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750ml
Bottle:
$79.92
12 bottles:
$78.32
The NV Brut Le Caractère M is 95% Chardonnay and 5% Pinot Noir based on 2013, with a perpetual reserve dating back...
750ml
Bottle:
$42.90
$46.00
The NV Brut Le Brut is another absolutely compelling wine in this range. Le Brut is 90% Chardonnay and 10% Pinot...
750ml
Bottle:
$49.93
$52.00
12 bottles:
$49.40
The NV Brut Rosé is positively stellar. The blend of 80% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Noir (including 5% still Pinot)...
750ml
Bottle:
$49.93
$54.00
Light, green-tinged yellow. Lively aromas of mineral-accented citrus and orchard fruits are complicated by suave...
750ml
Bottle:
$43.93
12 bottles:
$41.80
The NV Cuvée Le Demi-Sec is a very pretty, attractive Champagne. Even with 32 grams of residual sugar, the Demi-Sec...
![A. Margaine Champagne W131 Les Grands Arbres Extra Brut [Sans Soufre] 2020 750ml](https://www.saratogawine.com/files/images/cached_thumbs/0a/0ad1ff4dc540cce781148fd5a95bd194.jpg)
750ml
Bottle:
$76.00
$80.00
750ml
Bottle:
$32.94
12 bottles:
$32.28
This elegant bottle comprises ripe lemony citrus notes with white flower, mineral and bread dough complexities,...
750ml
Bottle:
$45.94
Rich and mouthwatering, this feels like raw silk on the palate, offering exotic hints of toasted coconut and lime...
750ml
Bottle:
$51.91
$57.68
6 bottles:
$48.00
The NV Brut Rose Classic bursts from the glass with gorgeous energy. Sweet red berries, freshly cut flowers and...
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle:
$77.04
The Un jour de 1911... is another 100% Bouzy Pinot Noir with an antique label design. The bright golden colored...
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle:
$91.99
Aromatic, with hints of tea rose, graphite and bergamot, this creamy Champagne is svelte and well-knit, with bright...
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle:
$107.00
While this Champagne from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger is still young, showing a crisp, bone-dry character alongside tight...
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle:
$54.90
From the grand cru village of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, this tight, mineral-driven Champagne is bone dry. The ripe fruit...
750ml - Case of 3
Bottle:
$229.52
An expressive Champagne, with a lively, zesty bead and hints of dried herbs and flowers accenting juicy blood orange...
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle:
$49.94
Pretty floral and spice notes waft through flavors of green melon and blanched almond in this well-cut Champagne....
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle:
$59.94
Woodsmoke and dried herb notes are a savory underpinning in this distinctive rosé Champagne, layered with a juicy...
750ml
Bottle:
$41.32
$47.22
This unique, zero-dosage Champagne boasts the perfect balance of dryness and sweetness resulting in a clean, crisp...
750ml
Bottle:
$121.68
$128.08
6 bottles:
$104.00
This wine is light with a crisp taste, which is fresh and fruity, with the color of delicate rose petals.
Champagne Blend Colombard Mavrodaphne France Champagne 750ml
The sparkling wines of Champagne have been revered by wine drinkers for hundreds of years, and even today they maintain their reputation for excellence of flavor and character, and are consistently associated with quality, decadence, and a cause for celebration. Their unique characteristics are partly due to the careful blending of a small number of selected grape varietals, most commonly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. These grapes, blended in fairly equal quantities, give the wines of Champagne their wonderful flavors and aromas, with the Pinot Noir offering length and backbone, and the Chardonnay varietal giving its acidity and dry, biscuity nature. It isn't unusual to sometimes see Champagne labeled as 'blanc de blanc', meaning it is made using only Chardonnay varietal grapes, or 'blanc de noir', which is made solely with Pinot Noir.
In the Archaea region, high in the Northern Peloponnese mountains, the predominant grape varietal grown is the prized Mavrodaphne. Meaning 'Black Laurel', the Mavrodaphne grapes have extremely dark skins, and ripen slowly under the Greek sunshine, helped by the mineral rich soils the vines thrive in. This grape varietal is mostly used to produce the opaque, inky fortified wine of the same name, which is popular all over Greece and elsewhere in the world. This fortified wine allows the grapes to really show off their complex and fascinating flavors, which range from a rich marzipan to flavors of bitter chocolate, sweet coffee, dried figs and prunes, as well as plenty of jammy fruit notes.
Mavrodaphne is produced in a traditional method which involves leaving the grape juice exposed to the sun in large vats, before having its fermentation halted by the addition of various distillates taken from previous successful vintages. This mixture contains plenty of residual sugar, which gives the end result its characteristic sticky sweetness, and also helps with the next fermentation process, which typically takes place in large underground cellars. The final product is a heady drink, absolutely bursting with unusual, rich and sweet flavors and carried in a dark and slightly viscous Port-like liquid.
Mavrodaphne grapes are also used for the production of still red wines, but are generally blended with varietals such as Agiorgitiko or imported grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon. Mavrodaphne grapes are excellent for mellowing more acidic varieties, and producing deliciously rounded wines, which have taken the international market by storm in recent decades.
Additional Information on Greek Wines
Greek Wines
Ancient Greek Wines – A Brief History of Wine in Greece
The Myth of Dionysus, Greek God of Wine
What is Retsina?
Year in, year out, France enjoys its prestigious reputation as the producer of the finest wines in the world. With a wine making history which spans several thousand years and owes its expertise to the Romans, it comes as little surprise that this most highly esteemed of the Old World wine countries continues to impress and enchant both novices and experts to this day. Despite the rise in quality of wines from neighboring European countries, not to mention the New World, the French wine industry continues to boom, with up to eight billion bottles being produced in recent years. However, France prides itself on always putting quality before quantity, and the wide range in fine produce is a testament to the dedication and knowledge of the wineries across the country. Indeed, from rich and complex reds to light and aromatic white wines, French wines are as varied and interesting as they are enjoyable to drink, making this country a firm favorite for wine lovers across the globe.
The beautiful rolling hillsides of the Champagne region of France have, for hundreds of years, been producing many of the world's most famous wines. The sparkling white wines to come out of Champagne's prestigious wineries have conquered the world, and are drank in celebration across the globe. The vast majority of the region is under vine, and grows predominantly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grape varietals, which are usually blended together by master wine-makers in order to make their recognizable and widely loved produce. The north-easterly region of Champagne has a relatively cool climate, and quite a lot of rainfall, making it far from ideal for ripening grapes. However, the presence of heavily forested areas in the region helps maintain a balanced temperature, and the generations of expertise the wineries hold clearly produces excellent results in spite of the climatic problems.