Wine Advisor
Armand de Brignac, Ace of Spades Brut Gold NV
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Stephan Reinhardt
Tasted from magnum (the 750-milliliter bottle costs $285), the NV Brut (Gold) opens with lovely matured brioche, toast and ripe fruit flavors. Fresh, pure and elegant on the palate, with beautifully matured flavors and an elegant creaminess I don't find in the other cuvées, the "Gold" is a blend of 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier as well as the vintages of 2009, 2010 and 2012. The wine reveals good grip and mineral tension and drinks well as an aperitif or with seafood and fish. Tasted from L09B8, April 2018.
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
Light gold. Musky orchard and pit fruit aromas are brightened by hints of lemon zest and ginger. Ripe pear and honey flavors show a touch of heat and pick up a toasty quality with aeration. Finishes soft, warm and slightly loose, with a hint of bitter peach pit, echoing toastiness and decent length. This bottling actually impressed me a few years ago but that wasn't the case this go-round.
About the Producer
The Ace of Spades Champagne house was founded by the Cattier family. As early as 1763, in a small French village, the Cartier family owned their own vineyard and cultivated grapes. Today, the winery is still owned by this family, and the current owner is the tenth generation descendant of the family. There are three main types of grapes used in Ace of Spades Champagne: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. The quality of Chardonnay grapes gives the Ace of Spades a lively character; Pinot Noir adds strength and backbone to the champagne and makes the Ace of Spades more layered; Pinot Meunier is the Ace of Spades Champagne offers roundness, subtle aromas and rich fruit. These grapes are harvested from the first and grand crus vineyards in the Champagne region. In terms of brewing, from picking to bottling, the Ace of Spades champagne is completed by a team of only 8 people, and it is the only champagne in the world that is purely artificially produced. Hand-picked grapes, after being pressed using traditional methods, are used to make blends of exceptional quality and character. Each Ace of Spades Champagne is a cuvée created by blending three unique wines from exceptional harvest years. Afterwards, the Ace of Spades Champagne will be slowly aged in the deepest underground cellar in the entire Champagne region, and will be rehydrated with Cartier’s family secret recipe, so that the Ace of Spades Champagne will contain the wines of the selected years from its private vineyards. Essence. The Ace of Spades Champagne currently produces three different cuvées, each made to the same precise standards and made entirely by hand. The three cuvées are: Champagne Armand de Brignac Brut, Champagne Armand de Brignac Brut Rose, and Champagne Armand de Brignac Blanc de Blancs. Gold Champagne was the winner of the 2009 Champagne Blind Tasting Competition. This champagne smells delicately floral, with a rich, natural fruity mouthfeel, creamy smoothness with an enviable complexity and a silky, lemony finish. ; Pink Gold Champagne has a rich, pure red fruit aroma, but also exudes the aroma of peach and vanilla, and the entrance has the aroma of rose and banana; Platinum Champagne has the flavor of pear, apple and tropical fruit, and the fruity aroma is bright, The taste is pure, and it is a five-star champagne in the eyes of many wine critics. In June 2012, the Ace of Spades Champagne house launched the world's largest bottle of pink gold champagne, with a bottle capacity of 15 liters, which is equivalent to 20 regular bottles of 750 ml.
