Taittinger Comtes De Champagne 2008 (750ML)

100 JS / 98+ VM / 98 WA / 98 JM / 98 DE / 97 WE / 19 JR

The perfect blanc de blancs. Full-bodied with a lovely framework of acidity and dry fruit, such as apples, pears and peaches. Opulent. Dense and muscular. Yet, it’s balanced and harmonious. Line of acidity at the end. Totally in tune. Superb. Deep and complete. Has everything. One for the cellar. It is the greatest Comte ever. It has everything. A perfect upgrade from two years ago. Drink or hold. - James Suckling

Taittinger’s 2008 Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne is simply breathtaking. I have tasted it many times over the years in various trial disgorgements and it has never been anything less than compelling. The final, finished wine captures all of that potential. Bright, focused and wonderfully deep, Comtes is a fabulous example of a vintage that expresses so much energy but with real fruit intensity, the signatures that distinguish it from other vintages (1996 comes to mind) that were similarly taut, but more austere in the early going. Although the 2008 impresses right out of the gate, it only really starts to open up with several hours of air. The 2008 Comtes represents the purest essence of the Côtes des Blancs in a great, historic vintage. Readers who can find the 2008 should not hesitate, as it is a truly brilliant epic Champagne that no one who loves the very best in Champagne will want to be without. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous

Taittinger's 2008 Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne is being released this year, and it will be worth a special effort to track down. I wrote in August 2019 that this is the finest Comtes de Champagne since the brilliant 2002, and this tasting confirmed that. Offering up a deep and complex bouquet of citrus oil, crisp orchard fruit, warm brioche, crushed chalk, blanched almonds and smoke, it's full-bodied and incisive, with excellent concentration, racy acids and a long, searingly chalky finish. While this is already immensely impressive out of the gates, this 2008 is clearly built for the long haul, and three decades' longevity won't be a challenge. - William Kelley, Wine Advocate

Constructed from a tapestry of vineyards from the Cote des Blancs, 5% is vinified in new oak. Tasted several times since 2013, due for release sometime this year (2020). It has been interesting to follow this wine as it has developed on its lees, the earliest iteration was buried under a mountain of fruit esters and acidity, while slowly revealing itself over the years with successive trial disgorgements. When last tasted in 2017, a nervy, unyielding wine, that tingles with energy and potential, possibly one of the wines of the vintage. Precise, citrus fresh, with complexity and impossible length. Chablis-like minerality with a weightless, juicy density, certainly a wine to lose in your cellar for a couple of decades. Superb! Tasted: November 2017. 5 star wine. - Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy

After a cool, rainy spring and unsettled flowering, the weather in 2008 cleared in time to deliver a large crop of ripe, balanced grapes with lovely balancing acidity. The Comtes from 2008 is a fantastic success, with aromas of ripe pear, peach, bergamot and chamomile. There is a luxe style to the rich, creamy texture with its gentle yet persistent mousse. The fresh acidity and a subtle, pleasant bitterness bring balance and impressive length to the wine.-Charles Curtis MW, Decanter

Coming entirely from Grand Cru vineyards in the Côte des Blancs, the new release of this famous Champagne is from a top vintage year. The wine is at perfect maturity, poised between crisp, taut minerality and wonderful toastiness. It is intense, beautifully clear and limpid, a great Champagne. It is ready to drink now and for many years to come. - RV, Wine Enthusiast

Pale copper colour. Tiny bead. Lots of toasty autolysis on the nose and then masses of very crystalline acidity on the palate with a tiny bit of smoky reduction. Really energetic. Should be a great start to our JR.com Christmas dinner and, I hope, a good lead-in to La Grande Dame 1990. Dry finish and super-zesty. Lemon zest at that. Complete and gorgeous. Very long and clean. Beautiful balance. - Jancis Robinson