WTN: Clubbing

[David M. Bueker]

• 2014 Pierre Gimonnet & Fils Champagne Special Club Grands Terroirs de Chardonnay - France, Champagne (2/7/2022)
  It had been a while since my last taste of Gimonnet Champagne. October 2019 brought that periodic tasting experience where I said to myself “why don’t I buy more Gimonnet?” I finally jumped in and ordered a couple of the wines, including this Special Club bottling. After a little bit of post-shipment settling it was time to check in. The standard evaluation food, fresh-popped popcorn, was prepared, and it was time to see what we had been missing.
  
  The first impression was a high level of acidic brightness, which eventually settled down to a more integrated freshness, rather than just a sharp knife to the palate. About 30 minutes of air had it settle in and more aromatics and palate complexity came through. It was still focused on the citrus and youthful yeasty elements, but the mid-palate gained depth, and carried through the finish. We finished the last glass 24 hours later, where the wine showed a distinct floral note, and some nut skin elements added to the citrus core. Overall it still felt tightly wound, and needing some time to loosen up and develop. It was vibrant and fun at this showing, but in need of more time to express itself.

I just like saying Special Club.
Just had a '14 Hervieux-Dumez Special Club, the Gimmonet sounds better