Taittinger
About Champagne Taittinger
Taittinger is one of the few champagne houses still owned by the family on the label. Its origins date back to 1734 but the name is from a young cavalry officer, and eventual owner, who fell in love with the vineyards whilst serving there in WWI. The house style is high in chardonnay, light and elegant.
About Comtes de Champagne
Inspired by the legendary Thibaud IV, King of Navarre and Comte de Champagne, it is believed that this adventurous romantic brought both the Damascus Rose and the ancestor of the Chardonnay grape back to France from Crusade. The vinous world owes this man a great deal, without whom the stunning Blanc de Blancs style would not even exist!
Making its debut as the Maison’s prestige cuvée in 1952, each bottle is emblazoned with the personal seal of Thibaud IV.
Sourced exclusively from Grand Cru sites in the Côte des Blancs, 5 villages just South of Epernay constitute the areas from which the grapes for Comtes de Champagne are grown and harvested in only the very finest years. Each and every plot under Taittinger’s care is cultivated and worked by hand with the utmost care following environmentally friendly principles.
Vinified plot by plot to ensure each individual terroir imparts its uniquely sublime characteristics into the final wine, the highly skilled cellar team blend the final Champagne from the embarrassment of riches at their disposal. A mere 5% of the wine is aged for 5 months in new oak to impart a gentle and subtle toasty note to the final wine, before the liquid treasure is left to slumber for at least a decade in the chalk quarries beneath Saint-Nicaise.
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Champagne | 1 | 100 (JS) | $1,050.00 | |||||
James Suckling (100)The perfect blanc de blancs. Full-bodied with a lovely framework of acidity and dry fruit, such as apples, pears and peaches. Opulent. Dense and muscular. Yet, it’s balanced and harmonious. Line of acidity at the end. Totally in tune. Superb. Deep and complete. Has everything. One for the cellar. It is the greatest Comte ever. It has everything. A perfect upgrade from two years ago. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 3 | 19.5++ (MJ) | $276.00 | |||||
Matthew Jukes (19.5++)By contrast to the Bollinger, Comte is not a one-off, nor anything out of the ordinary. It is a label that all committed Champagne lovers adore. Predictable perhaps. But, of course, one thing does vary, and that is the vintage. The ‘worst’ Comte I ever tasted was rather lovely. The ‘best’, and there have been many (1959, 1966, 1996, 2002, 2006) are all sublime and you can now add 2011 to this list. Taittinger always seems to shun the spotlight, unlike Dom Perignon and other more attention-seeking brands and this modesty rather suits this House. I did something that I never do after first tasting my sample bottle. I was so shocked with the sheer class that I sealed the bottle with a simple Champagne stopper and then tasted it again and again over two days. The stress-testing sorts the wheat from the chaff. It is unlikely that anyone who bought a bottle would do this. Still, I like to see how a potentially great wine evolves, opens up, sometimes falls over, and sometimes blossoms over a few days because it gives me an indication of its potential and its true baseline of quality. The fruit is so tense, grand and layered it is remarkable. The flavour, the fizz, the length, the momentum and the overall halo of greatness did not change one iota over nearly 60 hours of being open with no preservation whatsoever. This is a genius, B de B and while it tastes scintillating now, I am confident that it will amaze Comte fans for decades to come. |
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Champagne | 2 | 19.5++ (MJ) | $735.00 | |||||
Matthew Jukes (19.5++)By contrast to the Bollinger, Comte is not a one-off, nor anything out of the ordinary. It is a label that all committed Champagne lovers adore. Predictable perhaps. But, of course, one thing does vary, and that is the vintage. The ‘worst’ Comte I ever tasted was rather lovely. The ‘best’, and there have been many (1959, 1966, 1996, 2002, 2006) are all sublime and you can now add 2011 to this list. Taittinger always seems to shun the spotlight, unlike Dom Perignon and other more attention-seeking brands and this modesty rather suits this House. I did something that I never do after first tasting my sample bottle. I was so shocked with the sheer class that I sealed the bottle with a simple Champagne stopper and then tasted it again and again over two days. The stress-testing sorts the wheat from the chaff. It is unlikely that anyone who bought a bottle would do this. Still, I like to see how a potentially great wine evolves, opens up, sometimes falls over, and sometimes blossoms over a few days because it gives me an indication of its potential and its true baseline of quality. The fruit is so tense, grand and layered it is remarkable. The flavour, the fizz, the length, the momentum and the overall halo of greatness did not change one iota over nearly 60 hours of being open with no preservation whatsoever. This is a genius, B de B and while it tastes scintillating now, I am confident that it will amaze Comte fans for decades to come. |
