Charles Heidsieck, La Crayeres Collection Millesime Brut, Champagne

The years have done far more than justice to this bottle. It's a real powerhouse, with the kind of complexity only decades in a bottle can deliver. On the palate it is still very much alive, the mousse is fine, carrying a silky texture that still shows vibrant acidity. The finish is long and quietly powerful with dried fruits, toasted nuts, and a lingering chalky aftertaste.

1985 vintage

Anniversary celebration was perfect occasion for this magnificent magnum. Floral nose, golden hue, at back end of drinking window, with bubbles mostly gone, but enhanced citrus and nutty taste. Drinking very well, but likely best to drink now.

1985 vintage

Bourgogne 2002 horisontal Grand and 1. cru winetasting dinner (20 btls) (Nordsjaelland) : Disgorged 2000. Gold - and a little worrying - almost amber color. High intensity, nutty, toffee, orange(!), coffee. A hint of damp cellar but not at all enough to destroy the outstanding experience. Even for champagne very high acidity.

1985 vintage

Dark golden straw hue, light yet persistent pearlage, sourdough, caramel, vanilla bean and light honey nose. No ox scent or flavor. Layers of surprisingly fresh, rich yellow fruits, passion fruit, caramel, vanilla bean and slight hint of star fruit dance on the palate. Beautifully balanced acidity with astonishing richness and length. Drinking now, will live for years. Fantastic bottle tonight.

1985 vintage

Lovely golden yellow colour with a beautiful nose showing roasted coffee, vanilla and a smooth honey sweetness on the maturing nose. Smoothing lemon acidity combined with a butterscotch note on the intense palate with a very nice and lengthy finish showing lemon zest bitterness and a pleasant saltiness on the lips in a delicious way. This is drinking very well right now and should not be kept too long! (Best 2000-2025)

1985 vintage

Richard Juhlin Top 100 Day 1 @ Gustav Zürich (Restaurant Gustav Zürich) : Not blind A touch of oxidative style but still fresh, nuts but Yuzu dominated, ripe guave, passionfruit and good concentration in the finish. 95

1985 vintage

Typical old school charmer. Everything as expected, love this house style.

1985 vintage

Disgorged 1995: 45% Pinot and 55% Chardonnay. A recent release from the cellars, what a splendid bottle, in remarkable condition. It sat beautifully in the glass, with pinpoint bubbles and a creamy mousse. There were complex aromatics of toast, preserved lemon, chalk and brioche. It was rich in the mouth with outstanding depth and precision. There’s good chew to the finish and length is phenomenal.

1985 vintage

Great intensity for a Champagne of this age with plenty of very fine bubbles. Delicious flavors of dried lemon, yeast and grilled nuts accompany fabulous acidity and crispness making this a taut, lively champagne. The finish is tangy and intense with complex notes of chalky minerals and clove-like spices. Got better and better with air and plenty more life left. 94+

1985 vintage

I loved the wine, especially the nose. Brioche and nut heavy on the nose, with a solid rich palate. If drank by itself I think I would have been a great intellectual wine, more in the line of an aged Krug. But we paired it with a 1990 Dom Magnum and that wine was much more floral and bright, which almost made the Charlie seem a very austere example. Still, great bubbles.

1985 vintage

Sensational showing. This was WOTN for me among many other impressive wines. This is big and bold--but balanced--with ripe citrus flavors, a creamy texture, some spice, nice acidity, and real depth.

1985 vintage

JM dinner. Balanced, nice acidity.

1985 vintage

We opened this bottle in an incredible event where we had 5 Krug before it: Krug 88, 89, 90 collection, 95 and 96; and this Charlie 85 did not overshadowed by them. Actually, many of participants marked this wine as their top 3 wine of the event. Mind you that we also had Dom Perignon P2, Selosse 96 and Moet MCIII besides the five top vintage Krug! Imagine how good this wine was. The nose was huge: a wonderful toasty …

1985 vintage

Charles Heidsieck 1964 - 200x : Disgorged for 2000. Green notes (nettle, grass, leaves) as well as raspberries and blackberries. Acidity is on the lower side and the palate is quite light. Excellent, but original disgorgement of '81 was better for me.

1985 vintage

Extremely well stored since acquisition shortly after release. Its bubbles days are far behind it leaving instead, what is normally hopefully the case, a remarkable wine. Some oxidative notes on the nose, which carry through to the palate initially, but what then emerges is a wonderful creamy slightly toasty nutty very, very rich wine with a very long finish. Had many bottles of this over the years. This is the last, Au revoir to a gem.

