I am going to write about bubbly, a kind of wine I enjoy immensely, assuming it is of good quality on nose and palate, in other words with the sparkle obtained naturally and not artificially through the addition of CO2. I trust producers of artificial bubbly will understand, because pleasure is pleasure.

I recently traveled to Champagne with my friend Leo Damiani, Director of Marchesi Antinori, and several wine loving friends from Livorno; we were hosted in Reims by the Maison Perrier - Jouet, whose Champagnes have been distributed in Italy by Antinori for more than a year. During my visit to the Maison I tasted their Champagnes with winemaker Hervè Deschamps and the directors of the various sectors of the company. A beautiful experience, and I gained a clear understanding of the Champagnes they make, of their richness on the nose, and their enjoyability on the palate.

For Marchesi Antinori the passage from Krug, an undisputed world leader, to another winery bust have been difficult, but they selected the new winery shrewdly because Perrier Jouet's style differs considerably from Krug's, and comparisons between the two wineries are therefore impossible. Fermentation, aromas, and flavors are completely different.

What struck me about these Champagnes is their extraordinary richness on the nose, the hints of violets present on the palate, in the Grand Brut, and the toasted salted almonds with large salt crystals in the Belle Epoque wines -- including the Blanc de Blancs -- an almond that I also remember noting in the 1998 and 1999 Belle Epoque.

I recommend the 1999, because of its enjoyability, structure, persistence, and finish, which is citrus-laced, with yellow grapefruit.

The bottle used for Belle Epoque is more than a century old: It was designed in 1902 by Emile Gallé, especially for the winery, and is a fine example of Art Nouveau.

When drinking of Belle Epoque Champagne, it is impossible to ignore this beautiful, distinctive bottle.

Let's continue with the Champagnes I tasted.

Grand Brut Non Vintage

(20% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir, 40%

Pinot Meunier)

Straw yellow with fairly fine, fairly steady perlage.

The nose has many distinct aromas; it opens with rich gunflint, followed by white blossoms, very ripe Golden Delicious apples, cotton starch, leather, candied almonds (the sort found in bonbons and at weddings), hops, dried chestnuts, honey, star anise, wood toast, iodine, fresh celery, bread crust, slight peanuts, laundry soap, and finally citrus peel.

On the palate the perlage is not aggressive, and there is pleasant savory minerality, while the wine is slightly leaner than average.

It is well balanced, with acidity prevailing over alcohol. The finish is fairly long, with surprising violets followed by slightly green apricot. This champagne has an uncommonly rich nose, which is clearly superior to the palate.

                               89/100

Cuvée Belle Epoque 2004

(50% Chardonnay, 46% Pinot Noir, 4%

Pinot Meunier)

Beautiful straw yellow with very fine, fairly steady perlage.

The nose is elegant and nicely defined, with hints of bitter orange marmalade, honey, white pepper, graphite, pineapple, salted toasted almonds, white melon, sea water (which is associated with melons), peanut butter, iodine, raspberries, greenish broken cyclamen stems, apples, licorice root, fresh celery, anise, peach blossoms, lemon, and laundry soap; this long, delightful panoply of aromas finishes with hints of confectionary.

The perlage is not invasive on the palate, but rather fairly restrained. The wine displays pleasant savory minerality and solid balance thanks to deft acidity that guides the wine.

There are pleasant sensations of toasted almonds (with coarse grained salt), lemon and yellow and pink grapefruit that provide the slight bitterness of grapefruit, which tempers the honey sweetness. The finish is fairly long, flowing into green apple.

Extremely rich, varied nose. This 2004 is clearly superior to the 2002 in terms of both structure and persistence.

                               92/100

Cuvée Belle Epoque 2002

Blanc de Blancs: (100% Chardonnay)

Straw yellow with slight golden reflections and fine, steady perlage.

The nose is prismatic, with intense apple and gunflint followed by ashes, laundry soap, citrus, white pepper, dried tomatoes, iodine, sea salt, toasted almonds seasoned with coarse salt grains, and finely sea water, which has the same smell as white melon.

On the palate its good, delicate perlage is immediately apparent, with the salted toasted almonds also present on the nose supported by minerality. The wine has nice acidity that easily predominates over alcohol. The finish is fairly long, flowing into salted toasted almonds and gunflint.

                               92/100

Blason Rosé Non Vintage

(25% Chardonnay, 50% Pinot Noir, 25%

Pinot Meunier)

Pale cherry pink with pale copper reflections; the perlage is fine and fairly steady.

The nose opens with hops, intense iodine, boiled chestnuts, passing on to raspberries and cherries.

On the palate it makes a broad, long entrance, displaying powerful, pleasant structure accompanied by a fairly lively perlage. The wine is nicely balanced, with good acidity that prevails over alcohol, thanks also to the lift provided by good structure. The tannins are moderately evident, delicate, and pleasant.

The finish is long, flowing into both ripe and slightly underripe raspberry..

The problem with certain rosés, but certainly not this one, is that they have considerable acidity not balanced by good structure, and this gives me heartburn.

This is a good, well-made pleasant rosé.

                               89/100

Cuvée Belle Epoque Rosé 2002

(45% Chardonnay, 50% Pinot Noir, 5%

Pinot Meunier)

Pale cherry pink with golden reflections, and fine, fairly abundant, fairly steady perlage. The nose is pleasant, with intense salted toasted almond (with large salt grains), green apple, green banana, red rose, licorice root, cotton starch, fresh celery, and finally aromas that bring to mind hard raspberry candies.

On the palate the bubbles are fairly lively but pleasant, while the tannins are quite delicate and difficult to note.

The wine is well balanced with measured, pleasant acidity that easily predominates over alcohol. The finish is long, flowing into pink and yellow grapefruit, citris, and green apple.

The tannins of the Blason are more evident than those of this wine, whose perlage is instead more delicate than the Blason's.

                               91/100