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Champagne | 1 | 19.5++ (MJ) | $1,900.00 | |||||
Matthew Jukes (19.5++)By contrast to the Bollinger, Comte is not a one-off, nor anything out of the ordinary. It is a label that all committed Champagne lovers adore. Predictable perhaps. But, of course, one thing does vary, and that is the vintage. The ‘worst’ Comte I ever tasted was rather lovely. The ‘best’, and there have been many (1959, 1966, 1996, 2002, 2006) are all sublime and you can now add 2011 to this list. Taittinger always seems to shun the spotlight, unlike Dom Perignon and other more attention-seeking brands and this modesty rather suits this House. I did something that I never do after first tasting my sample bottle. I was so shocked with the sheer class that I sealed the bottle with a simple Champagne stopper and then tasted it again and again over two days. The stress-testing sorts the wheat from the chaff. It is unlikely that anyone who bought a bottle would do this. Still, I like to see how a potentially great wine evolves, opens up, sometimes falls over, and sometimes blossoms over a few days because it gives me an indication of its potential and its true baseline of quality. The fruit is so tense, grand and layered it is remarkable. The flavour, the fizz, the length, the momentum and the overall halo of greatness did not change one iota over nearly 60 hours of being open with no preservation whatsoever. This is a genius, B de B and while it tastes scintillating now, I am confident that it will amaze Comte fans for decades to come. |
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Champagne | 1 | 19.5++ (MJ) | $762.00 | |||||
Matthew Jukes (19.5++)By contrast to the Bollinger, Comte is not a one-off, nor anything out of the ordinary. It is a label that all committed Champagne lovers adore. Predictable perhaps. But, of course, one thing does vary, and that is the vintage. The ‘worst’ Comte I ever tasted was rather lovely. The ‘best’, and there have been many (1959, 1966, 1996, 2002, 2006) are all sublime and you can now add 2011 to this list. Taittinger always seems to shun the spotlight, unlike Dom Perignon and other more attention-seeking brands and this modesty rather suits this House. I did something that I never do after first tasting my sample bottle. I was so shocked with the sheer class that I sealed the bottle with a simple Champagne stopper and then tasted it again and again over two days. The stress-testing sorts the wheat from the chaff. It is unlikely that anyone who bought a bottle would do this. Still, I like to see how a potentially great wine evolves, opens up, sometimes falls over, and sometimes blossoms over a few days because it gives me an indication of its potential and its true baseline of quality. The fruit is so tense, grand and layered it is remarkable. The flavour, the fizz, the length, the momentum and the overall halo of greatness did not change one iota over nearly 60 hours of being open with no preservation whatsoever. This is a genius, B de B and while it tastes scintillating now, I am confident that it will amaze Comte fans for decades to come. |
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Champagne | 1 | 19.5++ (MJ) | $636.00 | |||||
Matthew Jukes (19.5++)By contrast to the Bollinger, Comte is not a one-off, nor anything out of the ordinary. It is a label that all committed Champagne lovers adore. Predictable perhaps. But, of course, one thing does vary, and that is the vintage. The ‘worst’ Comte I ever tasted was rather lovely. The ‘best’, and there have been many (1959, 1966, 1996, 2002, 2006) are all sublime and you can now add 2011 to this list. Taittinger always seems to shun the spotlight, unlike Dom Perignon and other more attention-seeking brands and this modesty rather suits this House. I did something that I never do after first tasting my sample bottle. I was so shocked with the sheer class that I sealed the bottle with a simple Champagne stopper and then tasted it again and again over two days. The stress-testing sorts the wheat from the chaff. It is unlikely that anyone who bought a bottle would do this. Still, I like to see how a potentially great wine evolves, opens up, sometimes falls over, and sometimes blossoms over a few days because it gives me an indication of its potential and its true baseline of quality. The fruit is so tense, grand and layered it is remarkable. The flavour, the fizz, the length, the momentum and the overall halo of greatness did not change one iota over nearly 60 hours of being open with no preservation whatsoever. This is a genius, B de B and while it tastes scintillating now, I am confident that it will amaze Comte fans for decades to come. |
