I was offered an allocation of this (and other Doyard champagnes) recently. The price for "Les Lumières" was £1,100 per 6 IB in London.
Below is an introduction to the domaine from William Kelley of The Wine Advocate, and Kelley's tasting note:
"A visit to this venerable Vertus domaine is invariably one of the highlights of my time in Champagne, and my late 2020 tasting was no exception. Blessed with 10 hectares of prime holdings in Versus, Mesnil-sur-Oger, Oger, Avize, Cramant and Aÿ, their vines—some of which are cordon-pruned and all of which are farmed without herbicides or pesticides—produce intensely concentrated grapes that are selectively pressed and vinified in wood. Deep, concentrated and characterful, everything that bears the Doyard label is well worth serious attention, and these new releases are especially impressive. Indeed, given the quality to be found at this address—and the long track record—the wines deserve to be even better known."
"Disgorged over a year ago with 0.8 grams per liter dosage, the 2008 Extra-Brut Grand Cru Les Lumières is a striking Champagne, unwinding in the glass with scents of pear, citrus oil, freshly baked bread, mandarin orange, almonds and buttery pastry. Full-bodied, deep and multidimensional, it's layered and muscular, with an immensely concentrated core of fruit, racy acids and a long, resonant finish. As I've written before, this cuvée is a blend of first-press juice: two-thirds Chardonnay from Mesnil-sur-Oger and one-third Pinot Noir from prime holdings in Aÿ. 98 points
Drinking Window: 2022 - 2045 Reviewer Name: William Kelley Review Date: 31st March 2021"
Apart from Kelley, however, I haven't been able to find any corroboration from other critics as to the quality of Doyard's champagnes.
Because I am an idiot, I pulled the trigger on a case before writing this post. But I reasoned that it would probably be a half-decent drink in a worst case scenario, the pricing appears very competitive and I always enjoy new wine experiences. On the flip side, there is no Liv-Ex market data so I presume that its production is very limited and/or it is not very liquid and/or it's a bit of a cult producer.
Can anyone here help educate me please, or share any experiences you may have had with Doyard's champagnes?
Thank you!
Y el pronóstico es que siga subiendo este invierno. Acabaremos quemando los muebles de ikea en el salon, que además se lo merecen.
I can see from the reviews that this cuvée is less sweet than yellow chartreuse, but wondering if anybody has had it and if it would be a reasonable sub for the standard yellow.
It’s an interesting product…but also expensive enough to be a bit of a gamble!
