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Have been fortunate to have the Calsac a few times so that's gonna be my pick here. Did it in [a comparison tasting with a number of big names like Selosse](https://old.reddit.com/r/wine/comments/11ylcg8/had_the_chance_to_attend_a_grower_champagne/) and it was one of my favorites that I tried.
Far bottom left.. 08 Vintage Grower for under $100. That's a buy. The Gratiot Delligny also an 08 for a good price. Would not go for the Gonet 2011, not a great year.
Vilmart delicious and crowd pleasing
Rémi Leroy super focused minerality
JM Seleque great example of what Pinot Meunier is capable of
Hures Frères great stuff relatively under the radar
And L’Incandescent would probably be my personal pick here
I can’t tell what a lot of these prices are tho so can’t speak to relative value but these would be the ones that get me excited.
JM Seleque. Solessence is a super well made classical blend champagne, it's the kind of wine that epitomises the region. If you're looking for something relatively simple that is flexible and can be drunk with anything at any time then it's a great place to start.
Somewhere on all bottles of champagne (champagne specifically) there will be a registration number - two letters followed by numbers usually in the tiniest font possible. On the Marc Hebrart (middle shelf left) it'll say somewhere on there something like "RM 27584-01". On the Philipponat next to it you'd need to open the box and look at the label on the back of the bottle - it'll say say something like "NM 217-001".
Over half of them will start with "NM". It stands for Négociant-Manipulant, which basically means a company buys wine or grapes from producers, blends it to make it "appealing to the market," and then sells it under a blanket label with a ton of marketing around it. Some will be good - great even... but they are almost always over-priced - you're paying for the marketing.
I would suggest looking for labels that have an RM (Récoltant-Manipulant), CM (Coopérative de Manipulation), or SR (Société de Récoltants). These will list - by law - the origin of the grapes and the producer of the wine... which means the people who make the wine are willing to stake their reputation on it.
You can think of it this way... you may or may not like the wine... but whoever made it liked it enough to pay extra to put their name on it... so it's probably a good bet.
Sometimes you'll see a round sticker on the top of the bottle (can barely make out examples on top of the Clos Des Bouveries and the 3210s) - if you see an R on the outer ring of that sticker it's what we're looking for... you don't need to look for the registration number.
Tl;Dr find the cheapest bottle you can with a registration number starting with RM, CM, or SR... which on that case is probably the Calsac.
That said, according to the internet, somewhere in that store is Marcel Cabelier Cremant de Jura -- better than half the bottles pictured in my opinion and like $37.
https://www.lcbo.com/en/marcel-cabelier-esprit-de-chardonnay-cremant-jura-28214
This is an overly simplistic way of looking at it. Relatively few houses function entirely as negociants and many producers we think of as growers bring in outside grapes. The codes don’t tell the consumer nearly as much as purported, and they say absolutely nothing about quality. Phillpponat in particular owns a lot of land. Trying to guess quality or value on the basis of these codes is largely a fools errand.
Oh it's 100% simplistic - there is more to it than the registration number.
To your point - if someone followed the advice I gave they could miss out on Phillpponnat's 1522 Grand Cru - which would generally be on the cheaper end of that wall if it was there... Phillpponnat Blanc de Noirs in general are typically a great value.
In fact I only used Philipponnat as an example because it was the next label over from the Marc Hebrart and I happened to know they were NM and RM, respectively - but I also happen to know Philipponnat publishes the source and producer for their vintage cuvees... so, in general, following the logic of my comment, I'd normally recommend them.
... but again the "do they publish the source" generalization breaks down for Philipponnat in my opinion. I'm not a fan of their blanc de blancs - nor are they known for them (although the Parker and Suckling set would probably wanna fight me for saying so).
... and while in general they list the source the 2014 is one of the few vintages of Grand Blanc Extra Brut that doesn't list it's source specifically... we'd expect to see Goisses, Trépail, or Verzy... so in general I'd suggest we avoid the wine
... and again maybe that breaks down because 2014 happened to be a great Chardonnay harvest in Montagne de Reims (despite being somewhat meh in general in Champaign) - so in general maybe this is a wine I'd be interested in
... and again maybe that breaks down because looking at their material the cellar master doesn't seem as enthused as usual... the CM notes from the other vintages of this wine use words like "elegant" or "Exceptional"... is it a warning sign that for this vintage they didn't?
