David Leclapart, L'Alchimiste Rose Premier Cru

Truly nothing against this wine when I say this but it does call to mind far more inexpensive bottlings of traditional method hard apple cider

2018 vintage

SF wine gathering with Palisades Canyon (Mission Bay/SOMA) : First time with this bottling, this producer for that matter, and definitely the most distinctive, at least for me, of the bubbles. Briny, rustic (perhaps what the last taster was referring to as its apple cidery notes), funky. Red beries, red apples and an interesting bitter-sweet thing going on. Maybe because it was the second youngest of the bubbles (the guest who brought it brought a ‘21 as well), this seemed …

2018 vintage

Earthy nose with smokiness. Muddled and very harsh palate, lacking charm, with a biting acidity and aromas of earth and smoke. A wine without substance that seems tired and offers nothing coherent or pleasant. The finish is as tannic as it is short. L'Alchimiste is a cuvée that has never convinced me from Léclapart, but on top of that, I'm increasingly seeing the limitations of 2005 in Champagne: the wines are sometimes tired and lacking substance. A vintage like 2003 …

Powerful, oxidative. Dried fruit, sherry.

2018 vintage

not blind Some annoying herbals and vegetables due to the vintage I guess. 91

2011 vintage

On first pop, this is a powerful and almost brutish showing, with an angularity and pushy posture that makes that extra 1% of alcohol (listed at 13.5%) seem like a shot of Wild Turkey. Fear not however, as the hailstorm on the palate does in fact subside with air and rounds out into a more affable creature. A fair amount of barrel spice and strong red apple flavors sword fight with orangey citrus, burnt honey, hazelnut, and bruised lime notes. …

2018 vintage

The nose presents an oxidative style with notes of pickled fruit. On the palate, it shows a medium body with good complexity and very good acidity. It has been well matured. Ready to drink now.

2011 vintage

Whites for Barry home-cooking : I guessed Meunier because of the tropical, oxidative nutty notes; clearly natural winemaking with yoghurt and mushroom notes. Always a treat to have old growers but wasn't the biggest fan of this tbh.

2004 vintage

Fantastic champagne. Notes of mushroom, nuts, honey and citrus. Slightly oxidized but still acidic. Long aftertaste.

2004 vintage

80% Chardonnay, 20% Pinot Noir. Oak. Intense aromas of red apples, fermented apple juice, lemon, honey, butter, toast. Oxidative. Powerfull. High acidity. Salinity. Taste of lemon, apple, quince. Long.

2018 vintage

Not blind I like more and more his L'Aphrodisiaque because it is nicely balanced 80-20 CH-PN. less oxidative. Powerful. 94

2018 vintage

A legendary tiny (only 3ha) biodynamic winery. Extremely rare Cuvee was discontinued in 2009, changed to L’Astre which is BdN. Made from PN, vinified using saignee method, macerated up to 72 hours and fermented in old Burgundian barrels. Salmon orange. Oxidized and complex aroma of dried strawberries, raspberries and orange peel, earth, barnyard, smoke. Vinous, light and elegant, like having matured Volnay along extremely fine mousse, concentrated flavours and delicate acidity, long funky and delightful finish.

Bottle 1 of 2. Was fortunatate to try this at a dinner 4 yrs. ago, where it behaved very much like the previous tasters here describe. This time around, however, it is an entirely different wine. Gone is the dull feeling of a tired/bland wine. This time it has recovered, or developed rather, a very tasty complexity, and above all a razor-sharp acidity that makes for quite a stunning rosè in its very own peculiar style. It has the reddish …

not blind Amazingly fresh, not tannic, fruity, raspberry, cranberry and some black currant, refreshing acidity. For the next 3-5 years. my last bottle. 93

Not blind Opened a few hours before. This time again a bit too herbal and with green notes, typical for the vintage. Some pears typical for Leclapart. I prefer L'Apotre same vintage. 90-91

