Highlights: Champagne Billecart Salmon Cuvée Elizabeth Salmon Rosé 2009

Website: https://www.champagne-billecart.fr/en/millesime/cuvee-elisabeth-salmon-2009

It’s Champagne day today, so time for a treat, and it’s the prestige pink fizz from Billecart-Salmon, the Cuvée Elizabeth Salmon. Released after 10 years on lees (this was disgorged in July 2021, with a dosage of 7 g/l), it’s a really impressive wine.

Champagne Billecart Salmon Cuvée Elizabeth Salmon Rosé 2009 France
55% Pinot Noir from the Montagne de Reims and the Grande Vallée de la Marne, blended with 45% Chardonnay from the Côte des Blancs. 10% of the Pinot Noir was made as a red wine, and the grapes for this come from the south-facing “Valofroy” vineyard, with old vines, in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ. This is an orange-pink colour, and has lovely aromas of red cherries, apples, honey and even aniseed, with some citrus peel character. There’s a hint of autumn here in the aroma. The palate has many layers: the core is some citrus fruit (lemon and mandarin), with some pear and apple, but also some savouriness with toast, marzipan and dried herbs. There’s a bit of grip and a pleasant bitter twist, reining in the fruit, and then some honied richness that continues to the finish. A really serious effort, with the potential to develop further in the bottle. 95/100 (UK retail is around £180)

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