Philipponnat Clos des Goisses 2010

Disgorged in March 2019 with 4.5 grams per liter dosage, there are a mere 5,000 bottles of the 2010 Extra Brut Clos des Goisses. Describing the year as one that tended to be "fat and heavy," Charles Philipponnat explained that he feared the resulting wine might be too aromatic and evolve too rapidly, so he made a rigorous selection of only the freshest, liveliest lots—though he now regrets not making a little more. Offering up aromas of pear, waxy citrus fruit, fresh pastry, vanilla pod and a light touch of smoky reduction, the wine is full-bodied, broad and layered, with a textural, highly concentrated profile, ripe acids and a precise, mineral finish. Philipponnat is happy with the result but suspects that the wine will become buttery with bottle age and that it will always be a little atypical.