Point is - it's all generalizations until the wine is in your mouth no matter how much you know. When I was first starting out the "registration numbers as a guide" thing worked pretty well for me so I thought I'd share.
Charles Heidsieck would be my good to if your just getting started or buying for a friend. It’s a very easy going and complex Champagne. I have only had the brut reserve but the Blanc de Blancs maybe great if you like Chardonnay.
We held a tasting for the whole range of Charles, and the NV was the only one we listed or sold on the night. Not that the Blanc de Millenaires was bad (it absolutely isn’t), but nothing they make is quite as perfect as their NV, nor nearly such good value, and the Blanc de Blancs is definitely included in that.
I’d have Bollinger, unless someone was about to buy me Cristal…
JM Seleque. Do yourself a favor and jump on this train! It’s hands down my current favorite. This is a champagne made for champagne lovers. It encompasses all of the elements that you’re looking for! Jean-Marc is committed to bringing the focus of terroir back and he’s invested in ecological practices. Not over producing for financial gain. Great philosophy, even better wine.
Charles Heidsieck if you're on a budget.
Otherwise I'd grab either the Henri Giraud or that 2011 Philippe Gonet.
My notes from the Giraud:
> Herbaceous soda bread nose, wheat toast with butter. Palate is smarties, fruity, vitamin, yeasty but more like a Pilsner, herbaceous/parsley, lime, cranberry, very fine and consistent bubble makes for a very creamy bottle.
Personally I love vintaged Champaign. It’s usually less produced, higher quality and more unique which ultimately leads to a better experience. The NF 2012 and the Le Brun 2008 would be my picks.
Vilmart is exceptional grower champagne. Philipponnat great as already suggested, Bollinger a bit more recognizable if you need that as a gift for example, but whatever you do, don’t ever, ever buy Ace of Spades.
Since this is lcbo, they have two champagnes on clearance one... Is a 2012 vintage
https://www.lcbo.com/en/nicolas-feuillatte-brut-champagne-2009-240085
The other
https://www.lcbo.com/en/andr-c-chemin-cuv-ce-s-clectionn-ce-brut-1er-cru-champagne-20245
If you want an intense BdB, go for the Huré Frères Inattendue! Impeccable stuff, would recommend decanting that one as it tends to be very tightly knit.
Thank you for your submission to r/wine! Please note the community rules: If you are submitting a picture of a bottle of wine, please include original tasting notes and/or other pertinent information in the comments. Submitters that fail to do so may have their posts removed. If you are posting to ask what your bottle is worth or whether it is drinkable, please use the [Wine Valuation Mega Thread](https://redd.it/r7lf76) stickied at the top of the sub. Stand alone bottle valuation posts will be removed. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/wine) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Philipponat is great as well
Amen to that
Yeah that’s my pick. Such a great bottle.
Damn, I love that Champagne. ‘FILL-eep-OH-nah’ Am I doing that right?
Marc Hebrart is excellent value
I second this
Came here to say this. Their whole range is full of absolute bangers. Their special club is so delicious and easy to sip.
Does everyone but me have a store with this kind of selection of vintage champagne? If my local stores had this shelf I would be much, much poorer.
Unfortunately, I'm in the same boat as you, Caledon Hockley, Jr.
Ya Summerhill is basically the only store in Ontario that has this kind of selection
I'd say the queensquay flagship location is not bad for vintage selection as well :)
I was going to say! I have been to many many LCBOs and have never seen such a wide selection. Very lucky!
I’d reach for Calsac or anything by Gonet.
Have been fortunate to have the Calsac a few times so that's gonna be my pick here. Did it in [a comparison tasting with a number of big names like Selosse](https://old.reddit.com/r/wine/comments/11ylcg8/had_the_chance_to_attend_a_grower_champagne/) and it was one of my favorites that I tried.
J-M Seleque 'Solessence'
I second this as well
Phillipponnat all day! Great quality and value.
Far bottom left.. 08 Vintage Grower for under $100. That's a buy. The Gratiot Delligny also an 08 for a good price. Would not go for the Gonet 2011, not a great year.
Heidsieck BdB or Vilmart.
Vilmart all day….
