Pierre-nicolas Chabanel

9.1

Vintage 2020 — a month ago

Gladys Xiques

8.9

Minerality and refreshing. — 4 months ago

Alvaro Bustillos

9.2

Fundemex jbeckman — 8 months ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Popped and poured; consumed over two days. Consistent throughout. The 2020 Alain Graillot pours a deep ruby with a hit of violet. Medium+ viscosity with significant staining of the tears. Some slight signs of fine sediment. On the nose, the wine is moderate intensity. Fresh black bramble fruit, baked/smoked blueberries, dry oil cured black olives, black pepper, lavender potpourri, dried herb encrusted saucisson, stony minerals and subtle baking spices. On the palate, the wine is dry; medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes on the nose. The finish is so long with a streak of minerals. The body is medium but the fruit is so grippy and clings to the palate giving the impression that it’s bigger than it is. Maxime said that they had picked way early compared to previous, recent years and completed harvest by September 3rd; a whole week before their neighbors began harvest. It shows. Remarkably fresh. Lovely. Utterly beautiful. Drink now with patience (and to enjoy the full-send freshness) or enjoy over the next 15+ years. Alain’s legacy seems to be in very good hands. — a year ago

James Everhart

9.2

Ok in montpelier — a month ago

Pinotman /// Andreas

9.1

Quite lemony. Plenty of acid. Easy drinking everyday white. Not particularly deep. Definitely food friendly. — 6 months ago

Eric K

9.2

Light and crisp with nice finish. Great with fish — 9 months ago

Dave Hoffman

9.0

40% Carignan; 30% Grenache; 30% Cinsault — 3 months ago

Aaron Tan

9.3

This wine with beef ragu pasta and lamb stew; an absolutely heavenly pairing! Boah, it was just so good. Bravo, Maxime. On the nose, lifted red fruits, fresh roses, herbs, olives, salt brine, and spiced meats. Extremely stony on the palate, with gritty texture and mouth-filling tannins. Finished long, earthy, minerally, and sharp. Just loved the elegance with a touch rusticity here. Still a baby at 8 years-old, so expect better pours of this in the future. — 8 months ago

with Michelle

Ian Hamel

9.1

2024/2/14. It’s hard to give a wine like this a meaningful numerical score. While it’s not a “perfect” Champagne (whatever that means), I’m extremely happy that producers and wines like this exist. While it would be wonderful to have deep verticals of Salon, Clos de Mesnil, etc. to dip into whenever the craving for a mature blanc de blancs strikes, it recedes further into the realm of ridiculous fantasy with every vintage. How many options are there to buy mature blanc de blancs at reasonable prices? Sure, this is a bit lean from the mid palate onward, with rather prominent acidity, but the nose is what it’s about, and it fleshes out a bit with air too. — 9 months ago