Piper-Heidsieck Champagne Brut Cuvee Rare Millesime 2013 750ml

Quite restrained, fresh and very minerally, with aromas of white pepper, yellow apples, pineapple, linden tree, coconut, toast, roasted nuts and a hint of honey. Medium-bodied with pinprick bubbles, juicy and crisp acidity and great integration. Lemon flavors and a long, chalky, minerally finish that’s a bit austere in a very positive way. Drink now.

• Country: France
• Region: Champagne
• Size: 750ml

Varietal

Champagne Blend

The sparkling wines of Champagne have been revered by wine drinkers for hundreds of years, and even today they maintain their reputation for excellence of flavor and character, and are consistently associated with quality, decadence, and a cause for celebration. Their unique characteristics are partly due to the careful blending of a small number of selected grape varietals, most commonly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. These grapes, blended in fairly equal quantities, give the wines of Champagne their wonderful flavors and aromas, with the Pinot Noir offering length and backbone, and the Chardonnay varietal giving its acidity and dry, biscuity nature. It isn’t unusual to sometimes see Champagne labeled as ‘blanc de blanc’, meaning it is made using only Chardonnay varietal grapes, or ‘blanc de noir’, which is made solely with Pinot Noir.