One of the finest of all French Champagne houses and in top form in recent years with their vintage releases. Vintage Pol combines elegance and finesse with depth and complexity of flavour.

Veuve Clicquot has been producing fine quality Champagne since it was founded in 1772. In 1810, Madame Clicquot broke new ground by creating the first vintage Champagne, made of grapes from one single harvest. Veuve's non vintage is consistently rated in the top handful of NV Champagnes and delivers a powerful bubbly with a rich mouthfeel. The Ponsardin vintage is elegant with generous freshness and the Pinot Noir lends body to a very lively wine. On the palate there's layers of floral and fruity complexity that flows into a remarkably long and powerful finish.

The Brut Vintage displays a bright yellow-gold colour enhanced by a continuous thread of lingering bubbles. The nose, instantly elegant, exudes delicate scents of citrus fruit (tangerine) announcing a beautiful freshness. Later it reveals an outstanding aromatic complexity with hints of peaches, apricots and almonds. The palate first reveals a very creamy and full-bodied texture. The immediate impression of freshness gives way to an unctuous and well-balanced structure offering aromas of fresh biscuits and ripe fruit (apricots). This is a rich champagne of strong character, with vinosity, keeping nevertheless all its elegance and delicacy, it is the very soul of Pol Roger.

The Rose Champagne has fruity aromas of wild red berries, followed by floral notes, and the sugary and spicy fragrance of zest; and the aromas of dried fruit and cocoa result from the wines vinifying in oak tuns. Rich and full-bodied, Brut Rosé exalts the maturity of the fruit. A sparkling wine with an initial impression of freshness, it opens smoothly with almost exotic notes, combined with the pure minerality of the Chardonnay grapes. 'A characteristic Roederer rosé: the concentration, fruitiness, and compactness of the Cumières Pinot Noir grapes are transcended by the elegance, purity, and freshness of the finest Chardonnay grapes cultivated on the Côte des Blancs.' - Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, Cellar Master.

'THIS is another of the French and famous brands that deliver crystal-clear, finely-honed aperitif styles. The vintage pinkie delivers a whole set of characters that serious Champagne lovers fully appreciate including aldehyde, flint and anise spice. - Herald Sun, Melbourne, 12 Feb 2013

'Rose were for long regarded as the illegitimate offspring of Champagne, recipients of coarse, heavy pressings wines partially masked by high dosage levels. Today they are routinely priced above 'normal' NV (or vintage) blends and are carefully made. Whether they really merit the premium is irrelevant: the market has spoken. But Laurent-Perrier is a special case: this is 100% pinot noir, rather than a blend coloured by pinot noir red wine. The full salmon colour is an immediate indication of its provenance, the bouquet complex and alluring, leading directly into the cherry and strawberry flavours of the long, sustained palate; excellent finish and aftertaste.' - 95 points, James Halliday Top 100

Fermented, aged and released in the same magnum bottle, only fruit from 7 Grand Cru vineyards is used to craft a blend of equal parts Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, which spends over 4 years ageing on lees plus 6 months post disgorgement. Further gentle ageing takes place until deemed ready for release by the Cellar Master. It displays a multitude of citrus, white and red fruits, linked by a common thread of minerality producing a mature complexity, elegance and length.

Lanson Black Label continues to stand out in the non vintage Champagne crowd with its quality consistency year after year. Lanson, with its pedigree and history that rivals any Champagne house, is easily one of the best value non vintage Champagne's, with its fine and elegant palate that continues right across the tongue. A soft and pure texture follows showcasing the delicate acid structure of one of the true Champagne bargains.

Bollinger B13 Champagne Bollinger has also released an iconoclast. B13. An extremely limited wine crafted across five indomitable Crus, half of which is equal parts Äy and Verzenay. The wine is a testimony to the frigid nature of the 2013 vintage and the late harvest that was necessitated through the eye of a needle marked by sleet, snow and frost. It was this slim window of opportunity that Bollinger perceived as one of marginality; extremes and the sort of challenges that demand courage. For it is these qualities that define the worlds very greatest wines. Aged for more than seven years on lees, bolstered by old reserve wines aged in magnums and the signature skilled oak handling, this is a one-off prestige cuvée in every sense of the term. Power, precision and immense potential, all signatures. Jangly stone fruits and a smoky, pungent mineral underbelly. Richard Juhlin, the worlds pre-eminent commentator on the region opines that it is precisely the symphonic harmony that impresses most, before suggesting that the wine needs time in the cellar. Essie Avellan MW calls it my favourite of Bollinger Limited Editions so far! The Champagne received 95 points from each.