2011 vintage

Quite astonishing nose of ashes and smoke. Very pure mouth with an effervescence which tends to disappear rather quickly to give way to a true red wine. The juice remains very fruity with aromas of currants and raspberries of great power. It is balanced with a nice acidity but the nose and the mouth are totally dissociated which is strange. Final which explodes on the red fruit but which is unfortunately very short. Very good champagne, but lacks harmony and …

Dark rich nutty, slight oxidation, dense rich aftertaste

2004 vintage

not blind At his peak, not that much pear as usually. Not oxidative. Some fruits and green apple. Balanced. More wine than champagne. 92

2011 vintage

not blind After one hour it opened and softened. Drank from Zalto Burgundy. The pear disappers and some aging signs of an aged BdB style evolved. Typical lovely Leclapart salinity. For the next 2-3 years. 92-93

2011 vintage

Don't really get Leclapart. Guess his wines are meant to drink young.

2004 vintage

Mushrooms, a little truffle-like with sous-bois, cellar humidity, vanilla, Sherry wine (medium-high level of oxidation), Sherry vinegar, freshly ground pepper, fennel seeds, refined butter, some cheese, quite saline, cider notes, cranberries. Dense texture and a delicate acidity. 93pt

2009 vintage

HQ grower Champagnes - Wine tasting dinner (Nordsjaelland) : Deep gold colour. significant autolysis notes, pear, ripe apple, nutty, walnut and toffee. Delicate mousse. Winner of the evening.

2004 vintage

LV04 One of those rare occasions when you find an older vintage of Léclapart. Outstanding champagne that made a strong entrance and lasted up until the final glass. Right from the start, an explosion of mushrooms and forest floor, almost vegetable-like notes; medium presence of vanilla that eventually shows more oxidation with some acetic notes (chlorine, varnish, ...) and Sherry, with its respective reminder of roast meat; there's quite a lot of honey with a creamy, almost glyceric texture with …

2004 vintage

Previous examples have been too oxidative and unbalanced. This bottle sang. I still smell it the day after

2004 vintage

Not blind The nose reminds my daughter to apple marmelade, for me more salted almonds. It started a bit slow, too reductive. For Leclapart not a typical "problem". Normally his wines show signs of oxidation. After one hour more deepness and vibration. As always cracking acidity. 92-93

2011 vintage

Wow. Like nothing I have seen before. The colour is so dark for a rose, like a pale noir with red, pink and orange hues. It is full of minerals, wet stones, red fruits, especially strawberries. This has great acidity, good structure, and some tannins. With air, there was then some barnyard and dirt. The bubbles were quite delicate in comparison to a Dom 08 drank alongside. This is really balanced and a great champagne. Served blind by TL, with …

My third Apotre in the last few months - this time the 2004 based. As with the others, a special oxidated style thats not for everyone. I say oxidated style and not oxidative like I associate with Krug and Selosse. This is bordering on having a tired note to it - and it's not very nice. Reminds me of the Grognet special club 1999 which was also extremely evovled on release and had the same note as this apotre. BUT …

2004 vintage

Started as closed, very tight, almost no taste. Second day, wine opened up some, gave away nice chardonnay flavours, third day it exploded with tropical fruits, honey and mature notes. Not sure what to make out of it as the wine felt maturing, but took a long time to open up. Will have to open another bottle soon.

2007 vintage

Made from Chardonnay. No malolatic fermentation. Released at a young stage due to lack fo storage space. Colour: Golden and slightly hazy. Bouquet: Med+ intense, apples, nuts, cocoa, compost, mirin and root vegetables. Palate: Med+ intense, med acid, creamy bubbles, oxidized, crispy, smoke, nutty, chese, Clara Frijs pears, bread, relatively low on autoloysis. A bit more acidity would have been preferred, but nicely rounded and balanced and good aftertaste.

2004 vintage

Certainly one of the most interesting Rose champagnes you can drink. Very dark in color and with a host of red fruit, including raspberry, on the palate.

Har helt fallit isär. Har tyvärr passerat sin peak och är inte ens njutbar längre.

