Delamotte Blanc de Blanc Brut Les Mesnil Sur Oger 2018 750ML

Like a prima ballerina, this elegant Champagne shows effortless precision and grace. The lacy mousse carries a layered range of creamed apple, yellow plum, pickled ginger and lemon curd flavors, aligned with more subtle hints of rich vanilla-infused pastry cream and brioche. Long and creamy, with a succulent quality to the well-cut acidity and a mineral-driven finish of smoke, chalk and oyster shell. Drink now through 2038.

The 2018 Champagne Blanc De Blancs is more subtle initially, but it develops a more detailed and tailored feel as it starts to open. This is the first time Delamotte has produced both a vintage wine as well as a multi-vintage blend from the same vintage. This 2018 pours a bright pale yellow hue and is expected to age longer than the entry release. It has a similar floral profile but with more intensity on the nose, with aromas of quince, fresh blossoms, white grapefruit, and chalky earth. Medium-bodied, it opens to a fluffy mousse, with a fresh, floating feel on the palate. It’s clean and inviting, with a long finish that slowly tapers away. It’s a bit more shy than the NV at this stage, but it also has a more elegant feel and is going to benefit from time to flesh out over the coming years. It has a salty feel and more density, but it’s more savory and has a mouthwatering finish. Drink 2026-2039. 6 gram per liter dosage.

Subtle aromas of apple pie, lime, white flowers and reductive flint. Medium body, with some phenolics that frame the wine nicely. Flavors of bitter lemon, lemon and a hint of brioche. A little short now. Better in a year or two.

Delamotte's 2018 Blanc de Blancs is only the fourth edition since 2008. Since Michel Fauconnet found it expressive earlier, it was disgorged after four and half years of aging on the lees (as opposed to the six years typical of previous editions) with a dosage of 5.5 grams per liter. Sourced from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Avize, Oger, Cramant, Chouilly and Oiry, it comes from a lower-acid vintage that’s charming and inviting, revealing aromas of tangerine, dried white flowers and pear. Full-bodied, generous and even powerful, it is underpinned by ripe yet vibrant acidity. It will offer a broad drinking window, but to minimize the vintage signature and maximize reflection of its origins, a few extra years under cork are advisable.

The 2018 Blancs de Blancs is a Champagne of total pleasure. Citrus peel, orchard fruit and floral notes are very nicely delineated. The 2018 is an airy, breezy Champange, very much in the style of a vintage in which so many wines are on the lighter side. The Blanc de Blancs is a blend of fruit from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Avize, Oger, Cramant, Chouilly and Oiry, six villages in the Côte des Blancs. As good as the 2018 is, it is even better from magnum.