BEST CHAMPAGNE The shortlist: BEST NON-DELUXE CHAMPAGNE Louis Roederer NV Collection 242 in Magnum BEST DELUXE CHAMPAGNE Dom Ruinart 2010 Blanc de Blancs
The winner: Dom Ruinart 2010 Blanc de Blancs See Regional Deluxe Champagne Trophy.
ITALY BEST ALTO ADIGE
REGIONAL TROPHIES
FRANCE BEST NON-DELUXE CHAMPAGNE The shortlist: BEST IN CLASS CHAMPAGNE BRUT NON-VINTAGE Louis Roederer Non- Vintage Collection 242 in Magnum BEST IN CLASS CHAMPAGNE BRUT VINTAGE Louis Roederer 2014 Brut Vintage in Magnum BEST IN CLASS CHAMPAGNE BLANC DE BLANCS Non-Vintage Palmer & Co Non-Vintage Blanc de Blancs in Magnum BEST IN CLASS CHAMPAGNE BLANC DE NOIRS Non-Vintage Palmer & Co Non-Vintage Blanc de Noirs in Magnum BEST IN CLASS CHAMPAGNE ROSÉ Non-Vintage Henriot Non-Vintage Rosé in Magnum BEST IN CLASS SINGLE-VINEYARD Champagne Pommery 2004 Clos Pompadour in Magnum
The winner:
Louis Roederer NV Collection 242 in Magnum Champagne, France (150cl, 12.5% ABV) 42% Chardonnay, 36% Pinot Noir, 22% Meunier (White, 8g/l RS)
A wow wine. Lovely vanilla-laden toasty aromas lead to zesty succulent fruit on a smooth yet deliciously vigorous palate, with notes of yeast- complexed biscuit. A super-fine mousse and beautiful balance. Complete!
BEST DELUXE CHAMPAGNE The shortlist: BEST IN CLASS DELUXE CHAMPAGNE Vintage Perrier-Jouët 2012 Belle Epoque Brut in Magnum BEST IN CLASS DELUXE CHAMPAGNE BLANC DE BLANCS Dom Ruinart 2010 Blanc de Blancs BEST IN CLASS DELUXE CHAMPAGNE ROSÉ Perrier-Jouët 2010 Belle Epoque Rosé in Magnum
The winner:
Dom Ruinart 2010 Blanc de Blancs Champagne, France 100% Chardonnay (White, 4g/l RS)
Aged on first cork, not crown-cap, this amazing Champagne has a fantastic, toasty nose, with overtones of green coffee bean. So fine and light, yet full in stature. Delightfully pristine and elegant fruit of extreme complexity. Lots of detail. Flinty, flirtatious, and fabulously reductive. Very, very long. This is a Champagne that makes a statement.
Kettmeir 2018 Athesis Brut in Magnum Alto Adige DOC, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy (150cl, 12.5% ABV) 49% Chardonnay, 42% Pinot Blanc, 9% Pinot Noir (White, 5.5g/l RS)
Soft, creamy, clean-as-a-whistle aromas leading to fresh, yeast-infused fruit, gently cushioned by a lovely, soft mousse. Opulent, pristine, and elegant. Hugely impressive.
BEST ASTI
Cuvage NV Acquesi Asti Asti DOCG, Piedmont, Italy (75cl, 7% ABV) 100% Muscat (White, 89g/l RS)
Super-fresh Moscato aromas on nose and palate, with nicely balanced fruit and sweetness on the palate. Deliciously creamy mousse, with a fresh and fluffy finish. The perfect accompaniment to the sweet end of an afternoon tea.
BEST FRANCIACORTA The shortlist: BEST IN CLASS FRANCIACORTA BRUT NATURE Ca’ del Bosco 2013 Annamaria Clementi in Magnum BEST IN CLASS FRANCIACORTA BRUT NV Lantieri de Paratico NV Brut BEST IN CLASS FRANCIACORTA BRUT VINTAGE Vigneti Cenci 2012 Sessanta in Magnum BEST IN CLASS FRANCIACORTA BLANC DE BLANCS NV Fratelli Berlucchi NV Brut 25 in Magnum BEST IN CLASS FRANCIACORTA BLANC DE NOIRS Vintage Derbusco Cives 2009 Decem Annis BEST IN CLASS FRANCIACORTA ROSÉ VINTAGE Mosnel 2016 Parosé
The winner:
Fratelli Berlucchi NV Brut 25 in Magnum Franciacorta DOCG, Lombardy, Italy (150cl, 12.5% ABV) 100% Chardonnay (White, 8g/l RS)
Lovely lemon-toasty aromas followed by succulently rich and juicy fruit, fine-textured mousse, and a yeast-complexed biscuity finish.
BEST LAMBRUSCO The shortlist: BEST IN CLASS LAMBRUSCO BRUT-STYLE SECCO NV Zanasi Societa Agricola SS NV Brunozanasi
What more could anyone reasonably expect from a 20-year-old (or thereabouts) sparkling wine made from grapes grown on a baking hot rock in the Mediterranean in a pan-European drought year? We put out a call to other sparkling-wine producers in Sicily and tasted some of those, but they were not in the same league. We even asked our logistics guru Donald MacKenzie and his wife Vicky MacKenzie MW to check out Milazzo while they were holidaying on the island. Interestingly, they found the cuvées we consistently pick out as the best come from the oldest vines close to the winery, where they are pergola-trained. This system gets bad press, but under Sicily’s merciless sun, it provides shade and elevates the bunches away
THE WORLD OF FINE WINE | ISSUE 79 | 2023 | 29
This amazing Champagne has a fantastic, toasty nose. Delightfully pristine and elegant fruit of extreme complexity. Lots of detail. Flinty, flirtatious, and fabulously reductive
BEST IN CLASS LAMBRUSCO BRUT-STYLE SECCO VINTAGE Cleto Chiarli 2021 Vecchia Modena Premium in Magnum
The winner:
Cleto Chiarli 2021 Vecchia Modena Premium in Magnum Lambrusco di Sorbara DOC, Emilia Romagna, Italy (150cl, 11.5% ABV) 100% Sorbara (Red, 8g/l RS)
Bright cherry color, with sweet candied-fruit aromas on the nose, and fresh, zippy ripe fruit on the palate. Very red-fruit driven. Beautiful fruit.
BEST PROSECCO The shortlist: BEST IN CLASS PROSECCO NV EXTRA DRY Mionetto NV Extra Dry BEST IN CLASS PROSECCO VINTAGE DRY Valdo Spumanti NV Viviana
The winner:
Mionetto NV Extra Dry Valdobbiadene DOCG Prosecco Superiore, Veneto, Italy (75cl, 11% ABV) 100% Glera (White, 15.2g/l RS)
Lovely, soft aromatic aromas follow onto the extremely fresh palate, where there is soft, juicy, ripe-pear fruit, with notes of banana and tutti- frutti and a very long finish. Classic Prosecco in a year when even half-decent Prosecco was rare.
BEST SICILIAN SPARKLING WINE
G Milazzo 2003 Federico II in Magnum Campobello di Licata, Sicily, Italy (150cl, 12.5% ABV) 100% Chardonnay (White, 6g/l RS)
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