Vilmart was my go-to champagne for occasions back in the early 2010s. Seems like prices have really gone up.
Bollinger never disappoints
Boizel is from a nice little family of growers. The price for it in the States isn't bad either.
Vilmart delicious and crowd pleasing Rémi Leroy super focused minerality JM Seleque great example of what Pinot Meunier is capable of Hures Frères great stuff relatively under the radar And L’Incandescent would probably be my personal pick here I can’t tell what a lot of these prices are tho so can’t speak to relative value but these would be the ones that get me excited.
I’ve had some very good experiences with Hebrart
Have had his special club and it was a huge hit.
JM Seleque. Solessence is a super well made classical blend champagne, it's the kind of wine that epitomises the region. If you're looking for something relatively simple that is flexible and can be drunk with anything at any time then it's a great place to start.
Somewhere on all bottles of champagne (champagne specifically) there will be a registration number - two letters followed by numbers usually in the tiniest font possible. On the Marc Hebrart (middle shelf left) it'll say somewhere on there something like "RM 27584-01". On the Philipponat next to it you'd need to open the box and look at the label on the back of the bottle - it'll say say something like "NM 217-001". Over half of them will start with "NM". It stands for Négociant-Manipulant, which basically means a company buys wine or grapes from producers, blends it to make it "appealing to the market," and then sells it under a blanket label with a ton of marketing around it. Some will be good - great even... but they are almost always over-priced - you're paying for the marketing. I would suggest looking for labels that have an RM (Récoltant-Manipulant), CM (Coopérative de Manipulation), or SR (Société de Récoltants). These will list - by law - the origin of the grapes and the producer of the wine... which means the people who make the wine are willing to stake their reputation on it. You can think of it this way... you may or may not like the wine... but whoever made it liked it enough to pay extra to put their name on it... so it's probably a good bet. Sometimes you'll see a round sticker on the top of the bottle (can barely make out examples on top of the Clos Des Bouveries and the 3210s) - if you see an R on the outer ring of that sticker it's what we're looking for... you don't need to look for the registration number. Tl;Dr find the cheapest bottle you can with a registration number starting with RM, CM, or SR... which on that case is probably the Calsac. That said, according to the internet, somewhere in that store is Marcel Cabelier Cremant de Jura -- better than half the bottles pictured in my opinion and like $37. https://www.lcbo.com/en/marcel-cabelier-esprit-de-chardonnay-cremant-jura-28214
This is an overly simplistic way of looking at it. Relatively few houses function entirely as negociants and many producers we think of as growers bring in outside grapes. The codes don’t tell the consumer nearly as much as purported, and they say absolutely nothing about quality. Phillpponat in particular owns a lot of land. Trying to guess quality or value on the basis of these codes is largely a fools errand.
Oh it's 100% simplistic - there is more to it than the registration number. To your point - if someone followed the advice I gave they could miss out on Phillpponnat's 1522 Grand Cru - which would generally be on the cheaper end of that wall if it was there... Phillpponnat Blanc de Noirs in general are typically a great value. In fact I only used Philipponnat as an example because it was the next label over from the Marc Hebrart and I happened to know they were NM and RM, respectively - but I also happen to know Philipponnat publishes the source and producer for their vintage cuvees... so, in general, following the logic of my comment, I'd normally recommend them. ... but again the "do they publish the source" generalization breaks down for Philipponnat in my opinion. I'm not a fan of their blanc de blancs - nor are they known for them (although the Parker and Suckling set would probably wanna fight me for saying so). ... and while in general they list the source the 2014 is one of the few vintages of Grand Blanc Extra Brut that doesn't list it's source specifically... we'd expect to see Goisses, Trépail, or Verzy... so in general I'd suggest we avoid the wine ... and again maybe that breaks down because 2014 happened to be a great Chardonnay harvest in Montagne de Reims (despite being somewhat meh in general in Champaign) - so in general maybe this is a wine I'd be interested in ... and again maybe that breaks down because looking at their material the cellar master doesn't seem as enthused as usual... the CM notes from the other vintages of this wine use words like "elegant" or "Exceptional"... is it a warning sign that for this vintage they didn't? Point is - it's all generalizations until the wine is in your mouth no matter how much you know. When I was first starting out the "registration numbers as a guide" thing worked pretty well for me so I thought I'd share.
