2012 Collet Esprit Couture Brut Champagne 750 ml

The 2012 Champagne vintage took the mound tossing meaner curveballs than Clayton Kershaw. A warm winter. A wet spring. Frost. Hail. By the time summer arrived, winemakers were pacing holes in the floor.

Then came August and September, two months as perfect as the region has ever seen. The grapes ripened to perfection under warm, gentle sunlight. And when the roller-coaster season finally rolled to a stop, the Champenois hailed it as a miracle. Wine Advocate, Wine Enthusiast, and Wine Spectator all lauded it as one of the region’s greatest vintages EVER.

The crop was minuscule, but extraordinary. And Collet—part of Champagne’s oldest cooperative—had their pick of 850 member-growers in 160 different crus to craft Esprit Couture, their prestige cuveé. Sites in eleven Premier and Grand Crus made the cut, and Collet wove together 60% vibrant Chardonnay and 40% structured Pinot Noir into an intense, weighty, and enthralling Champagne.

The wine’s delicate mousse releases a toasty nose of apple tartlet, blanched almonds, peach, and crème fraîche. Pineapple and lemon meringue highlight a tropical palate with notions of crushed stones, fresh cream, and sourdough toast. After a decade in Collet’s centuries-old limestone cellars, this is a polished and sophisticated wine with another ten years ahead of it.

Established in 1921 in the famous village of Äy, Collet is a product of the Champagne revolt of the early 1900s, which resulted in the formation of the Champagne appellation. They were a forerunner of the Champagne co-op, and today they have nearly 1,000 hectares of vineyards to draw from. Only the absolute best made it into this bottle. It’s a truly profound wine.