Olivier Horiot Champagne Contrées Val Bazot

Unfortunately, my last one in this excellent vintage. The auction price of this Champagne has jumped this last 2 years (now at almost the double of the price i've paid) strawberry pink hue (due to the rose de saignee method) and in mouth. Wonderful companion during a whole dinner

One-of-a-kind color, somewhere between ruby, salmon and copper. Highly oxidized nose, but it’s a feature, not a bug. Ripe red apples, cherries, blood orange and some biscuits. Lively mouse. Texture-wise it’s a very interesting wine; intense acidity and a slightly tannic grip on the finish, bone dry. Not something I’m craving more of, but a unique and interesting wine.

Årets vakreste farge! Intens, kobber-rød med oransje skjær. Voldsom mousse ved første skjenk og miniatyrbobler som hopper opp i nesen. Masse røde bær på duft: Jordbær, jordbærskum (som når man sylter jordbær), et hint av bringebær, røde melne epler, et behagelig autolysepreg. Pen modning og fin utvikling på smak, rødbærspreget frukt, herlig, ren syre. Veldig smaksrik og ganske rik stil med middels konsentrasjon. Superb matchampagne som gikk utmerket til en fjøl med skinker, patéer og parmesan.

This is merely ok. It is too much on the oxidized scale for me. It has a lively head, if you will, with a rusty orange color. But it’s just not my thang! Almost like a fizzy Sherry.

Drank with Jules and Madison, this is much better than the first bottle. While you certainly get a sense of age and some oxidative notes this held together very well it was quite tasty. White fruit with a hint of peach, and a hint of strawberry.

Brunello with some roses : Not the biggest fan of saignée rose but this got much better with air. Round and ripe that belied the zero dosage with good intensity of red fruit. Made in an oxidative, robust style that needed food to show its best.

Oiled wood, toast, coffee, red bruised apples and grapefruit with hints of of mushrooms, plum kernel, salinity and pine. An oxidative hint (more so on the palate than the nose if that’s even possible) aswell as a hint of VA (bucket paint), which is something I very rarely find in a Champagne. Some of these natty wine traits faded with air/time and/or was less pronounced depending on the temperature. A lof going on here, quite complex and interesting in an …

It poured with an insane mousse and a lot of froth. The nose had lots of lovely strawberry, raspberry, rose hip and red fruit in general with a slight bit of oak. On the palate was even more red fruit, strawberry, raspberry, orange, grapefruit, clear minerals and a bit of brioche. The 0 dosage is so well done... The balance between dryness, acidity and the sweetness of the fruit is outstanding!

Klar, dyp rød-rosa farge, nesten julebrusfarget! Intens, søtfruktig duft av rips, bringebær og bringebærdrops, et lite streif av autolyse. Duften virket først litt tuttifruttipreget, men ble mer nedtonet utover kvelden. Ung, frisk og fruktig, og de røde bærtonene går igjen på smak. Rik munnfølelse med god konsentrasjon og imponerende mousse! Voldsomt med små bobler som smelter som slush i munnhulen. Lang, ren og behagelig smakskurve med sødmefulle bær i avslutningen.

Pours a very attractive dark deep orange copper/rose gold, reminiscent of blood orange juice. At first, it pours a big, rocky head reminiscent of a Belgian Lambic but it quickly subsides into a soft, fine mousse. The aroma screams Pinot, with ripe strawberry and cherry fruit. You can tell why it's zero dosage: the palate is rich, full of ripe strawberry, dark cherry and maybe a bit of watermelon over bready graham crackers. That’s it, it’s liquid cherry jam over …