Champagne Henri Giraud Argonne Grand Cru with Wooden Gift Box 2013
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Parker
Robert -
Suckling
James -
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A mythical cuvée, a treasure of their estate, the culmination of the Henri Giraud experience. A beautiful shade of yellow gold. A first delicate nose of vine peach opening on vanilla, followed by violet, which mark a beautiful mineral bitterness. Precise, vertical, plunging, and immersive, chalk, salt, iodine.
Blend: 90% Pinot Noir, 10% Chardonnay
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2013 Brut Grand Cru Aÿ Argonne is the latest in a series of superb releases from Giraud. Unwinding in the glass with notes of buttered toast, crisp yellow orchard fruit, honeycomb, warm spices and ripe stone fruits, it's full-bodied, deep and vinous, with a layered core of concentrated fruit, incisive acids and an elegant pearly mousse. Long and penetrating, it's finer-boned than its richer, more muscular 2012 predecessor; but like that more structured wine, it will reward bottle age.
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James Suckling
Tart tartine, brioche, green apple, and hints of ripe fresh herbs. Menthol, too. It’s very direct and powerful with vivid acidity and a dry, racy finish. Tight and compressed with an elegant structure. Linear and very energetic. Turns decadent and flavorful at the end. Shows the cold growing season. Subtle and complex. Single-vineyard wine. 90% pinot noir and 10% chardonnay. Drink or hold.
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Wine Spectator
Decadent aromas and flavors of butterscotch, dried apricot, ground cardamom, baked black currant and almond biscotti are on full display in this round and inviting Champagne. Backed by citrus peel acidity and invigorated by the finely detailed mousse, this is rich yet harmonious throughout, a wine for fans of the distinctive, opulent style. Intriguing hints of smoke, verbena, oyster shell and dried mint linger on the finish. Drink now through 2028.
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Representing the topmost expression of a Champagne house, a vintage Champagne is one made from the produce of a single, superior harvest year. Vintage Champagnes account for a mere 5% of total Champagne production and are produced about three times in a decade. Champagne is typically made as a blend of multiple years in order to preserve the house style; these will have non-vintage, or simply, NV on the label. The term, "vintage," as it applies to all wine, simply means a single harvest year.
Associated with luxury, celebration, and romance, the region, Champagne, is home to the world’s most prized sparkling wine. In order to bear the label, ‘Champagne’, a sparkling wine must originate from this northeastern region of France—called Champagne—and adhere to strict quality standards. Made up of the three towns Reims, Épernay, and Aÿ, it was here that the traditional method of sparkling wine production was both invented and perfected, birthing a winemaking technique as well as a flavor profile that is now emulated worldwide.
Well-drained, limestone and chalky soil defines much of the region, which lend a mineral component to its wines. Champagne’s cold, continental climate promotes ample acidity in its grapes but weather differences from year to year can create significant variation between vintages. While vintage Champagnes are produced in exceptional years, non-vintage cuvées are produced annually from a blend of several years in order to produce Champagnes that maintain a consistent house style.
With nearly negligible exceptions, . These can be blended together or bottled as individual varietal Champagnes, depending on the final style of wine desired. Chardonnay, the only white variety, contributes freshness, elegance, lively acidity and notes of citrus, orchard fruit and white flowers. Pinot Noir and its relative Pinot Meunier, provide the backbone to many blends, adding structure, body and supple red fruit flavors. Wines with a large proportion of Pinot Meunier will be ready to drink earlier, while Pinot Noir contributes to longevity. Whether it is white or rosé, most Champagne is made from a blend of red and white grapes—and uniquely, rosé is often produce by blending together red and white wine. A Champagne made exclusively from Chardonnay will be labeled as ‘blanc de blancs,’ while ones comprised of only red grapes are called ‘blanc de noirs.’