Freddy R. Troya

9.0

Champagne Bollinger Special Cuvée Brut NV – Champagne AOC, France 🇫🇷

Overview
One of Champagne’s enduring benchmarks, Special Cuvée combines approximately 60% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay, and 15% Meunier, with a significant portion of reserve wines contributing depth and consistency. Rich, layered, and unmistakably Bollinger, it delivers remarkable complexity at a price point that remains accessible compared to many prestige bottlings.

Aromas & Flavors
Golden apple, ripe pear, citrus zest, baked brioche, roasted nuts, and subtle spice unfold in layers. Notes of fresh bread dough and orchard fruit intertwine with hints of honey and toast.

Mouthfeel
Vibrant and energetic with a creamy mousse and impressive depth. A delicate kiss of yeast adds texture and contrast, while the wine’s concentration and freshness remain beautifully balanced through the finish.

Food Pairings
Lobster, seared scallops, roast chicken, truffle dishes, aged Comté, oysters, or simply enjoyed as a celebratory aperitif.

Verdict
A richly textured and multi-layered Champagne that continues to justify its reputation as one of the region’s benchmarks. Complex, expressive, and consistently rewarding, it offers a level of sophistication that punches well above its category.

Did You Know?
Unlike many large Champagne houses, Bollinger ferments a portion of its wines in old oak barrels and maintains an extensive reserve wine program, helping create the signature richness and depth that define Special Cuvée.

🍷 Personal Pick
Few non-vintage Champagnes deliver this combination of richness, complexity, and value. The layered fruit, subtle autolytic character, and vibrant texture make Special Cuvée one of my favorite benchmark Champagnes and a bottle I never hesitate to revisit. — 24 days ago

Freddy R. Troya

9.0

Nicolas Feuillatte “Réserve Exclusive” Brut
Champagne AOC – Champagne – France 🇫🇷

Overview
A classic non-vintage Champagne blend typically composed of Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, and Chardonnay, crafted in a vibrant and approachable house style. Nicolas Feuillatte continues to deliver a fresher, fruit-forward expression of Champagne that balances energy, accessibility, and refinement exceptionally well.

Aromas & Flavors
Bright orchard fruits, candid citrus, green apple, pear, and subtle stone fruit notes layered with hints of brioche, white flowers, and delicate toasted almonds.

Mouthfeel
Lively mousse with lovely tension and balanced acidity. Refreshing, energetic, and clean while maintaining enough texture to feel complete and satisfying through the finish.

Food Pairings
Excellent with smoked trout, oysters, sushi, fried appetizers, soft cheeses, or light seafood dishes. The pairing with fatty smoked trout submerged in garlic olive oil sounds absolutely spot on, the acidity and freshness would cut beautifully through the richness.

Verdict
A surprisingly well-balanced and highly approachable Champagne that overdelivers in freshness and drinkability. Vibrant, refreshing, and dangerously easy to enjoy glass after glass.

🍷 Did You Know?
Nicolas Feuillatte became one of the largest Champagne brands in the world by working with an enormous cooperative network of growers across Champagne, allowing the house to source fruit from a remarkable diversity of villages and terroirs. — 2 months ago

Damian

9.4

Disgorged 03/23. Copper color. Intense flavor and smell of ripe apple, wild strawberry and sourdough. High acidity. Positively surprised. 0 dosage. — 4 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.1

Been a minute since I’ve had Ruinart. Especially, a Blanc de blanc. From 375ml.

The mouthfeel, rich with soft mousse. Slightly bruised golden apple, touch of apple cider, yellow pear, ripe-juicy yellow peach, juicy pineapple, tropical melons, green caramel apple, brioche-baguette crust, frothy cream, soft, white spice, vanilla-vanillin, saline-sea spray, dry, volcanic minerals, dry limestone marl, crumbled-dry chalk, yellow flowers framed in white, spring flowers in greens, pleasant, soft acidity and well balanced, mid toned/structured, elegant finish that lasts nearly a minute and long sets on beautiful minerality. 91+

The top left cave picture tells you why no other region can replicate that kind/much chalkiness in wine. The roots swim it. For me, there is no real substitute. — 4 months ago

Jim Lyons

9.7

For what it’s trying to do, and at the price, it’s really fucking good.

Dry with some nice suddle peachy sweetness on the front. — 6 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.0

This is a remembrance of Sofia & my trip to Franciacorta & visit to Ca’ del Bosco in 2015.

If Italy has a kind of equivalent to Champagne, it would be Franciacorta. This is not Prosecco. It is made in the traditional method.

It is a beautiful part of Italy with both Lake Garda’s, one smaller (closer) & one much bigger and is a summer haven.

