Wine writer Doug Paulding of WAG Magazine writes glowingly of his sneak peak at Bollinger’s release of La Grande Année 2014, expertly unveiled at Gabriel Kreuther’s eponymous Alsatian restaurant in Manhattan. Guests enjoyed Bollinger’s non-vintage wine, Special Cuvee, as well as both white and rose “La Grand Année”. Chef Kreuther paired La Grande Année with an Alaskan king crab “cannelloni” supported with sea urchin coulis, Osetra caviar and a Parmesan crisp.
Bollinger’s deputy Chef du Cave Denis Bunner told the guests, “We make the wine first and bubbles second. We need that unique and legendary taste and then we add the Champagne bubbles. The year 2014 was perfect for the grapes — a slow-ripening season, no hail or damaging storms. The wine shows good minerality from the soil contribution — acidity, freshness, salinity, creaminess.” Chef Kreuther then told us, “There are layers to wine. There are layers to this meal. These Champagnes were made for food. Savor each by a bite, a sip, a bite and a sip.”
Doug writes “The 2014 La Grande Année is nothing short of outstanding. At 61% Pinot Noir and 39% Chardonnay, the majority of the wine is derived from Bollinger’s finest Grand Cru vineyards. Each sip showed a fresh, lively citrus with hints of peach and nuttiness. Each taste seemed to accent a different flavor in its profile. We next tasted the same wine from a magnum bottle, twice the size as the first. Magnums age wines at a slower, different pace. The wine clearly had the same DNA flavors, but it was more lemony fresh, vibrant and youthful. ”
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