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Champagne | 1 | 99 (JS) | $1,460.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)This is a fantastic and refined Blanc de Blancs. So layered and complex, with lemon curd, chalk, hazelnuts, pastries, baked apples and almond croissants. Structured and tightly wound, with almost imperceptible bubbles. Delicious salty notes at the end. Beautiful. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 1 | 99 (JS) | $1,970.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)This is a fantastic and refined Blanc de Blancs. So layered and complex, with lemon curd, chalk, hazelnuts, pastries, baked apples and almond croissants. Structured and tightly wound, with almost imperceptible bubbles. Delicious salty notes at the end. Beautiful. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 1 | 99 (JS) | $1,270.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)This is a fantastic and refined Blanc de Blancs. So layered and complex, with lemon curd, chalk, hazelnuts, pastries, baked apples and almond croissants. Structured and tightly wound, with almost imperceptible bubbles. Delicious salty notes at the end. Beautiful. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 1 | 99 (JS) | $851.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)This is a fantastic and refined Blanc de Blancs. So layered and complex, with lemon curd, chalk, hazelnuts, pastries, baked apples and almond croissants. Structured and tightly wound, with almost imperceptible bubbles. Delicious salty notes at the end. Beautiful. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 1 | 99 (JS) | $2,760.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)Fantastic complexity here with aromas of toast, biscuit, lemon, almond, chalk and some fennel. It's long, sleek and mineral, with tight, very fine bubbles and so much tension and precision. Very long and chalky finish. Disgorged end of 2023. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 3 | 99 (JS) | $775.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)Fantastic complexity here with aromas of toast, biscuit, lemon, almond, chalk and some fennel. It's long, sleek and mineral, with tight, very fine bubbles and so much tension and precision. Very long and chalky finish. Disgorged end of 2023. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 1 | 95 (WA) | $1,505.00 | |||||
Wine Advocate (95)Taittinger's 2004 Brut Comtes de Champagne Rosé is showing brilliantly, bursting from the glass with an expressive bouquet that mingles aromas of rhubarb compote, red plums and spices with notions of dried white flowers, pastry cream and toasted brioche. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, broad and vinous, with impressive depth and chalky structure, succulent acids and a long, precise finish. While the 2004 Comtes Rosé is drinking beautifully today, it is evolving comparatively slowly by the standards of this classically balanced but somewhat rapidly evolving vintage, and it should offer immense pleasure for the better part of two decades. |
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Champagne | 1 | 93 (VN) | $1,380.00 | |||||
Vinous (93)The 2005 Comtes de Champagne Rosé is a wine of contrasts. At first rich and vinous on the palate, the 2005 turns more delicate with time in the glass as its silkier and floral qualities become more evident. Sweet red berry and spice notes linger on the delicate finish. |
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Champagne | 1 | 96 (VN (AG)) | $2,190.00 | |||||
Vinous - Antonio Galloni (96)The 2006 Comtes de Champagne Rosé has come together beautifully since I last tasted it. Time has released its inner concentration and layers. Exotic spice, blood orange, pomegranate, cedar and sweet spice tobacco lend notable flair, with the the Pinot very much front and center. |
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Champagne | 3 | 96 (VN (AG)) | $969.00 | |||||
Vinous - Antonio Galloni (96)The 2006 Comtes de Champagne Rosé has come together beautifully since I last tasted it. Time has released its inner concentration and layers. Exotic spice, blood orange, pomegranate, cedar and sweet spice tobacco lend notable flair, with the the Pinot very much front and center. |
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Champagne | 1 | 96 (VN (AG)) | $925.00 | |||||
Vinous - Antonio Galloni (96)The 2006 Comtes de Champagne Rosé has come together beautifully since I last tasted it. Time has released its inner concentration and layers. Exotic spice, blood orange, pomegranate, cedar and sweet spice tobacco lend notable flair, with the the Pinot very much front and center. |
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Champagne | 1 | 99 (JS) | $2,660.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)The light rust and amber color is enticing. Aromas of dried rose petals, cinnamon and nutmeg. Hints of dried meat, smoke and sage. Full body and compact, creamy texture. So fine and delicious. Great, subtle and complex flavors. More like a lightly aged, premier cru Volnay, but with the magic of Champagne. Drink now. |
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Champagne | 4 | 99 (JS) | $935.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)The light rust and amber color is enticing. Aromas of dried rose petals, cinnamon and nutmeg. Hints of dried meat, smoke and sage. Full body and compact, creamy texture. So fine and delicious. Great, subtle and complex flavors. More like a lightly aged, premier cru Volnay, but with the magic of Champagne. Drink now. |
