2012 Veuve Clicquot 'Yayoi Kusama Edition' La Grande Dame OWC
Gorgeous inside and out! Yayoi Kasuma adorns La Grande Dame with her iconic symbols, reflecting the iconic bubbles within and making this a beautiful gift if you can part with a single bottle! Fall in love all over again with this Pinot Noir based perfection. Precise, delicate, with strong minerality and fresh vibrancy. The aging potential is immense, if you can keep your hands off of it.
The world-renowned Champagne house Veuve Clicquot was founded in 1772 by the son of a well-to-do French banking family. Ironically though, it was not Philippe, nor his son François whom would make theirs a household name, but François' widow [Veuve] Barbe Nicole Clicquot Ponsardin. At the tender young age of 27 (in 1805) she became one of the first business women in modern times. She would prove to be a great asset to the world of winemaking; marketing and selling wines as far as Russia, inventing the first riddling table to make her wines crystal clear and setting the tone of innovation at the house of Clicquot that prevails today. Honoring their motto, "Only one quality, the finest" they've employed a short lineage of merely 10 Cellar Masters through the ages in their quest to maintain the utmost quality and a style that is uniquely Clicquot.
Wine Enthusiast
With a slight preponderance of Pinot Noir in the blend, this wine is rich and impressive. It is still young, with a crisp edge that makes the fruit shine. Apple and citrus flavors are integrated into a mineral vein. Drink from 2022.
Decanter
A generous golden colour betrays the dominance of Pinot Noir in the blend; this theme thereafter maintained by aromatics of fig, wild strawberries and Mirabelle plums; behind that, jasmine, red apples and a distant whiff of woodsmoke. Engaging already, in other words. One’s impressions are confirmed and amplified on the palate, with the aspiration voiced by both chef de caves Dominique and Didier, to allow the ‘cooler’ Pinot Noir sites full rein. This is eloquently evidenced by a subtle and deftly textured structure, the primary fruit notes of nectarine and citrus peel underscored by a richer, still somewhat reticent, core, darker and more savoury of intent and oh, so subtle at the moment. I have every confidence that this characteristic will come into its own over the longer term and mark the 2012 as one of the more successful outings for this outstanding cuvée.
Wine Spectator
Fine and graceful, this dances across the palate with its bright, well-defined freshness and detailed flavors of Mandarin orange, toast point, crème de cassis and minerally oyster shell. Subtle in its intensity, with all the pieces seamlessly knit into an elegant whole.
James Suckling
Aromas of lime zest, lemon and brioche follow through to a full body with a round, creamy texture, fine bubbles and a delicious finish. Direct and focused 2012. Lots of elegance and energy in this. Drink or hold.