2004 vintage

Beside the typical pear aromas, nice herbal and spicy notes. More precise than the last bottles with a great salinity and nice acidity structure. Not too oxidative. I’m still a fan. 91

2011 vintage

David Leclapart champagne tasting TBU

2011 vintage

At his peak, won't get better I think. Typical creamieness and power of L'Apotre, winey, pear, chalky, salty, lovely balance, 93-94

2004 vintage

Leclapart typical peaches, winey, I missed a little bit the fruit, in the finish imprecise but a lot of salinity, chalk and limestone. salt licorice. 91-92

2009 vintage

Der L'Alchimiste 2007 von meinem zweit Lieblingswinzer hat es danach natürlich sehr schwer. Das ist ein intensiver Saignee-Rose-Champagner mit 72h Maischezeit der Kategorie Love it or hate it! Bei mir gehört er normalerweise in die erste Gruppe. Angenehm fruchtig, eher ein typischer Essenschampagner, der hervorragend zu Fleisch harmoniert. Heute nach den tollen Weinen bei 91 Punkten.

We had a long discussion if it was corked or not. After 3 hours it deliverd quite well and was very close to cidre. Good not great

2004 vintage

Very nice Blanc de blanc. Gets some extra complexity from time on lees (I'm guessing). Not too "appley" like some grower BDBs. Very strong minerality and crisp acidity. Drinking very well.

2007 vintage

@Champagne på Svenskt Tenn 2017

2011 vintage

Rosé bordering on light red wine. Totally lacking the acid that a champagne should have. Reminding me of the Norwegian soft drink, "julebrus" (Christmas soda). Sorry Leclapart, you did not make gold here. And this proves that making wines "naturally" doesn't guarantee quality.

very balnaced at this stage, pears, apples, citrus but for Leclapart style very light and reluctant

2011 vintage

Hard to love. Ripe green apples, uncooked baguette dough. All too volatile and yeasty for my taste. I know people love these wines but once again my experience disappoints.

2009 vintage

An impressive effort by David in this difficult year. Raspberry and strawberry in the foreground, powerful but the finish is very clear and clean. As for such a wine I would call it elegant. Great length, perfect to food, for me close to his peak, 93-94

Showing lots of bruised apples, cider, nuts, walnuts. Too oxidative notes for my liking. This becomes flat and woody. I need more freshness.

2004 vintage

Young, metallic nose of grapefruit. You can see the grower character right away. There's oak, apple sidre and apple destilate, a bit of sharpness and edginess as well.

2009 vintage

Ripe apples, wet concrete, wet wool, sweet spices, mushrooms, oxidized nuttiness and curry (??). Fresh acidity, very dry and tart. Medium+ intensity and a medium+ finish. There is quality here, and plenty of complexity. Strange mix of a somewhat developed nose and a very young and tart palate. Not sure if I like it, but fun to try nevertheless.

2009 vintage

Golden colour. Aromas of nuts, yeast, toast, tarte tatin. Creamy mousse with rich lees notes on the palate which are refreshed by good acid levels. Oxidised aromas and flavours reminiscent of Sherry, crushed oyster shell flavours persistent on a good finish.

2009 vintage

A nearly complete L'apotre tasting with Richard Juhlin at D'Vine Düsseldorf @ 31/10/2015. Not Blind 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003,2001, 1999 plus L'Astre 2011 and 2010. The winner for me L'astre 2010 and L'Apotre 2008, 2006 and 2005. very elegant, fine acidity, pears, minerality, yellow fruits, some tropicals, vineyard peach, butter and creamy, maybe the finish could be longer, 92-94

2004 vintage

One of the heat champagnes I have had in a while Great minerality, compact and lovely fruit.

2004 vintage

Leclapart is my first hipster grower. This bottle set me back around £50 back before most people had heard of him, now he's a mainstream arena superstar at £100 a ticket, or at least a cool cult success. He doesn't make much wine so I guess this rise was inevitable given critical responses. This wine was given a crazy point score when Juhlin first reviewed it, something like 97 or possibly 98 points in his Champagne travel guide. He's since …

2004 vintage

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David Leclapart, L'Alchimiste Rose Premier Cru

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