2008 Gosset Celebris Rose
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Only the fourth-ever release of this cuvée, the 2008 Champagne Celebris Rosé pours an orange/salmon color and is outstanding on opening, with a perfume of fresh rose petals, honeycomb, and cherry blossoms. Long on the palate, it’s persistent with fresh acidity and feels like it will last for ages. Medium to full-bodied, it’s exquisitely detailed, with a soft mineral texture and a refined mousse. Though it is drinking beautifully already, this outstanding wine is going to improve if cellared in good condition. Drink it over the coming decades. The oldest wine house in Champagne, established by Pierre Gosset in 1584 in Ay, Gosset was purchased by Reynaud-Cointreau in 1993. Today the chef de cave is Odilon de Varine, formerly of Deutz and Henriot, and the philosophy is to adapt to each year and not to get stuck in the past. Each of the growers’ plots are fermented separately and malolactic fermentation is entirely blocked, working with the lees to create roundness in the wines instead. The house has gradually shifted from being predominantly a Pinot Noir house to that of Chardonnay. Total annual production is approximately 1 million bottles, although they have the capacity to produce 1.5 million. They hold a considerable stock of reserve wine going back 60 years, alleviating the pressures to put out more quantity. This year marks the first release ever for the Celebris Blanc de Blancs.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Jeb Dunnuck
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Offering beautiful freshness and purity, the 2008 Celebris Brut Rose is 72% Chardonnay and the rest Pinot Noir (8% of which is red wine) and pours a pure salmon hue. It is fresh with cherry blossom, grapefruit, and pastry crust, and it has a pillowy mousse and a bit more tension through the back end, with a refreshing lift of acidity. A very attractive wine, it will be wonderful to enjoy now or over the next 20 years. The oldest wine house in Champagne, established by Pierre Gosset in 1584 in Ay, Gosset was purchased by Reynaud-Cointreau in 1993. Today the chef de cave is Odilon de Varine, formerly of Deutz and Henriot, and the philosophy is to adapt to each year and not to get stuck in the past. Each of the growers’ plots are fermented separately and malolactic fermentation is entirely blocked, working with the lees to create roundness in the wines instead. The house has gradually shifted from being predominantly a Pinot Noir house to that of Chardonnay. Total annual production is approximately 1 million bottles though they have the capacity to produce 1.5 million. They hold a considerable stock of reserve wine going back 60 years, alleviating the pressures to put out more quantity. The 2008 bottlings of Celebris tasted here represent only the eighth release of that cuvée.
Offering up aromas of honeycomb, warm biscuits, red berries and spices, the just-released 2008 Extra Brut Celebris Rosé is full-bodied, ample and layered, with a concentrated, even expansive mid-palate; but if this Celebris Rosé leads with its voluminous core of fruit, it's its tangy spine of acidity and taut structure that dominate the bone-dry finish. That structure will demand a bit of patience, but this is an impressive effort from Gosset.
Offering up aromas of honeycomb, warm biscuits, red berries and spices, the just-released 2008 Extra Brut Celebris Rosé is full-bodied, ample and layered, with a concentrated, even expansive mid-palate; but if this Celebris Rosé leads with its voluminous core of fruit, it's its tangy spine of acidity and taut structure that dominate the bone-dry finish. That structure will demand a bit of patience, but this is an impressive effort from Gosset.