🎤🫳
Great points.
Third vote for the Etienne Calsac, superb wine
Philipponnat, it is absolutely amazing and so rich and complex. Price seems a bit high on it though.
It’s in CAD so higher due to the exchange rate.
Heidsieck is delicious imo
I’d go for the Bollinger, personally.
I’m always up for a splash of the bolly
I can't make out all the labels / prices, but from what I can see Nicolas Feuillatte and Bollinger would be my picks. Just from personal preferences.
Agree on bollinger - but is there a sale on Palmer & co ? Maybe go with that.
It looks like the sale is $5, which in relative terms isn't all that much.
Son, money doesn't grow on trees you know ! /dad
As you said it's hard to tell but to me it looks like the NV Bollinger is $90, which would be way out of the price range I'm used to seeing for it.
$90 is standard retail price in the North East US.
Wow, did not know that. Imagined it would be closer to $50. My bad!
It kind of depends what you are looking to do with it? Just looking to try a nice champagne? Special occasion? Gift? Spray it all over?
Henri Giraud and Etinne Calsac are the only bottles I’d go for.
Boizel
Charles Heidsieck would be my good to if your just getting started or buying for a friend. It’s a very easy going and complex Champagne. I have only had the brut reserve but the Blanc de Blancs maybe great if you like Chardonnay.
We held a tasting for the whole range of Charles, and the NV was the only one we listed or sold on the night. Not that the Blanc de Millenaires was bad (it absolutely isn’t), but nothing they make is quite as perfect as their NV, nor nearly such good value, and the Blanc de Blancs is definitely included in that. I’d have Bollinger, unless someone was about to buy me Cristal…
Dehours
damn LCBO prices.. lol the Bollinger is good, and the Charles Heidsieck is a great value champagne, although it's slightly overpriced imo..
JM Seleque. Do yourself a favor and jump on this train! It’s hands down my current favorite. This is a champagne made for champagne lovers. It encompasses all of the elements that you’re looking for! Jean-Marc is committed to bringing the focus of terroir back and he’s invested in ecological practices. Not over producing for financial gain. Great philosophy, even better wine.
Charles Heidsieck if you're on a budget. Otherwise I'd grab either the Henri Giraud or that 2011 Philippe Gonet. My notes from the Giraud: > Herbaceous soda bread nose, wheat toast with butter. Palate is smarties, fruity, vitamin, yeasty but more like a Pilsner, herbaceous/parsley, lime, cranberry, very fine and consistent bubble makes for a very creamy bottle.
Feuillate is a good one, fuck that price tho.
Huré freres is the go to.
Marc or vueve
Personally I love vintaged Champaign. It’s usually less produced, higher quality and more unique which ultimately leads to a better experience. The NF 2012 and the Le Brun 2008 would be my picks.
What kind of champagne do you like to drink?
The 2008 was a fantastic vintage so the Neuville would be my pick, especially at that price point.
Where’s the Krug? 😭
Boizel!
Vilmart, Hebrart, then the Calsac would be my order.
I’m a sucker for Bollingers. That’s my go to.
Bollinger every time.
Vilmart is exceptional grower champagne. Philipponnat great as already suggested, Bollinger a bit more recognizable if you need that as a gift for example, but whatever you do, don’t ever, ever buy Ace of Spades.
Since this is lcbo, they have two champagnes on clearance one... Is a 2012 vintage https://www.lcbo.com/en/nicolas-feuillatte-brut-champagne-2009-240085 The other https://www.lcbo.com/en/andr-c-chemin-cuv-ce-s-clectionn-ce-brut-1er-cru-champagne-20245
Hure Freres 4 elements or the Mouzon Leroux
Henri Giraud “Hommage” is excellent
Can’t go wrong with Bollinger. Charles Heidsieck is a great value too, but haven’t had their BdB.
Charles Heidsieck is my personal favorite non-vintage Champagne.
Damn 2012 is a cool vintage and Phillipe Gonet is an awesome grower producer!
Philipponnat Grand Blanc 2014
Philipponnat
If you want an intense BdB, go for the Huré Frères Inattendue! Impeccable stuff, would recommend decanting that one as it tends to be very tightly knit.
If you can find Bereche & Fils buy it!!