Champagne needs little introduction, nor does it require a celebratory occasion to pop open — but this Champagne Day, held annually on the 4th Friday of October, we can think of a few exceptional examples worth discovering.
Year after year, results from the Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) attest to the quality of Champagne, and the 2024 competition was no exception with 28 Gold, seven Platinum and two Best in Show medals awarded to this classic region.
Champagne’s two Best in Show medal winners are of particular note: Castelnau, Brut 2006 and Charles Heidsieck, Blanc Des Millénaires Brut 2014. Both vintage wines, with the former coming from a warmer vintage that judges note is beginning to be hard to find. The wine shows harmonious aromas of cream and white mushrooms yet retains freshness and nerve. Contrary, the latter is a 100% Chardonnay from a cooler year, offering aromas of cream, flowers, nuts and quiet orchard fruits.
Scroll down to see a top selection of 96-97 point Champagnes from DWWA 2024
Vintage Champagnes saw a majority of top medals awarded, with 25 of the top 37 (Gold, Platinum and Best in Show winners) awarded to sparkling wines from a vintage. The 2013 vintage stands out with seven Champagnes awarded 95+ points from this exceptional vintage.
Of the seven Platinum medal-winning wines, all receiving 97 points, one was awarded to a vintage rosé expression: Laurent-Perrier, Alexandra Rosé Brut 2012. Polished and refined, this sparkling wine is deeply gastronomic with a lush crunchy texture, vivacious mousse and an engaging flow of acidity.
Below find a selection of 96-97 point Champagnes, well worth discovering, from the 2024 Decanter World Wine Awards, with many more to discover at awards.decanter.com
Champagne Day: 96+ point wines to try
Best in Show
Castelnau Brut 2006
Best in Show, 97 points
50% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir, 20% Pinot Meunier
This Champagne – a classical blend of all three main Champagne varieties, with 50 per cent Chardonnay complemented by 30 per cent Pinot Noir and 20 per cent Pinot Meunier – comes from a warmer vintage than our Blanc de Blancs winner, and one that (with its fifteenth birthday now behind it) is beginning to be hard to find. Most remember the sunny, trouble-free June and July in 2006, but great Champagne needs a season with minor-key moments as well as major, and August of that vintage provided plenty of storm clouds and cool rain. The wine is still pale gold in colour in 2024, and its aromas are harmonious and enticing: look out for cream and cut white mushrooms as well as plump summer fruit. The palate has breadth and almost autumnal amplitude, yet retains freshness, nerve and poise. As we go to press, it’s at peak maturity and will stay there for a year or so. Alc 12.5%
Charles Heidsieck, Blanc des Millénaires Brut 2014
Best in Show, 97 points
100% Chardonnay
The 2014 vintage was a mixed one in Champagne – a cool, wet July lingered into an indifferent August – and some parts of the region (notably the Marne Valley) struggled as they coped with twice the normal rainfall total. It soon became apparent, though, that the Côtes des Blancs was a winner zone in 2014, and time has only amplified the merits of this coolish but ultra-classical year for Blanc de Blancs from well-sited vineyards. Here’s a great example. Pale and fine-beaded, with a sumptuous aroma of cream, flowers, nuts and quiet orchard fruits – though it’s stealthy as yet, and further cellar time will certainly amplify the charm. On the palate, the wine is crystalline in terms of its focus and balance, while the flavours evoke the plant world – pressed spring leaf and sweet angelica – as much as fruit. The structure is impressive for a Blanc de Blancs, too. Stylish and assured Champagne. Alc 12%
Platinum
Cordier, Dival Cotel Blanc de Blancs Brut Premier Cru NV
Platinum, 97 points
100% Chardonnay
Capacious notes of baked apple, meringue and hazelnut praline set the luxurious…
Source : https://www.decanter.com.master.public.keystone-prod-eks-euw1.futureplc.engineering/decanter-world-wine-awards/champagne-day-96-point-wines-to-try-467201/
