Doctored, Strange Love: Or How I learned to Stop Swishing and Love the Krug

Over the past few days, we have also been fortunate enough to quaff, rather taste... taste very carefully and professionally, much champagne. Today, we focus on three Marquis players of the Grand Marques, offering up some thoughts on the houses and studies of their NV/MV staples.

Veuve Clicquot - This house is hawked wherever anorexia and cocaine can be found; it is virtually ubiquitous at trendy establishments worldwide. The house's popularity can be largely linked to mega-lux-corp LVMH's purchase of the brand in 1987 or more to the point, linked to their subsequent marketing blitz, as well as the consistency. Actually, Clicquot was not particularly consistent prior to Jacques Peters ascendancy to cellar master. In fact, few champagnes are; they vary year to year dependent on the harvest. However, under Peters' tutelage the Grande Dame has begun to behave a bit like Emma Goldman; radicality has risen. Peters broke with tradition, and in non-vintage years, he blends nearly three times as much reserve juice into the mix as any of his competitors. A further distinguishing decision implemented by Peters the move to eschew the standard Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay in favor of a blend comprised over 50% of Pinot Noir. The result is that Clicquot does not taste like Champagne; ordering a bottle off of a decent wine list is akin to ordering a salad at Peter Luger's.
Technically speaking, the wine is straw and pale, if not ill looking. The nose offers some citrus and a faint apple, but is most marked by a yeast aroma one step removed from stale beer in a college dorm room. On the taste, the balance is nice, but like the last Coldplay album, Clicquot is so utterly inoffensive that it begins to lack meaning, and offers us no reason to love it. (The Panglosses out there call this "clean"). The finish features a reprise of that unpleasant yeast, but thankfully it is mercifully short... so, it's got that going for it, which is nice.
Of course, no discussion of VC is complete without noting the story of the actual Widow Clicquot who built the label, and elevated the vineyard in an era of intolerance; a truly incredible tale.


Krug - Krug is the truly 800 pound gorilla of the champagne world, and what a gentle ape it is. Here is the loving creature cradling Fay Wray, not Moet's brut(e) swatting at biplanes. Krug is a young house (1843) and also fell victim to LVMH's juggernaut, but through six generations, the family maintained a steady presence in every aspect of the operation. Despite the corporate parent, the product retains that artisinal method and taste. Accordingly, their output is fairly minimal; Krug owns 19+ ha, and buys from an additional 56 ha.
The MV is a lighter, but still radiant gold, evocative of Louis XIV, himself. Apres cela, le deluge! The nose has touches of fresh florals, but is dominated by nut and oak. Krug's bubbles are larger than most, the Beluga to Clicquot's Sevruga, yet the stream is steady and possesses a tremendous longevity. The taste varies from vintage to vintage and amongst the various varieties, but the careful, unhurried time spent in barrels produces a consistent characteristic subtle oak and cream, that is more fraiche than heavy. Further, the appetizing taste of apple is prominent in their product, complimented by a slight citrus. The finish is long and beautiful.

Moet & Chandon - This house has about as many offshoots as Mick Jagger has children. (In other words, we're not certain exactly how many, but quite a few.) However, whether a cup of their bubbly is loving or just our imagination running away with the status conscious remains indeterminate. M&C is best known as the maker of Dom Perignon, the winner of GG's award for worst price/quality ratio. The only scenario that would warrant the purchase of this base brand is an attempt to impress a date., but then again is the type of person impressed by Dom really worth dating?
The basic non vintage dubbed Brut Imperial delivers an anemic hue of yellow resembling battered brass more than gold. I'm told by a sales rep that the bouquet has "lots of fruit", and I detected some grapefruit, but the nose was almost absent. The bubbles are small and steady. As for the taste, it is balanced with a bit of caramel apples, brioche, dry fruits, and toast. The finish is a bit tart, with some lemon lasting a bit longer than one would like.
There is little phenomenal about the Brut Imperial, but admittedly, it is a far more classical juice than VC, and a far better buy.
As a self respecting French Establishment, M&C also has a storied history; the house dates back to 1743 and has catered to kings, Napoleon, and Thomas Jefferson; it is also owned by LVMH.