

With an exceptional ageing period on the lees of more than 10 years in our cellars, Castelnau Blanc de Blancs Vintage is created for gastronomy : the power of the aromas and a hint of iodine from the soil make a perfect marriage.

Comments of the Chef de Cave :
This characterful « assemblage » has been resting quietly in our cellars, acquiring wisdom and maturity.
Today it will surprise the taster with its haunting perfume and a rare freshness on the palate.

The rich creamy notes lend a nobility and a vivacity to the whole wine.

For a large part the Chardonnay comes from the Montagne de Reims and takes time, quietly, to develop and open up. Blended with Chardonnay from the Cote des Blancs, the whole is more than the sum of the parts, and we see a superlative blend, rich in aromatic complexity yet keeping a youthful freshness.

100 % Chardonnay principally put together from the very di erent Montagne de Reims and Côte des Blancs base wines. 

Description: This Blanc de Blancs vintage is a match made in heaven for expressive cuisine: the power of its aromas combined with a hint of earthiness makes it the perfect partner to many dishes. The bouquet is rich and complex: an explosion of flavours with hints of eucalyptus and aniseed which are accompanied by creamy autolytic notes. The palate expresses roasted almonds and hazelnuts while figs, candied lemon and biscuit notes combine to form an intense and lingering finish.

Food pairing: The elegance of this Blanc de Blancs goes beautifully with crayfish ravioli and a corral sauce, and with scallop tartare with truffles.

 

Close

Vintage 2003

A challenging vintage for Champagne in the face of an unprecedented heatwave during the summer months. The wines are characterised by the year's unusual circumstances. Large-scale frosts destroyed most of the projected yield and they were followed by hail and an extremely hot summer. Harvest was kick-started early on August 21st and yields remained minuscule at 8,100 kg/ha. Atypically round, ripe, sun-kissed wines that miss freshness and backbone. The total acidity level was notably low, at 5.8 g/l. Only the very best performers were able to avoid heaviness and overripe aromatics. This vintage was not largely declared but some famous names, Krug and Dom Pérignon at the fore, chose to experiment with it. Both produced excellent 2003s and Dom Pérignon's chef de cave at the time named the vintage as one of the creations he is most proud of. Some special cuvées surfaced, such as 2003 by Bollinger, as the house found the year did not stylistically fit into the La Grande Année range. Palmer & Co also took a curious route and made its 2003 only in magnum, releasing it much later than usual as cuvée Grands Terroirs. The ageing capacity of 2003 is much debated. Dom Pérignon's Richard Geoffroy had great confidence in his 2003 and he actually regretted releasing it too early. The jury is still out, but personally I am inclined to drink mine sooner rather than later, as the advancement post-disgorgement has in most cases been rather rapid and the wines miss the acidic backbone necessary for retaining freshness.

Close

Information

Origin

Reims, Champagne
Incorrect Information
If you found some information that is wrong, let us know
Are you sure you want do delete this wine? All information will be lost.
Are you sure you want to recommend this wine?
Are you sure you want hide this written note ?
Are you sure you want show this written note ?
UPGRADE MEMBER PLAN
Upgrade your membership now, it's quick and easy. We use PayPal, the world's largest payment system, it accepts all credit cards. Once you've chosen your membership level, you'll go directly to PayPal. You can cancel your membership at any time.
Thank you for your support!
 

Pro Member

 

Winemerchant Member

 

Winery Member

 

User

 

HOW TO USE TASTINGBOOK?

We recommend you to share few minutes for watching the following video instructions of how to use the Tastingbook. This can provide you a comprehensive understanding of all the features you can find from this unique service platform.

This video will help you get started



Taste wines with the Tastingbook


Create Your wine cellar on 'My Wines'



Explore Your tasted wines library



Administrate Your wine world in Your Profile



Type a message ...
Register to Tastingbook
Sign up now, it's quick and easy.
We use PayPal, the world's largest payment system, it accepts all credit cards.
Once you've chosen your membership level, you'll go directly to PayPal, where you can sign up for a free 7-day trial period. You can cancel your membership at any time. We wish you a rewarding journey to the world of Fine Wines.

Free 7 days Member trial

 

Member

 

Pro Member

 

Winemerchant Member

 

Winery Member

 

User

  Register