Mailly Grand Cru Extra Brut 2012
- Crisp, fine
- Champagne
Where to start? This has everything you want to see on a Champagne label. ‘Grand Cru’ is there, so you know the fruit is sourced from Champagne’s best vineyards. ‘Extra Brut’ - or ‘extra dry’, tells you the dosage is light on. So there’s no added sweetness to mask any shortcomings. ‘2012’ - so you know it’s a vintage Champagne - and a great vintage at that. And it’s a great blend of 75% pinot noir and 25% chardonnay. There’s all that to swallow and you haven’t even uncaged the cork. Yes Renée Zellweger! ‘You had me at hello.’
Profile
There’s nothing to mask the wine here. It’s pristine and fine, with a laser-like focus delivering line and length. This is Champagne at its purist. Gorgeous lemon and mineral scents sit atop some yeasty, toasty aromatics. The palate does that remarkable thing of being delicate and pretty, while having power and presence all at once. This is a masterclass in Champagne. ‘Chapeau!’
Reviews
Wine Enthusiast
“This vintage wine is the driest of the Champagnes from this producer. While it is still young, fruitiness and a tautly mineral texture give it great sophistication. The lemon and apple flavors will mature further over time and the wine will be at its best from 2022.”
It’s cool, we get it, you want to know absolutely everything about this wine. Well here you go, go nuts.
Specs
- Region
- Champagne
- Vintage
- 2012
- Cellaring
- 2022
- Preservatives
- Sulphites
- Alcohol by Vol.
- 12.0%
- Closure
- Cork
- Bottle Vol
- 750mL
- Blend Info
- Pinot Noir, Chardonnay
- Serving Temp.
- 7.0°C
Producer
Champagne Mailly
Since 1929, the workers of the Mailly Grand Cru estate have produced rare and elegant champagnes from a unique soil classified as Grand Cru. The vineyard is located in Mailly Champagne, one of the 17 Grand Cru of the Champagne area (which counts 319 “crus” or vine-villages. Mailly Grand Cru is the property of 80 vine-owners and covers 160 acres (70 ha) situated on the northern slope of the “Grande Montagne de Reims” and is classified one hundred percent Grand Cru, the top of the range.
Region
Champagne
Champagne is not generic sparkling wine, it's a region. There I said it. Get it right people. The reason the French get their lingerie in a twizzle when we call Trilogy 'Champoyne' is the history, the money and the angst that have all gone into making Champagne what it is today: a bureaucratic, strictly controlled, marketing-driven behemoth, that still manages to pump out some of the world's finest and most consistent wines. Adding bubbles to wine was a masterstroke of genius, and makes wine from marginal regions not only palatable, but unique and eminently desirable. But it's the way the grapes are grown, the land they're grown in, and the way the bubbles are generated that makes traditional method sparkling (which all Champagne is) special. There will always be alternatives, but none have the history and marketing power of the luxury Champagne powerhouses. You're not buying wine; you're buying a brand name. And that's ok.
The rules are there ain’t no rules, but here are some foods we think will work pretty well with this wine...
Goes with
Potato roesti with smoked salmon
Ingredients
- 800g royal blue potatoes, peeled
- 1/3 cup (80ml) olive oil
- 1/2-1 tsp horseradish cream, or to taste
- 100g spreadable cream cheese
- 1 bunch rocket, leaves torn
- 200g sliced smoked salmon
- 1 tbs finely chopped chives
Directions
- Coarsely grate potatoes into a sieve placed over a bowl.
- Season potatoes to taste with salt and pepper. Using your hands, squeeze out any excess moisture from grated potatoes.
- Heat 1 tbs oil in a heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Working in batches and adding more oil when needed, add heaped tablespoonfuls of potato mixture to pan, flattening to form 8cm rounds. Cook roesti for 1 1/2 minutes each side or until crisp and golden.
- Drain roesti on paper towels. Place horseradish cream and cream cheese in a bowl and stir until smooth. Divide roesti among plates. Top with rocket, smoked salmon and a spoonful of cream cheese mixture. Scatter with chives then season to taste. Serve immediately.