1985 vintage

JaggerFest 2016 (Harwood Arms, Fulham, London) : Detailed toasty nose, fat and buttery on the palate, nice tang, the fizz fading but this is still alive - best showing yet

1985 vintage

Was rich and meaty with some biscuit things going on. It had a touch of mushroom and some red fruits. It was creamy and powerful with a dry chewy finish.

1985 vintage

Gorgeous. This is like warm buttermilk waffles and maple syrup, but in liquid form. Enough verve and acidity to balance well with these savory notes. Wonderful aged Champagne -- hoping that my one remaining bottle is as good.

1985 vintage

BYO European Wine (Restaurant Kul) : Very impressive and just packed with complexity. Lovely fruit but also lots of wet leaves, caramel, mushrooms and coffee. Disgorged in 2000 and it is really drinking perfectly right now. 96-97p

1985 vintage

Litt sjenert på nese. Slank vin. Stor friskhet, her mangler det kanskje litt frukt til å matche syren. Liten bitter knekk i finish. 91p Andre likte denne bedre enn meg.

1985 vintage

Disgorged in 2000 this wine was developed but showed well. It was rich and nutty with a light drizzle of honey and some tarte tatin flavour. There were also notes of yeast and strawberry and it was full with good length.

1985 vintage

Hart Davis Hart Summer Champagne Tasting (City Winery - Chicago IL) : Tasting, brief note. Earthy, bready and yeasty with mature fruit and a dense, meaty character. Large scaled, powerful and impressive in this style of Champagne.

1985 vintage

Strawberries and lemon rind on the open nose with nuts, meat and a touch of cappucino. Fullbodied palate of ripe peachy fruit with nice lively moussé. Slight florality, cream, coffee and loads of nuts here with a bitter twist in the mid-length aftertaste. Big and forward. Not my preferred style, but rather good stuff nonetheless.

1985 vintage

Superlative stuff. This is just my kind of awesome - caramel, biscuit, nutmeg, all that good stuff. If only everything from the 80s could age so gracefully.

1985 vintage

Wine dinner with work colleagues (Medlar, Chelsea, London) : Seemed a tad musty to start with, but the musty tone blew off, leaving a fine, toasty, dried fruit champagne, the fizz still lively

1985 vintage

Amazingly young, clear, light yellow colour. Vigorous, refreshing and young on the palate. Lots of toasted white bread!

1985 vintage

Fresher and more vigorous than the bottle we had in the summer. This was as toasty as they come, virtually no sign of oxidation, deep, grippy and very fine. Wonderful

1985 vintage

NadNash dinners : Ginger and dried fruits on the palate, soft and gently fizzy, clearly old, but not at all oxidative, just very stately

1985 vintage

Disgorged 2000. Fine mousse. Elegant style with nice brioche, honey and a hint of caramel on the nose. Lively on the palate. Lovely wine.

1985 vintage

served a bit too warm for my taste. solid performance, holding well.

1985 vintage

G7 (Alex) : Tropical fruit nose. Tastes of apples and pears with an intriguing limestone minerality and nutty character. Long elegant finish. Nice wine.

1985 vintage

NobleRottersSydney - Pinot Comparison (Alio's, Surry Hills) : {cork, 12.5%} Glowing gold. Still with plenty of tiny bubbles – a good sign. The nose has a cheesy, almost musty quality about it – but in a good way, with old yeasty aromas still remaining. The palate is rich and aged with citric and honey notes and just an echo of caramel preceding a drying finish. Fine delicate bubbles, plenty of length and intensity, and a good long finish complete an …

1985 vintage

Superb. Not in the least bit madeirized as several other '85 Champagnes I have tasted lately. Loads of bread dough on the nose, and a very round satisfying finish. Highly recommended. A-

1985 vintage

{cork, 12.5} Deep gold. A distinct nutty/cheesy oxidative whiff on the nose. The palate does show a nutty note, yet the bubbles are fine and plentiful. In the sense that aged champagne is something of an acquired taste, I guess this is travelling pretty well. Strongly flavoured, it’s passed beyond an aperitif, I think, and needs a decently-flavoured dish to set it off.

1985 vintage

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Charles Heidsieck, La Crayeres Collection Millesime Brut, Champagne

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