Benoit Lahaye, Le Jardin de la Grosse Pierre Grand Cru

Excellent characterful Champagne. Ripe rich apple fruit and a touch of almonds. Quite full-bodied, bright acidity but very well balanced for a BN style wine. Long candied apple flavors in the finish.

Dsg 04/2022 Oxidative and almost metallic nose of candied apricots and fresh grass. The palate is both oxidative and herbaceous, with good length and complexity, characteristic of this blend of mixed grape varieties. Aromas of walnut, fresh herbs, and wet stone lead to a beautiful hazelnut finish. A very good champagne, but it's uncertain whether it will develop further with age.

2017 vintage

Not my “cup of tea” but one has to be honest and impartial. A great, balanced and well made wine. A lot of toast/grain that will stay in your glass till the end. Bit of smokiness too with fine and cutting through bubbles.

(Disgorged in 2024) Medium-bodied, balanced and elegant, with pronounced minerality and a saline edge.

DSG 11/2024 Vinous nose with red fruits and spices. On the palate, the Pinot Noir dominance becomes evident. The juice is very mature, with a distinguished overall appearance, and a strong vinous sensation with red fruits and spices. Good acidity extends the wine into a more saline and chalky finish. A good champagne, very distinctive.

Kanves dinner : My contribution. Disgorged Feb 2023, this was much more oxidative than the Oudiette alongside with a pale salmon pink colour and red fruit on the palate that made it obvious that it was a Pinot-dominant blend. A little strict at first (perhaps because of the zero dosage) but became more expressive and weighty with air, not the most elegant or refined Lahaye that I've had.

This has been hiding in the back of the closet. Medium plus gold color. Cellar temperature to start and then into an ice bucket. It's nice but picks up the edginess as it cools and the acid replaced the green apple and pear with more lemon juice. It's light on the palate and easy going.

Disgorged 02/2020. Not the strongest vintage of this wine, but excellent complexity and tension. I almost want a touch of dosage to balance things out. Maybe some time will help this.

2015 vintage

2020 disgorgement. light gold pour, light mousse quickly dissipates and reticent fine bead left. nose shows rubber and cherry dust. light bodied and brightly acidic. splashes across the palate with candied citrus and cherry fruit, mineral and sprightly. maybe some sweet tart. fresh and lively yet enough richness to balance. fleshed out and showing better than it did 2 years ago.

Strong nose with overripe apples, yeasty notes reminiscent of beer, also peppermint and dark spice, oxidative character Ripe apples and yeast on the strong palate, very spicy with a pleasant perlage, very dry without being austere. A somewhat rustic champagne. I still enjoyed drinking it.

An oxidative style which shows more on the palate. But the nose also expresses fine almond and hazelnut notes. The fruit consists of a mix of bruised and fresh apple and broad minerality. On the palate good balance with crisp acidity into the finish but overall due to the more oxidative style didn’t feel as fresh as the acidity suggested. There‘s no creaminess to the texture which also leaves a simpler structure. A more nerdy than hedonistic wone, but worth …

-- popped and poured -- -- tasted blind over 4 hrs. alongside an April 2022 disgorgement of the same -- -- 90% Pinot Noir & 10% Chardonnay, from Bouzy and Ambonnay -- -- No dosage -- -- Disgorged: November 2020 -- NOSE: crisp apple; brighter aromatics than the Apr. ’22 disgorgement; apple juice; moderately expressive Nose. BODY: initially active-but-loose bead, with medium size bubbles; light salmon color; (same appearance as the Apr. ’22 disgorgement; light bodied. TASTE: very dry – …

Rating: 4,1/5,0.

Le Tour de Champagne-Perswijn-10-07-2024: Only a short impression; mainly from the '17 vintage, refined and balanced.

90% Pinot noir, 10% Chardonnay Contains 50% reserve wine; Degorgement: 10/2022 상당히 강렬한 검붉은 과실미. 아직은 steely한 피니쉬가 좀 더 시간이 필요한 것처럼 보인다. 에너지가 넘치는 스타일. 2-3시간에 걸쳐 마셨더니 후반부에 코어의 산미가 잘 어우러지는 느낌.

-- popped and poured -- -- tasted non-blind over 1.5 hrs. -- -- April 2022 disgorgement -- -- 90% Pinot Noir, 10% Chardonnay -- NOSE: light and airy, with mint and apples; first pour took-on a slight autolytic note after 15 min. in the glass. BODY: light TASTE: dry and crisp; speaks strongly of its cepage. I like this style, and consider this a fantastic QPR at just under $50.

A brief taste. Quite lean shy and reticent out of the gate. Citrus, green apple and wet rocks dominate the nose after popping the cork. Quite lean yet pure, focused on the palate. 30 mins later in bordeaux glass gains significant weight, displaying more depth and richness on the palate, adding a touch of fresh pastry, roundness and generous mousse, while still showing restraint and focus. A very pure and elegant style of wine. Give it some time in the …

Previous comments pretty accurately reflect my experience with this, will add that this was in a fairly oxidative style, in addition to being taut and green. Wondering if the riper vintages move this towards something that is more accessible. Setting aside another bottle to try again in a few years.

