Are YOU Krug-worthy?

Krug Grande Cuvee
$125.00/750 ml
Jen’s notes

Believe it or not, this was sort of an impulse purchase for the weekend. I went to the wine shop in the Ferry Building to pick up a nice Cabernet and then sauntered over to the Champagne section, just for a casual look, you understand.

And there it was: the best Champagne I had ever tasted, and which Shane hadn’t tried. I looked at it, said “awww, f**k it,” picked up the bottle and went to the counter, whereupon I was asked “but are you Krug-worthy?”

I am. And fortunately, Shane is, too (since we are getting married next year and all…). To determine if you are up to snuff, read the following tasting notes and think verrrrrry hard about it. It may be the most important question ever asked of you, next to “Do you take this person to be your lawfully wedded husband (or wife)?”

This champagne is quite effervescent and boasts a lovely straw color. It is Catherine Deneuve-blonde and just as elegant. A lovely, complex nose of truffles, Meyer lemon and, somehow, of Autumn leaves. Of all Champagnes, this one is the most like wine: intense and complex on the palate, and a densely creamy mouthfeel. It even has that Pinot reverb (Pinot Noir is one of three varietals used to make Champagne). The most prominent flavors include softened citrus notes, perhaps lemon meringue pie, cedar and truffles.

And, last things last – an endless, silky finish.

Shane’s notes

This was definitely the best Champagne I have tasted. Actually, it is about the only champagne I have tasted since I have mostly drunk sparkling wine from Napa. I agree with everything Jen says about the aromas and the palate, but I just did enjoy it quite as much as she did. There is a yeasty, toasty flavor in Champagne, probaby the result of the secondary fermentation, that I just don’t like. It is like a barrier that you have to punch your way through to find the underlying flavors. I prefer the luscious, voluptuous, sumptuous flavors of a well-aged vintage port: I prefer Jayne Mansfield to Catherine Deneuve.

As a compromise, I guess we will have to celebrate our nuptials with a bottle of Krug and a bottle of Taylor Fladgate 1977 Vintage Port. I’m sure we’ll manage…