Krug Grande Cuvée Brut Champagne NV
$169.99
Wine Spectator - 95 points
"Such a glorious expression of Champagne, combining depth over vintages and complexity of sites to create a profound, multifaceted cuvée. Rich biscuit, ginger, coconut and citrus aromas are followed by gingerbread, baked apple and grilled nut flavors, all supported by a firm yet harmonious structure. Endless finish. Superb."
Stephen Tanzer - 95 points
"Deep, slightly exotic aromas of orange peel, smoked nuts, nutmeg and ginger. Shows particularly tiny bubbles yet the mousse is rather gentle. Extraordinarily silky and thick in the mouth, but strong acids give this great Champagne a very strong backbone for aging. In fact, the current release of this wine should really be cellared for another few years. Creamy note of hazelnut. A remarkably sophisticated, full but dry and penetrating Champagne that finishes with explosive, ever-mounting flavors."
Robert Parker - 90 points"The NV Brut Grand Cuvee offers up attractive suggestions of pears, quince, spice, brioche and minerals. As is often the case here, the Grand Cuvee reveals notable elegance and finesse. The use of reserve wines in the blend gives this wine an unusual level of complexity. Readers should expect a fair amount of bottle variation, something I myself have encountered with some frequency over the years. Some bottles can be fantastic, others less so. Although the Grand Cuvee is a good introduction to the Krug house style I find it increasingly difficult to get excited about this wine. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2011.
My visit to Krug in November was illuminating, as I spent several hours tasting through a number of 2008 vins claires and reserve wines with Director of the Maison Olivier Krug and Director of OEnology Eric Lebel. Although Krug ages its young wines exclusively in French oak barrels, these wines were remarkably pure and transparent; suggesting that much of the signature Krug toastiness may come from the extended period the wines spend on their lees rather than from the oak. Over the yeas many of the most monumental, mind-bending Champagnes I have had have emerged from these cellars in Reims. Krug boasts an extraordinarily rich history along with a superb track record. In a recent tasting that included most, if not all, of the top 1996s, the Krug Vintage and Clos du Mesnil were at the very top of the pack. Along with making profound wines, under the direction of the charming Olivier Krug this venerable estate has pushed the boundaries on pricing to levels never seen before. The newest wine from Krug is the 100% Pinot Noir Clos d’Ambonnay. Sadly, that wine is priced for billionaires, not mortals. Krug does not provide disgorgement dates for its wines, something which is a serious shortcoming considering the lofty prices these bottles fetch. The corks are stamped with a code which can be traced back to a disgorgement lot and date, but that will be of little use to consumers once bottles are opened. It would be great to see Krug take a leadership position among the region’s grands marques and add disgorgement dates to its labels."
Winemaker Note - "Krug Grande Cuvée is the archetype of Krug’s philosophy of craftsmanship and savoir faire: A blend of around 120 wines from ten or more different vintages, some of which may reach 15 years of age. Blending so many vintages gives Krug Grande Cuvée its unique fullness of flavors and aromas, its incredible generosity and its absolute elegance - something impossible to express with the wines of just a single year. Its exceptional finesse is the result of a stay of at least another six years in the cellars. Over twenty years are needed to craft each bottle of Krug Grande Cuvée: the first prestige cuvée re-created each year, beyond the very notion of vintage.
Deep golden color and fine, vivacious bubbles, predicting fullness and elegance. Aromas of flowers in bloom, ripe and dried fruit, marzipan, gingerbread and citrus fruits. Flavors of hazelnut, nougat, barley sugar, jellied and citrus fruits, almonds, brioche and honey Krug Grande Cuvée lends itself to a plethora of culinary combinations, from the simplest to the most sophisticated, from an extra mature parmesan to a dish of turbot à la truffle."
Region: Champagne, France
Grape(s): Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Chardonnay
"Such a glorious expression of Champagne, combining depth over vintages and complexity of sites to create a profound, multifaceted cuvée. Rich biscuit, ginger, coconut and citrus aromas are followed by gingerbread, baked apple and grilled nut flavors, all supported by a firm yet harmonious structure. Endless finish. Superb."
Stephen Tanzer - 95 points
"Deep, slightly exotic aromas of orange peel, smoked nuts, nutmeg and ginger. Shows particularly tiny bubbles yet the mousse is rather gentle. Extraordinarily silky and thick in the mouth, but strong acids give this great Champagne a very strong backbone for aging. In fact, the current release of this wine should really be cellared for another few years. Creamy note of hazelnut. A remarkably sophisticated, full but dry and penetrating Champagne that finishes with explosive, ever-mounting flavors."
Robert Parker - 90 points"The NV Brut Grand Cuvee offers up attractive suggestions of pears, quince, spice, brioche and minerals. As is often the case here, the Grand Cuvee reveals notable elegance and finesse. The use of reserve wines in the blend gives this wine an unusual level of complexity. Readers should expect a fair amount of bottle variation, something I myself have encountered with some frequency over the years. Some bottles can be fantastic, others less so. Although the Grand Cuvee is a good introduction to the Krug house style I find it increasingly difficult to get excited about this wine. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2011.
My visit to Krug in November was illuminating, as I spent several hours tasting through a number of 2008 vins claires and reserve wines with Director of the Maison Olivier Krug and Director of OEnology Eric Lebel. Although Krug ages its young wines exclusively in French oak barrels, these wines were remarkably pure and transparent; suggesting that much of the signature Krug toastiness may come from the extended period the wines spend on their lees rather than from the oak. Over the yeas many of the most monumental, mind-bending Champagnes I have had have emerged from these cellars in Reims. Krug boasts an extraordinarily rich history along with a superb track record. In a recent tasting that included most, if not all, of the top 1996s, the Krug Vintage and Clos du Mesnil were at the very top of the pack. Along with making profound wines, under the direction of the charming Olivier Krug this venerable estate has pushed the boundaries on pricing to levels never seen before. The newest wine from Krug is the 100% Pinot Noir Clos d’Ambonnay. Sadly, that wine is priced for billionaires, not mortals. Krug does not provide disgorgement dates for its wines, something which is a serious shortcoming considering the lofty prices these bottles fetch. The corks are stamped with a code which can be traced back to a disgorgement lot and date, but that will be of little use to consumers once bottles are opened. It would be great to see Krug take a leadership position among the region’s grands marques and add disgorgement dates to its labels."
Winemaker Note - "Krug Grande Cuvée is the archetype of Krug’s philosophy of craftsmanship and savoir faire: A blend of around 120 wines from ten or more different vintages, some of which may reach 15 years of age. Blending so many vintages gives Krug Grande Cuvée its unique fullness of flavors and aromas, its incredible generosity and its absolute elegance - something impossible to express with the wines of just a single year. Its exceptional finesse is the result of a stay of at least another six years in the cellars. Over twenty years are needed to craft each bottle of Krug Grande Cuvée: the first prestige cuvée re-created each year, beyond the very notion of vintage.
Deep golden color and fine, vivacious bubbles, predicting fullness and elegance. Aromas of flowers in bloom, ripe and dried fruit, marzipan, gingerbread and citrus fruits. Flavors of hazelnut, nougat, barley sugar, jellied and citrus fruits, almonds, brioche and honey Krug Grande Cuvée lends itself to a plethora of culinary combinations, from the simplest to the most sophisticated, from an extra mature parmesan to a dish of turbot à la truffle."
Region: Champagne, France
Grape(s): Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Chardonnay
| SKU | 14622 |
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