Taittinger, Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut, 2014
Taittinger, Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut, 2014
- 75cl
- 12.5%
- White Sparkling
- Chardonnay
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Optimal drinking window: Now - 2045
The 2014 Comtes de Champagne is Chardonnay at its best. Only the finest fruit made it in, so quantities are way down compared to 2013, but the quality is superb. It’s the last of a run of cooler vintages in Champagne and already being hailed as a must-have for Champagne lovers.
Taittinger itself has a long backstory. Founded in 1734, it was taken on by Pierre Taittinger in 1931 after his WWI service in the region, and unusually for a big name, it’s still family-run today by Pierre’s great-grandchildren, Vitalie and Clovis. The cellars in Reims sit on 4th-century chalk caves that once belonged to Benedictine monks, and the deep cool conditions are spot-on for ageing Champagne slowly and gracefully.
Comtes de Champagne is the jewel in the crown: crafted only in the best years, from the first pressings, and aged for a full decade deep underground before release. Presented in elegant antique-style bottles, it’s one of the most iconic Blanc de Blancs in Champagne.
What the critics say:
"The 2014 Comtes de Champagne is pristine. In this tasting, it comes across as a mini-2008, similar in its linear personality, with just a touch more mid-palate creaminess. Readers will find a Comtes that plays in the realm of tension and energy. Citrus confit, white flowers, chalk, mint and chamomile are all finely sketched. Light tropical overtones grace the finish. What an absolute delight. The 2014 can be enjoyed now or cellared. Dosage is 9 grams per liter."
"Closed in style and character like the 2013, Taittinger's 2014 Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne reveals aromas of ripe orchard fruit, confit citrus, dried flowers, herbs, spring blossoms and mirabelle mingled with customary autolytic notes. Full-bodied, seamless and enrobing, it has a delicate, elegant, fleshy core of fruit and racy acids, all enhanced by a saline, fresh and penetrating finish marked by finesse and elegance. This refined, chalky-inflected Comtes de Champagne has the potential to age gracefully over the next 30-40 years."
"Apricots, hazelnuts, lemons, white flowers, sliced almonds and hints of licorice on the nose. It's creamy and layered, with soft, rounded bubbles that spread across the palate. Lovely balance of breadth, ripeness and freshness, with delicious wildflower honey and nut notes lingering. 100% grand cru chardonnay from Avize, Mesnil-sur-Oger, Oger, Cramant and Chouilly. Drink or hold."
Comtes de Champagne draws exclusively from grand cru Chardonnay villages on the Côte des Blancs: Avize, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Oger, Cramant, and Chouilly. The soils here are almost pure chalk, which drains freely, forces the vine roots deep, and lends the wines that characteristic mineral salinity that no other sub-region in Champagne quite replicates. The cool continental climate preserves acidity naturally, which is everything in a wine built to age for decades. Taittinger's cellars in Reims, cut into 4th-century chalk caves beneath the city, maintain the steady cool temperatures that allow the wine to evolve at a pace most producers can only dream about.
Champagne is the northernmost sparkling wine appellation in France, governed by some of the strictest production rules in the wine world. Blanc de Blancs is a style made exclusively from white grapes — in practice, almost always Chardonnay — and it represents the purest, most precise expression the region offers. Within that, the Côte des Blancs is widely regarded as the spiritual home of grand cru Chardonnay, producing wines of far greater tension and longevity than those from the Montagne de Reims or Vallée de la Marne. Prestige cuvées like Comtes de Champagne must be made only from first pressings, which means more delicate juice, finer mousse, and considerably more complexity in the glass.
The 2014 vintage in Champagne fell into that category we rather like: unfashionable at the time, brilliant in hindsight. After a mild winter and early spring, summer delivered decent sunshine without the punishing heat that can strip acidity from the fruit. The harvest arrived in good order, though yields were generous enough to keep the accountants happy while quality remained sound across the region.
What emerged were Champagnes with proper backbone and freshness, the sort that make you remember why acidity matters so much in sparkling wine. The Chardonnay performed particularly well, bringing that mineral precision we love, while Pinot Noir added structure without heaviness. These bottles are drinking superbly now, showing the kind of balance that develops beautifully in the cellar, and should continue rewarding patience until 2030. Not a vintage that grabbed headlines, but one that quietly delivers exactly what great Champagne should.
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