# Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs (2013)

- **Producer:** Taittinger
- **Colour:** white
- **Type:** sparkling
- **Grapes:** Chardonnay
- **Region:** Champagne, France
- **Style:** Classic
- **Alcohol:** 12.5%
- **Average price:** €244
- **Contains sulphites:** No
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 6–11 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** pear, grapefruit, lemon, apple, peach, pastry, vanilla, brioche, toasted bread, biscuit, honey, almond, hazelnut

## About this wine

Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs 2013 is a prestige cuvée produced only in exceptional years. It is a single-varietal wine made exclusively from Chardonnay grapes. The grapes are sourced from five Grand Cru villages within the Côte des Blancs sub-region of Champagne, France: Avize, Chouilly, Cramant, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, and Oger. The wine's creation is linked to the historical Counts of Champagne, with a legend suggesting a connection to the introduction of a specific vine variety to the region. Taittinger itself is one of the few remaining large, family-owned Champagne houses, with a history dating back to the 18th century. This cuvée is recognized for its distinctiveness, representing the pinnacle of the Taittinger style.

## Interesting facts

- Legend links the origin of Chardonnay to Thibaud IV, a Count of Champagne.
- The wine is aged for 10 years on lees in chalk cellars.
- It's sometimes called the 'Marilyn Monroe of Champagne' for its character.

## Food pairing

The wine's vibrant acidity cuts through the richness of creamy sauces and fatty proteins, while its minerality complements the briny notes of seafood. Delicate flavors in the wine find harmony with subtle ingredients in the dishes.

## Wine making process

Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs 2013 is produced using 100% Chardonnay grapes sourced from five Grand Cru villages in the Côte des Blancs. Only the finest cuvées are selected for this prestige cuvée. A small portion, approximately 5%, of the wine is aged for four months in oak barrels, with a third of these barrels replenished each year to impart subtle toasted notes. The wine then undergoes an extended aging process on its lees for 10 years within the producer's chalk cellars. Disgorgement, the process of removing the lees, took place in April 2023.