2002 Jacques Selosse Millesime

Vivid, slightly hazy gold. Pungent, high-pitched aromas of nectarine, melon, smoky minerals and honey. Sappy, pliant and seamless, with strong mineral lift and cut to its palate-staining candied lime, passion fruit and floral flavors. An intense gingery quality lingers on the long, mineral-accented finish, which features subtle smoke and iodine flourishes. Disgorged on December 8, 2012.

A total turn on, the 2002 Extra-Brut Grand Cru Millesime is one of the great wines of this vintage. Exotic, ripe and totally flashy, the 2002 bursts from the glass with massive layers of fruit. Honey, spices, tangerine, nectarine, flowers and mint all come to life in this huge, vivid Champagne. Waves of rich, tropical infused fruit supported by veins of saline minerality flow through to the voluptuous, huge finish. This is a stunning wine from Anselme Selosse. Ideally, the 2002 needs a few years for some of the baby fat to drop off, but it is pretty fabulous today. The overt richness bears more than a passing resemblance to Montrachet, from the Chassagne side. Disgorgement date: February 23, 2012.