Top 10 Best Champagnes for New Years Eve Thu, Dec 01, 22 | wine Three cheers to 2017! If you’re like us you’re preparing and planning your New Years Eve celebrations. In true Denver fashion, between concerts, 4-course dinners and pop-up events, there are about a million ways to spend your night. Whatever you’re planning, no NYE celebration is complete without some bubbles. This holiday above all others warrants cracking out something good to drink, because let’s face it….2017 was a wild year and we all need a drink! This is the perfect evening to impress your house guests or party host with a badass bottle from our recommended Champagne list. With that being said, we have curated a list of our top 10 champagnes for your New Years Eve celebrations! We focused this list on a few beloved Grower producers, which are Champagnes that are produced by the same estate that owns the vineyards from which the grapes come… basically as “craft” as the Old World of wine gets! We’ve also listed a few well-known Negociant producers. All of these New Years champagnes would elevate your holiday festivities. #SaveWaterDrinkChampagne BERECHE & FILS, BRUT RESERVE, NV $42Grower Producer “The Brut Réserve, a blend of 70% wines from the base year (2013) with the balance reserve wines, composed from approximately one-third each of the three major varieties (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir & Pinot Meunier). A model of harmony, nuance and verve, it is a pure expression of the domain’s varied terroirs that demonstrates both the Bérêche brothers great skill and their originality.” –The Rare Wine Company POL ROGER, BRUT RESERVE, NV $45Negociant Producer “An elegant Champagne, with a smoky, minerally underpinning and subtle flavors of poached pear, toast, candied lemon zest and ginger riding the finely detailed bead. Harmonious, and hard to stop sipping. Drink now through 2020.” -Wine Spectator LARMANDIER-BERNIER, LONGITUDE, BLANC DE BLANC, PREMIER CRU, NV $48Grower Producer “Perfect as an apéritif, its freshness, its frankness, its mineral quality will give you an appetite. You can drink it now or also keep it for several years.” – Champagne Larmandier-Bernier GEOFFROY, ROSE DE SAIGNEE, BRUT, PREMIER CRU, 2013 $59Negociant Producer “Vibrant acidity frames flavors of steeped white peach, raspberry, candied orange zest and smoke in this rich, expressive rosé. Well-balanced and lively, with a mouthwatering, spiced finish.” –Wine Spectator MARIE-COURTIN, EFFLORESCENCE, BLANC DE NOIR, EXTRA BRUT, 2013 $62Grower Producer/Organic “L’Efflorescence is the most full-bodied of Dominique’s Blanc de Noirs. It doubles down on the natural higher ripeness of Pinot Noir, planted in clay-heavy soils at the foot of a sloping vineyard, by being vinified in second hand barrique for a richer, finely oxidative style. As with other Marie-Courtin wines, only native yeasts are employed and no dosage is added. It sits a burnished golden yellow in the glass with finely beaded mousse. The nose is expressive with touches of brioche, biscuits, hazelnuts, and ripe Jonagold apples. While the palate is full and powered by structure and minerality that only gives hints of brazil nuts, red currants, and mocha before a dry and admirably sustained finish.” – David Salinas PIERRE GIMONNET, CUVEE FLEURON, BLANC DE BLANC, BRUT, PREMIER CRU, 2008 $63Grower Producer “A fabulous tertiary wine from a superb vintage; malt and brioche and balsam, clinging and hedonic and spicy. Just a riot to drink now. Bless him for making it available!” – Terry Theise GEORGES LAVAL, CUMIERES, BRUT NATURE, PREMIER CRU, 2013 $66Grower Producer “High-pitched, mineral-laced citrus fruit and honeysuckle aromas are complicated by notes of iodine, anise and ginger. Racy and precise on entry, then deeper in the mid-palate, offering intense orange pith and chamomile flavors and a touch of bitter quinine. Almost Chablis-like in its focus and mineral cut, finishing with excellent clarity and length. I imagine that this fat-free, lithe Champagne would do wonders with raw shellfish or fresh goats’ milk cheeses.” –International Wine Cellar BILLECART-SALMON, BRUT ROSE, NV $83Negociant Producer “A lovely rosé in an almost vinous style, with mouthwatering acidity and a fine, lacy mousse carrying appealing flavors of ripe raspberry, white cherry fruit, star anise, mandarin orange peel and honeysuckle. Lightly chalky on the lasting finish. Enjoy with food. Drink now through 2020.” –Wine Spectator CEDRIC BOUCHARD, ROSES DE JEANNE, LIEU DIT PRESLE, BLANC DE NOIR, 2012 $115Grower Producer “Ample, creamy and layered, the 2012 possesses exceptional balance from start to finish. Intense red stone fruit, mineral, kirsch, wild flowers, smoke, slate and herbs. All the elements are in the right place.. In a word: magnificent!” –International Wine Cellar SALON, LE MESNIL, BLANC DE BLANC, BRUT, 1999 $475Negociant Producer “Bright yellow-gold. Deeply pitched, pungent aromas of candied lemon, pear skin, anise, buttered toast and smoky lees, with notes of ginger and white flowers adding lift. Densely packed yet vibrant, showing impressive power and clarity to its mineral-accented citrus and orchard fruit flavors. Expands on the finish but maintains its focus, picking up iodine and bitter lime notes that linger impressively.” –International Wine Cellar ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ All Champagne’s come highly recommended by Molly’s Wine Manager, Scott Smith. Scott has coordinated the wine program at a number of retailers and restaurants in the Denver Metro area over the last 15 years. Scott loves Champagne and other Sparkling wines and he will unabashedly brag about 80% of his personal wine purchases going to bubbles. Scott has a particular affinity for Grower Producer Champagne. Growers tend to practice organic viticulture, allow fruit to fully ripen, use indigenous yeasts and be far more deliberate in the winery. Molly’s boasts the most extensive Grower Champagne selection in the State of Colorado and one of the more impressive sets in the Country. *Prices are subject to change. Limited to stock on hand.
