Seaquam  
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1141
 | | 01-01-2003 11:23 PM |
| NV Krug Grande Cuvee Champagne -- best nose of any Champagne I've had. Fresh-baked pie crust, lemon, apple tart--it just smells delicious. Yeast/bread and sweetish lemon (like in a lemon merringue pie) flavors highlighted by hazelnut, coconut, ginger flavors; remarkably long finish. I bought this bottle about 3 years ago, so it may be slightly different from the current blend (I bought 6 more a couple of months ago at a great price  ). A fabulous wine. WS gave this 95 pts. I have to agree. This was served with lobster in a chive mayonnaise on tarragon blinis. Tasty dish, but I would have preferred to drink the Champagne on its own; the food hindered, rather than complimented, the complexity of the wine. | | |
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skwid
Wine Connoisseur
Posts: 5452
| | 01-01-2003 11:44 PM |
| | I have to agree, this is a great Champagne. It does cost like one too though. Definitely my favorite NV Champagne and is typically as good as most vintage Champagnes. | | | |
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ChangeMe
Grape Truck Driver
Posts: 27
| | 01-02-2003 09:06 AM |
| Agree, great champagne, and try the 1988 vintage to have your soul changed about your very idea of champagne.
Also a good idea to wait some years to drink this beauty, three years in the cellar may even be too short. | | | |
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skwid
Wine Connoisseur
Posts: 5452
| | 01-02-2003 04:28 PM |
| | IMNSHO the 1988 Krug isn't ready to drink. I'd go for the 1985 Krug which is awesome. For something a bit different you could try the 1985 Salon which is quite nice in a different sort of way. | | | |
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David Walker
Barrel Sampler
Posts: 2284
| | 01-26-2003 02:32 AM |
| I had a Krug Grand Cuvee around the holidays at Morrell. I paid through the roof for it, but it was well worth it.
One of the best from Champagne I've had...second in my mind to only the '89 Pol Roget Cuvee Winston Churchill I had a few years ago. | | | |
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Seaquam
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1141
| | 07-01-2003 08:27 PM |
| We had another bottle of this on Saturday night, in celebration of summer, pending vacations, and a friend's promotion. I think it's worth adding a bit more to the comments already posted here.
This wine is all about muscle. Our friend remarked that it was more like drinking a heavyweight Chardonay than a Champagne; his experience with sparkling wines is that they're lighter on the palate, and I understood immediately what he meant.
On entry, there was an immediate impression of white chocolate, which I hadn't noted before in this wine, and then the melange of flavors which were expected (I love the taste of ginger than shows so well here), and that remarkable finish! It's difficult to drink a Sauvignon Blanc (which had been refrigerated and ready) after this, so we savored the Krug as long as we could, and then proceeded to a restaurant where some food adjusted our palates for the red wines that followed.
I think it's always possible to find a terrific red or white table wine at a very agreeable price, but I think that there are 2 types of wine where, unfortunately, my experience has been that you have to spend money to get quality: Champagne and Vintage Port. IMHO, there seems to be a more consistent price/quality correlation with these than with other types of wines. I've only once encountered a (relatively) underpriced wine--a Martinez Port--that performed beyond expectation; otherwise, the more I've paid, the bigger the bang has been. | | | |
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Winetex
Austin, Texas
Master of Wine
Posts: 11046
| | 07-01-2003 08:36 PM |
| There is something about Champagne discussions that make me want to hear that lovely "pop". I daresay a bottle of this Krug may be a dead soldier by morning. | | | |
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Winetex
Austin, Texas
Master of Wine
Posts: 11046
| | 09-19-2003 01:15 AM |
| I held out for a few months but tonight a bottle of this Champagne went "pop".
There aren't many wines you can smell across the room but this one is one. It smelled and tasted like the best French brioche plus an apple tart. A long finish of same picking up some ginger notes.
Guys, if you want to convert your women to the "dark side" this may be the ticket.
Edited to add - Winetex 94 points
My '88 Krugs are yelling to come out but I'm resisting for the time being. | | | |
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Seaquam
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1141
| | 09-19-2003 05:00 AM |
| We had a bottle of this last night with Lafon Rochet and Amy. I kept getting hints of white chocolate, but the dominant spice, as you noted, is ginger.
