1996 Bruno Paillard Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru

The 1996 Brut Blanc de Blancs is a rich, explosive wine that bursts onto the palate with a blast of ripe fruit. Generous notes of toasted oak, flowers and nuts follow, but everything is woven together in a fabric of unsual brilliance. The oak remains quite prominent and borderline intrusive but stylistically everything works. The wine comes together in the glass, where it also gains additional weight and fills out nicely. This is a powerful, heady and totally opulent Champagne that calls for food. In the right context it is sure to be extraordinary. At the risk of offending the Champenoise, the 1996 Brut Blanc de Blancs seems to scream for a poached egg generously topped with white Alba truffles! Disgorged July, 2007

The graphite, toast, spice, candied berry and coconut aromas are seductive, and the class and finesse hold your attention. Picks up mineral and citrus flavors. Supersilky in texture, with harmony and a youthful expression as this lingers on the seemingly endless aftertaste. Drink now through 2030. 10 cases imported.

With all the signature acidity of the 1996 vintage, this shows plenty of aging potential. The wine is thirst-quenchingly fresh, with the flavor of just-squeezed lime juice, but also has a depth of complex tannins and texture. Drink now but age for five years or more. — Roger Voss