Taittinger Champagne Comtes de Champagne Grands Crus Blanc de Blancs Brut Flaschengärung 1998

Decanter: 1998 was a far from easy year, with frost followed by sunburn, and rain before and during the harvest. Those who waited out the rain did well; the 1998 Comtes is a lovely example. It is floral and fresh on the nose, with delicate aromas of citrus and marzipan. On the palate, the true nature of the wine reveals itself - regal and elegant with great finesse and a lingering finish. Still youthful, this will age for decades to come. 96/100 (2022)

Parker: The 1998 Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne is simply beautiful. Sweet notes of honey are intermingled with candied citrus peel, flowers, smoke and minerals as this gorgeous wine opens up in the glass. Comtes de Champagne is always an understated, elegant wine, but its pedigree is impossible to miss. Readers seeking instant gratification will find much to admire even today, but this is clearly a wine that has the potential to develop positively in bottle. If past vintages are an accurate indication, the wine should acquire the liqueur-like sweetness in bottle that is its hallmark over time. Old vintages of Comtes de Champagne are unlike any other wine. The Comtes de Champagne is 100% Chardonnay from the grand cru villages Avize, Cramant, Chouilly, Beergers-les-Vertus, Vertus and Mesnil-sur-Oger. A small amount of the wine is aged in new French oak barrels. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2028. 94/100 (2008)