For Champagne despite hailstorms in early May, things were initially looking good in general, with a warm August filling the grapes with sugar and promising great things. Just at the wrong moment, in the second week of September, there were days of heavy and quite persistent rain, diluting the fruit and downgrading expectations from great to good.
The wines are marked by generally low levels of acidity, and are therefore not really for the long-term. Gosset performed really well in 1999 however, as did Pol Roger. It was the first vintage for Dominique Petit, at the time newly recruited from Krug and keen to make a good impression! Which he did….
Les Comtes is, of course, one of the great all-Chardonnay Champagnes sourced from the finest Grand cru sites of the Côtes de Blancs. 1999 is a relatively forward vintage, captured in rich creamy flavors, a generous biscuity, autolytic character and a firm and discretely indulgent finish. Poise and power here, powerfully poised.. Simon Field MW, Fine Wine Buyer, January 2011
Simon Field MW, Fine Wine Buyer, January 2011