Excuse the fussy pics. I bought a new iPhone 7 just before we left & it had a defective camera.

The nose shows fruit blossoms, pineapple, green, apple, golden apple, white peach, tropical melons, vanilla, frothy cream, some caramel, soft volcanics, chalk & spring flowers setting in greens.

The palate has nice, soft, mousse. Ripe fruits; fruit blossoms, pineapple, green, apple, golden apple, lemon, lime, white peach, tropical melons & mango. Vanilla, frothy cream, some caramel, soft volcanics, sea spray, saline, chalk & spring flowers setting in greens, beautiful, acidity, well balanced, nicely structured & toned with an elegant finish that last a full minute and lands on volcanics. — 22 days ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of an hour. The 2012 Special Club pours a straw color with a persistent mousse. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of raspberry, apple, strawberry, peach, lemon curd, toasted brioche, almond, and minerals. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long. Delicious. Drink now through 2042. Disgorged October of 2022. — a month ago

Kapyrick Wine

9.2

v20. Very good! Bread and soft citrus zest nose. Fresh pear and lime fruit. Long, dry, bright yeasty finish. Small, firm lasting bubbles. Enjoyable! — 2 months ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Enjoying this knowing my Cornhuskers already punched their ticket to their first ever Sweet 16 last night in one of the games of the tournament so far.

At this point, it’s a “pick’em” between the Bérêche Brut Réserve and Caillez-Lemaire’s “Éclats” for the title of, “Kline Fam house Champagne”. They just delivery in the way I want/trust/expect and can afford. This is the November 2025 disgorgement. Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of three hours. The Brut Réserve pours a straw color with a persistent mousse. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of apple, pineapple, raspberry, lemon curd, brioche, marzipan, and a mix of chalk and limestone minerals. On the palate, the wine is dry with high acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long and laden with minerals. So easy to love. Drink now but you can hold for many years if you want as well. — 3 months ago

Mark S.

9.0

Golden yellow. Fine bubbles. Brioche, apple compotes, deep. Nutty. Mineral. Fruitiness M+ matured Sweetness M+ Acidity M+ Bitterness M Body M Finish M 12% Fresh Rich AYALA BRUT MAJEUR @7150, Kinok, 260211-260404 — 5 months ago

Rob N

9.5

Better (apple-y) flavor than Cristal but a coarser fizz. — 6 months ago

Louis Martin

9.1

Notes of citrus, flowers, and pear, crisp, clean finish, went well with passed hors devours. — 7 months ago

Andrea Watt

9.0

Simple and clean with pear, lemon, and cream. — 13 days ago

Andrea Watt

9.3

Pear, green apple, brioche, and citrus. — 10 days ago

Conrad Green

9.5

Still fresh but definitely lots of secondary notes. Pear and wet stone and a light sweetness and salinity. Good tension. Excellent — a month ago

with Ara and Paul

katarina ammann

9.3

First Vinho Verde! Super light, crisp notes of lime, green apple, and florals. Slight fizz from a secondary fermentation. — 3 months ago

Ming L

8.9

The nose shows fresh apple and pear, with a subtle, fleeting hint of brioche. The palate is defined by a crisp, direct attack that yields to a somewhat firm, fruit-driven structure. Fine lively bubbles.

Not my favorite entry level NV Champagne, but it’s quite pleasant. — 4 months ago

Meredith Moody

9.0

This is a great sparkling wine. It smells almost exactly like apple juice to me and the taste follows suit. I wrote in my notes “overwhelming apple,” but that is not a bad thing. I also got some pear and like toasted notes. Bubbles are lively, makes it fun to drink. Strikes a good balance between fresh and rich. — 4 months ago

Conrad Green

9.4

Gorgeous pear and bright lemon. Minerals and salinity. Great focus. Excellent — 5 months ago

with David

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

Something for the Jasper Hill Farms, “Willoughby.”

I am not much for Brut these days. Prefer Extra Brut. But I had this 375ml left before I shifted gear’s.

Having said that, this is still very sound and consistent. Think I enjoyed it more once upon a time. It seems sweeter now having a steady stream of EB.

Nice mousse. Lemon, lime pulp w/ a bit flesh, Bosc pear, red apple, yellow stone fruits, tropical fruits, quince, ginger, whipped creams, graham cracker, nougat, light & soft volcanic minerals, nice chalk powder, sea fossils, gentle saline, yellow flowers & lilies with hints of jasmine, pleasant, lively acidity, good balance, structure-tension & a smartly polished elegant finish that lasts 90 seconds and long sets on white spice-ginger.

Excellent pair w/ Key Lime Tart.

@SimplyRedVirtualLiveHamburg — 7 months ago