2017 vintage

Super sparkle ! High end ! Need more

2015 vintage

Light golden camphor colored. The nose has classic apples and fresh fruit. Some nuts, mulberry, brioche, yeast, and sweet pastries. The palate has the taste of fruit soda, malt, sweet fruit, and apple core. The wine is rich and full-bodied with good length.

Missed the disgorgement date. Think it was 2022. Perpetual of 90% Pinot Noir and 10% Chardonnay. No dose. Racy. Apple, mulled strawberry and a good dose of wet rock with some lemony acid. I liked it but this needs to be without a chill to open it up. A transparent and clean style. Enjoyed it.

Complex apple and floral aroma. Candied red apple and citrus flavors with a red berry finish. Some oxidation character throughout - notes of banana? The barrel influence is apparent. Nice texture and weight. Unique character. I can’t help but wonder if a touch of dosage would help tie everything up in a neat little package. Regardless, this is a “buy” for me.

pours gold with a thick mousse. settles to a very vinous glass with reticent fine bead. nose shows a lot of rubber up front which blows off and gives red apple and cranberry. unique in that there is really no yeasty component. palate is light with a fine, fuzzy feel and good high toned acidity reflecting the zero dosage. very tense. more red delicious apple flavor, kumquat, and strong mineral. very clean, very mineral finish. a good example of the …

Feinperlig, leicht rosé, dunkle Frucht

This must be the most atypical Grand Cru Champagne there is: it is a field blend from an old (parts up to 90 years old) vineyard in Bouzy farmed biodynamically and planted with at least Arbanne, Blanc Vrai (Pinot Blanc), Chardonnay, Chasselas, Fromenteau (Pinot Gris), Gros Plant (most likely Folle Blanche), Petit Meslier, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir and "Teinturier" (Gamay de Chaudenay, perhaps?) with other possible, unrecognized varieties. That means that this is a blend of at least 10 different …

2015 vintage

Pale yellow with pink at the rim, delicious, rounded, pure fruit, not overly dry, moderate effervescence, primarily pinot noir (90%). Knew I had this for at least 5 years, and Cellartracker confirmed that I purchased this bottle in December 2017. Disgorged in 2015, a blend of 2009-10-11-12. Stored in non-temperature controlled Brooklyn apartment for over 5 years, a fine example of a mature grower champagne, from a talented wine maker.

This is a pretty, subtle wine. With a velvety texture. not a wine of power or energy in the style of many gréât growers today. Can see how this might not be to everyone’s taste.

2017 vintage

Despite the obvious lack of dosage this is really very nice. The first glass seemed a bit austere but as it got some air and warmed up it just got better and better. Intense nose apples and stones and something spicy. Green apple and lemons on the palate and some ginger notes that I doubt I would have picked out if I hadn’t seen another TN mentioning but now I can’t untaste it. D/g 2018

11/18 disgorgement. Sherry notes add complexity with a line of lemony acid to add freshness. Maybe a touch less depth than the blanc de noirs. Very nice, lacking just a touch of elegance.

Excellent showing tonight. My first time to taste this producer. It’s medium gold in the glass with quite a lot of orchard fruit. Tending toward a slightly more oxidative profile, this was impressive to me. Excellent ripeness obviates the need for dosage in this case. Cool wine and ready to drink now.

Ulysse Collin dinner at Shaw's (Chicago, IL) : Disgorged November 2021; sans dosage. Taut and honestly a little green for my palate. This feels very light and while there is interesting complexity here (maybe it's all those other grapes!), it's also missing weight and presence on the palate for me. Definitely not my preferred style of champagne.

2017 vintage

Yvelin's birthday at Kolabo : Love Lahaye, much more classic than the Calsac Revenants brought by the same person the previous night. Slightly oxidative without being over the top, good balance between tension and weight. Very serious depth to the wine for a difficult vintage.

2017 vintage

Disgorged February 2020, coming fully from Grand Cru vineyards in Bouzy. Pours a little golden, loads of green almond and apple on the nose. Wonderfully rich and sweet baked apple, with some brioche notes. Not fully oxidative or non-oxidative in style, it seems to bridge the gap, and succeeds. A delicious champagne.

2015 vintage

dsg 02/2020 7 grape varieties: Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay, Arbanne, Petit Meslier, Fromenteau. Lively and deep nose on chalk and citrus fruits. The palate is extremely mineral. It's chalky, with flavors of wet stone. Then the juice comes to take the top with a bright fruit, very pure, stretched by a fine acidity which allows the wine to be delivered and to unfold quietly. I thought it was going to be very straight, but it's already ready, …

2015 vintage

A very delicious nose, taste was not very complex had a sweet ending, I prefer Laherte´s Les 7, same grape composition.

2015 vintage

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Benoit Lahaye, Le Jardin de la Grosse Pierre Grand Cru

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