Launch of the 2004 Dom Ruinart Blanc de blanc
Champagne just seems to be coming out of my ears at the moment (not a bad thing in my opinion). Earlier this week I attended an informal tasting with Frederic Panaiotis, cellar master of the house. It was the first tasting of the 2004 Dom Ruinart Blanc de blanc in the UK so we all felt very priviledged.
Frederic Panaiotis, Ruinart cellarmaster
Fred came bounding into the room, slightly wet as he had walked from his hotel to meet us at the offices of LVMH. While we had been waiting for Fred, we had sipped on Ruinart’s NV Blanc de blanc, which is always a light and delightful champagne. It is one of my favourites. Once Fred had a glass of the 2004 in his hand, he told us a bit about Ruinart’s champagne making philosophy. He compared the NV Blanc de blanc as a wine of teamwork – he and his team make the champagne.
The Dom Ruinart Blanc de blanc however, is a champagne that is made by nature. Fred remarked that it is the easiest but also the scariest as it is a true expression of the vintage. It is really the year that drives the champagne. The grapes used all come from Grand Cru vineyards which means grapes of a much better quality.
As we tasted the 2004, Fred described it as a wine still evolving, changing developing every day. Fred joked that he’s lucky enough to be able to try it most days. Lucky him! As for me, I thought the 2004 was quite a substantial champagne, full of toasty, bready notes, quite vibrant on the palate with a long finish. I think this vintage has quite a bit of life to go and will be interesting to see how it develops.