Goulin Roualet Champagne Premier Cru Cuvée Sous Bois

Toasted brioche for days! Lemon curd, some ginger too. Bubbles were a little aggressive, but settled down after some time. Lovely sous bois. Give this one a little time after you open and you’ll be rewarded.

This was very good with one issue keeping it shy of great: the oak flavor from the oak aging was too strong and out of balance. It tasted like a Champagne and whiskey cocktail, which I felt to be too much oak. Other than that, it was great: nicely tart, nice yeast notes, and a super long finish. If you like oak flavor, I’d highly recommend.

Retail $130. Extremely Heavy Bottle (890g; 31.3oz). 50% Pinot Noir, 50% Chardonnay. Vinified and aged in oak barrels. There was a time, not too terribly long ago, that *all* wines made in champagne were vinified and aged in oak. The advent of the stainless steel, temperature controlled tank changed all of that, however, as the vinification process could be more regulated and measured. There are a few outliers that remain, however, so when I saw this pop up on Last …