Notes from the Champagne dinner of the Ordre Mondial at Cafe Ysabel.
Mumm Cordon Rouge NV - Medium weight. Fresh. Very slight sweetness. Lots of fruit on the finish. Surprisingly good, given the less than stellar reputation this brand used to have.
Mumm de Cramant NV - Pure Chardonnay. This used to be called Cremant de Cramant indicating it had less of a sparkle than regular Champagne. Very fresh, light. Very dry. Grapefruit, pomelo and citrus rind notes. Quite long. Very elegant. Very good. This was paired with three soups. I thought it worked best with the green tomato soup with oyster and shad roe but my seatmate, Rose, thought it went best with the pumpkin and leek soup with tobiko.
Mumm Rose Brut NV - Very pale rose. Like a clumsy, heavier version of the Cordon Rouge NV. A little bitter on the finish. Not too interesting although the heaviness complemented the rather earthy flavors of the pigeon pastel.
There was a treat for those who stayed after the coffee as our wine sponsor also had 2 bottles of:
Perrier-Jouet Belle Epoque 1999 - Very dry, light, lemon rind, slight breadiness. There's also a coffee note right at the beginning. Arnie detected some petrol, which I didn't find, as well as mushroom which is subtle but there. Many years back this Champagne used to be smuggled off the planes of Philippine Airlnes by the crew and you could get it for less than $ 30.00 if you knew whom to approach. I thought it was great at that price but it doesn't seem too exciting now that the official retail price is now closer to $ 170.00.