Duval-Leroy Fleur de Champagne Brut Premier Cru

Predominantly based on Chardonnay from the Côte des Blancs, the NV Fleur de Champagne Premier Cru Brut is a very delicate and elegant Champagne with a beautiful bouquet of ripe white fruits, pineapples, butterscotch, nougat, brioche and fresh toast. The assemblage with Pinot Noir from the Montage de Reims and the Marne Valley gives this lean, but impressively balanced Brut a full, round and well-structured taste; whereas the Chardonnay lends silkiness, finesse and a chalky freshness with lovely lemon and grapefruit flavors in the serious, but stimulatingly refreshing and grippy finish. Exclusively based on Grand and Premier Crus, this Fleur de Champagne is a highly recommended soprano aperitif that can easily match lighter, vegetable-based dishes, as well as fish, seafood and white meat. (My sample was from Lot L4183CG31 and according to Duval-Leroy was disgorged in July 2014.)