Request for TN on Jacquesson Cuvee 730 and Avize Grande Cru

[Jay Labrador]

Just arrived in Manila are the Jacquesson Cuvee 730 and the Avize Grand Cru 1996. If anybody has notes on these, I'd appreciate your opinions. I've had the Cuvee 728 and thought it was pretty impressive. How does the 730 compare to it?

Thanks.

[Jenise]

Just arrived in Manila are the Jacquesson Cuvee 730 and the Avize Grand Cru 1996. If anybody has notes on these, I'd appreciate your opinions. I've had the Cuvee 728 and thought it was pretty impressive. How does the 730 compare to it?

Thanks.

Jay, I haven't had the 728 to compare the 730 to, but the 730 is one of the best under-$50 bubblies I've ever tasted. Serious stuff. I took one to a wine geek weekend in California last December, and there were a lot of bubblies consumed. The 730 was my WOTWeekend and it stood way out from the crowd with it's biscuity richness and structure. So did, in a different way, a Cloudy Bay 2000 Peloris bubbly from New Zealand. By comparison, all the other bubblies were just water--I can't remember the name of a single one but for these two.

[Otto]

I've recently had both but in typical fashion have misplaced my notes. I think I posted on at least the 730 on the netscrap forum - the search may or may not bring it up (I really didn't get along with the search on that forum). From memory: it didn't have the same earthiness as the 728 and 729 because the amount of Meunier is smaller, but there is more Chardonnay. A very fine and obviously young wine with fine steely structure from the Chard element but figgy fruit from the pinots. Possibly the finest of the trio (but I do miss the unique earthiness of the previous two). Mostly it is from the 2002 vintage, which is supposedly excellent.

The Avize 1996 was more tightly wrought than the 1995, but is otherwise a very similar wine: ferociously acidic at the moment, but as classic as can be Chardonnay aromas of steel and whatever you call the scent that will develop into nut with a bit more age. A long term wine for sure. It is very, very tight now. Fantastic potential, though. If I were you, I would buy plenty of both. Which is what I plan on doing once the 730 appears here.

Otto