2004 Champagne Taittinger, Comtes de Champagne Rosé, Brut

70% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay 100% from grand cru vineyards). 8 years' ageing on lees before disgorgement. Dosage 10 g/l.

Aroma of Victoria plums and a touch of spice and cedar. Very powerful – the power almost overrides the flavour, but there is also great tension and a fine structure. Bold and needs time.

Champagne Taittinger is one of the oldest Champagne houses as it was founded in 1734 by Forest Fourneaux and acquired by Pierre Taittinger in the 1930's. Remarkably given its fame, the house is still family owned and operated with an equally remarkable 712 acres of vineyards.

This is quite fruity yet solidly complex with scents of red cherry, strawberry and freshly crushed raspberries that are framed by noticeable yeast nuances. There is a clean and very crisp mouth feel to the medium-bodied flavors that deliver very good complexity while being supported with a notably fine mousse. Overall this delicious effort offers plenty of personality and punch plus it is very close to being ready.

Drink from 2014 onward

Taittinger's 2004 Brut Rosé Comtes de Champagne is a delicate, perfumed wine. In 2004 the Rosé shows a quite a bit of Chardonnay character in its precise, chiseled fruit and long, minerally finish. After several hours the wine continued to dazzle with its crystalline purity and fabulous balance. This is a jewel of a wine from Taittinger.

Taittinger is one of Champagne's most consistent large brands. The flagship Comtes de Champagne and Comtes de Champagne Rosé, two of the finest wines in the region, sometimes fly under the radar, but they are both super-pedigreed wines with brilliant track records for developing considerable complexity in bottle. Readers who want to learn more about the estate and Comtes in particular may want to take a look at my article on this site published earlier in the year. Taittinger does so many things well, but it would be great to see the estate add disgorgement dates to its labels.

Drink 2014 - 2034

Vivid pink. Red berries, orange peel, cinnamon and fresh flowers on the high-pitched nose. Juicy, precise and very pure, offering intense, spice-accented red fruit flavors with hints of exotic spices and candied rose. Aeration brings out notes of cherry and rhubarb, which add depth and a bitter touch to the very long, juicy, fruit-dominated finish. Looks to be built for a graceful evolution but this Champagne is delicious now.

Taittinger’s 2004 Brut Comtes de Champagne Rosé is showing brilliantly, bursting from the glass with an expressive bouquet that mingles aromas of rhubarb compote, red plums and spices with notions of dried white flowers, pastry cream and toasted brioche. On the palate, it’s medium to full-bodied, broad and vinous, with impressive depth and chalky structure, succulent acids and a long, precise finish. 

While the 2004 Comtes Rosé is drinking beautifully today, it is evolving comparatively slowly by the standards of this classically balanced but somewhat rapidly evolving vintage, and it should offer immense pleasure for the better part of two decades.

Drink 2017 - 2035