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Champagne | 1 | 99 (JS) | $828.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)The light rust and amber color is enticing. Aromas of dried rose petals, cinnamon and nutmeg. Hints of dried meat, smoke and sage. Full body and compact, creamy texture. So fine and delicious. Great, subtle and complex flavors. More like a lightly aged, premier cru Volnay, but with the magic of Champagne. Drink now. |
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Champagne | 1 | 97 (WI) | $4,940.00 | |||||
The Wine Independent (97)The 2008 Comtes de Champagne Rose Brut is composed of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay, with 12% Pinot Noir blended in as a still red wine. It comes entirely from estate-grown, Grand Cru vineyards and is aged 12 years prior to release with 9 g/L dosage. Sporting a very pale salmon pink color, it tumbles out of the glass with captivatingly floral notes of roses and jasmine, giving way to a core of wild strawberries, raspberry leaves, red apples, and pears, with faint wafts of crushed rocks and lavender. The palate is delicately played with racy acidity and very fine bubbles guiding the laser-precise red berry and apple-inspired flavors to a long, mineral-laced finish. For those that love the restraint and finesse with red berry sparkles, this is for you! |
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Champagne | 8 | 97 (WI) | $655.00 | |||||
The Wine Independent (97)The 2008 Comtes de Champagne Rose Brut is composed of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay, with 12% Pinot Noir blended in as a still red wine. It comes entirely from estate-grown, Grand Cru vineyards and is aged 12 years prior to release with 9 g/L dosage. Sporting a very pale salmon pink color, it tumbles out of the glass with captivatingly floral notes of roses and jasmine, giving way to a core of wild strawberries, raspberry leaves, red apples, and pears, with faint wafts of crushed rocks and lavender. The palate is delicately played with racy acidity and very fine bubbles guiding the laser-precise red berry and apple-inspired flavors to a long, mineral-laced finish. For those that love the restraint and finesse with red berry sparkles, this is for you! |
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Champagne | 1 | 97 (WI) | $2,140.00 | |||||
The Wine Independent (97)The 2008 Comtes de Champagne Rose Brut is composed of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay, with 12% Pinot Noir blended in as a still red wine. It comes entirely from estate-grown, Grand Cru vineyards and is aged 12 years prior to release with 9 g/L dosage. Sporting a very pale salmon pink color, it tumbles out of the glass with captivatingly floral notes of roses and jasmine, giving way to a core of wild strawberries, raspberry leaves, red apples, and pears, with faint wafts of crushed rocks and lavender. The palate is delicately played with racy acidity and very fine bubbles guiding the laser-precise red berry and apple-inspired flavors to a long, mineral-laced finish. For those that love the restraint and finesse with red berry sparkles, this is for you! |
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Champagne | 7 | 99 (JS) | $512.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)A beautiful color of bronze and orange with some pink at the end. Aromas of dried strawberry and orange peel with orange blossom and other flowers. Medium to full body with a round, creamy texture, very fine bubbles and a lovely, long finish. Plenty of subtle pie-crust and biscuit flavors at the end. Yet it remains so complex. Very vinous. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 3 | 99 (JS) | $956.00 | |||||
James Suckling (99)A beautiful color of bronze and orange with some pink at the end. Aromas of dried strawberry and orange peel with orange blossom and other flowers. Medium to full body with a round, creamy texture, very fine bubbles and a lovely, long finish. Plenty of subtle pie-crust and biscuit flavors at the end. Yet it remains so complex. Very vinous. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 1 | 96 (JS) | $286.00 | |||||
James Suckling (96)Beautiful orange-cherry color, exuding aromas of dried flowers, cherry stones, wild strawberries, cloves and cinnamon pastries. It’s medium-bodied with excellent weight and balance. Soft bubbles. Layers of soft, supple berry fruit. Pastries and walnuts come through on a seamless finish. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 8 | 96 (JS) | $553.00 | |||||
James Suckling (96)Beautiful orange-cherry color, exuding aromas of dried flowers, cherry stones, wild strawberries, cloves and cinnamon pastries. It’s medium-bodied with excellent weight and balance. Soft bubbles. Layers of soft, supple berry fruit. Pastries and walnuts come through on a seamless finish. Drink or hold. |
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Champagne | 1 | 96 (JS) | $1,102.00 | |||||
James Suckling (96)Beautiful orange-cherry color, exuding aromas of dried flowers, cherry stones, wild strawberries, cloves and cinnamon pastries. It’s medium-bodied with excellent weight and balance. Soft bubbles. Layers of soft, supple berry fruit. Pastries and walnuts come through on a seamless finish. Drink or hold. |
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