We've had this 7 or 8 times in the last few years, and don't detect any observable bottle variation. I think that's pretty impressive for a NV Champagne. | | | |
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Landshark
Barrel Racker
Posts: 1894
| | 10-14-2003 06:08 AM |
| | I have to agree we had this for the first time tonight it is wonderful 95 for sure | | | |
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Seaquam
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1141
| | 10-14-2003 06:57 PM |
| We had another bottle of this 3 weeks ago with Lafon Rochet & co. Each time I've had it, I've been more impressed, discovering greater complexity seemingly with each mouthful. I've only had a couple of Champagnes that I'd say are better than or equal to this one.
Like all the best Champagnes, this would be a great wine even without the bubbles. | | | |
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DdB
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1452
| | 10-14-2003 11:21 PM |
| You all sucked me in...saw a bottle today and had to buy it.
Thanks for the notes. | | | |
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Winetex
Austin, Texas
Master of Wine
Posts: 11046
| | 10-15-2003 01:27 AM |
| | I bought two bottles today. OK - half bottles but still I think this is wonderful champagne. | | | |
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Winetex
Austin, Texas
Master of Wine
Posts: 11046
| | 11-12-2003 04:30 PM |
| Having 375s of this champagne is dangerous as we found out last night.
Just call me a Kruginite. Krughead? Krugophile? | | | |
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skwid
Wine Connoisseur
Posts: 5452
| | 11-12-2003 05:04 PM |
| That would be Krugiste. Welcome to the club.
If I could get the 375's at a reasonable price I'd be snapping them up like no tomorrow. However when I can get the 750's for $80 (or sometimes $70) and the 375's are $50 I think you can see the dilema. Actually there isn't any dilema, you just get the 750 and drink more Champagne. | | | |
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Seaquam
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1141
| | 11-12-2003 08:33 PM |
| I think Krughead, Krugophile, or Krugiste are all equally acceptable.
However, I'm pretty sure Kruginite is the beverage that killed Superman.
skwid -- I think $70 or $80 is a darn good price for this wine. You must be living in some kind of oasis of free enterprise! | | | |
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Seaquam
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1141
| | 11-27-2004 10:07 PM |
| I had another bottle of this wine 2 nights ago, this one purchased separately from my previous bottles and obviously from a more recent blend, but certainly consistent with those earlier ones.
NV Krug Champagne Grande Cuvee -- pale gold colour; persistent bead, exemplifies "bubbly", still best nose of any Champagne I've had, fresh-baked pie crust, lemon, mushroom; creamy texture, good acidity, yeast bread and sweetish lemon (like in a lemon merringue pie) flavors with hints of white chocolate, ginger, roasted nuts, really fills the palate; very long yeasty finish. Pretty powerful. App. 95-96 pts. | | | |
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Rothko
Palm Beach
Wine Connoisseur
Posts: 5711
| | 11-29-2004 02:24 PM |
| I had a bottle of this a week or so ago and was very impressed. It was such a powerful, heady wine. I compared it with a 96 Dom Perignon, and thought that the Krug was better.
So now I am in search of some of those sub-$90 Krug GCs that I hear about. | | | |
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Seaquam
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1141
| | 11-29-2004 02:58 PM |
| Quote:
...very impressed...
Me too. I think I've said it before, but if you take the bubbles out of this wine, you still have great bottle of wine left over. Even though you can buy very good vintage Champagnes from solid producers like Pol Roger, Bollinger, etc. at a much lower cost, this one is worth its price IMHO. | | |
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rmkam
Grape Fermenter
Posts: 524
| | 11-29-2004 05:13 PM |
| | Had one for Turkey Day. It was good, just did not WOW me. A bit of a bitter finish and lacking in bouquet complexity (very little yeast or bread dough). Palate a bit rough (not a creamy Krug). The trouble is what blend did we each have and what was the disgorgement date? Mine was a fairly new release (just arrived at the retailer). Perhaps needs some cellar time. | | | |
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