The Best Champagnes of the Year - a Golden Surprise!

    HELSINKI, FINLAND, September 19, 2009 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The Best Champagnes of the Year - a Golden Surprise!

The world's only international champagne publication and a renowned authority- FINE Champagne Magazine - went through the rigorous process of naming and ranking the 100 best champagnes now available on the market.

Putting brand images and prices aside, FINE blind tasted over 1000 samples of the current champagne offering; prestige cuvees, vintages and non-vintages.

Good surprises, bewildering disappointments and rising stars

The quality level was high, as expected from such a reputable and high priced category as champagne. With most of the wines averaging around 88 to 91 points, there were, however, several wines that stuck out with their quality and personality.

Our top ten comprises of many classics but it also gave us fantastic surprises. Our highest rating went to Armand de Brignac: a fine, smooth and creamy champagne with underlying power and great mineral freshness. Our panel praised the wine for its classic style and perfect drinkability today that does not compromise its aging capacity. It has everything a truly great champagne can offer, and the packing - the distinctive, showy golden "ace of spades" bottle - serves as a brilliant example of Armand de Brignac's courageous, successful branding.

TOP 10

1. 96p NV Armand de Brignac
2. 95p 2000 Dom Perignon
3. 94p 1998 Mumm Cuvee R. Lalou
4. 94p 2002 Roederer Cristal
5. 94p 2000 Egerier de Pannier
6. 94p 1998 Pol Roger Cuvee Sir Winston Churchill
7. 93p 1998 Dom Perignon Rose
8. 93p 1999 Jacquart Blanc de Blancs
9. 93p 2002 Roederer Cristal Rose
10. 93p NV Chartogne-Taillet Fiacre

The full report is revealed in next FINE Champagne Magazine. The publication date for issue 4 is November 11th, 2009.

The way we tasted
Each member of the FINE editorial team gave points to the wines based on their today's condition and drinkability on a 100-point-scale. An average point was calculated and where our assessments were more than 4 points apart the wine was re-tasted and assessed.

More information: [email protected]

Website: http://www.fine-magazines.com

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