Over the course of a week, I taste a bunch of wine, usually with friends, and almost always with my wife.  Here are some of the wines we tasted over the past few weeks. These are wines that were not sent as samples—in most cases, I actually paid for these wines (although a few may have been given as gifts).

NV Lucien Albrecht Crémant d’Alsace Pinot Noir Brut Rosé, Alsace, France: Retail $24. Very Heavy Bottle (787g; 27.7oz). 100% Pinot Noir. Consistently one of my favorite producers of Crémant d’Alsace, this is a pretty good deal if you can find it under twenty bucks (I paid $18). Lovely pinkish-orange in the glass with strawberry, melon, and a touch floral. The palate suggests a touch of sweetness, but the tartness quickly balances it out. Fruity, tart, lovely. Excellent. 90 Points.

2015 Domaine Adrien Besson Chablis 1er Cru Montmains, Burgundy, France: Retail $33. Responsible Bottle (596g; 21.0oz). Under cork. 100% Chardonnay. I bought seven bottles of this wine back in 2018 and I have been going through roughly one a year and it clearly has been getting better. This might be the best bottle thus far, it is a little darker and the flavors and aromas are a little richer than the previous iterations, which is fine by me (as long as there are minimal signs of oxidation). Bright citrus with a honeyed note, paired with some fragrant white and yellow flower, and just a hint of oak. The palate is wonderfully balanced and exactly what you would hope from an aged Chablis. Gorgeous. While I have grown wary of the whites from the Côte d’Or due to both the premature oxidation issues and the ridiculous increases in price, high-quality Chablis like this beauty continues to show Chablis is one of the best values in Chardonnay. Outstanding. 94 Points.

1999 Bollinger Champagne La Grande Année, Champagne, France: Retail $150. Ridiculously Heavy Bottle (909g; 32.0oz). 63% Pinot Noir, 37% Chardonnay. 82% Grand Cru, 18% Premier Cru. According to my notes on CellarTracker, this bottle was “lost”. Well, I “found” it–as it was in perhaps the most obvious place in my cellar. It has been seven(?) years since I have last tasted this wine and more than a bit has changed. First, it is nearly devoid of sparkle. No sigh upon opening, no mousse upon poring, barely a tingle on the tongue when tasting. Part of that was due to the fact that it was far too cold upon opening. Quite dark on the nose, well on the way to golden, maybe beyond(?) with a yeasty, serried, oxidized nose, that classic aged champagne vibe that I really adore. The palate? Yowza. For those that are not aged-champagne fans? This might not be for you. For those that are? Yowza. And Whoa. Rich, sherried, and uber-yeasty, this is what most collectors of champagne covet. Sure, the sparkle is diminished (but increased as it warmed), and it is mostly devoid of fruit, this is completely gangbusters. Outstanding. 96 Points.

2014 Clos Pepe Estate Pinot Noir Signature, Sta Rita Hills, CA: Retail $75. Heavy Bottle (631g; 22.2oz). Under cork. In the dying days of the Clos Pepe Winery, I bought a few bottles of this 2014 Signature Cuvée and, after trying this bottle? I should have bought more. Maybe a lot more. Light to medium color in the glass with an absolutely gorgeous nose of luscious red berry fruit (cherry, raspberry), hints of eucalyptus, flowering quince, and a touch of dark earth. The palate is even more incredible, and while the amount of fruit is truly remarkable, its intensity is off the charts. To imagine that this is a dozen years old air this point? If that were only it, it would be one of the best wines I have tried all year, but then there is the tartness. Whoa. The acidity, more than enough to keep up with all of that fruit is near perfection. I have championed the Clos Pepe wines made by Wes Hagen, but I might need to edit all those previous plaudits and bump them all up a notch. This is Outstanding Plus. 97 Points.

NV Collery Champagne Grand Cru Extra Brut, Champagne, France: Retail $70. Extremely Heavy Bottle (820g; 28.9oz). 100% Chardonnay. Well, I bought a case of this wine based solely on the fact that it was “Grand Cru” champagne. How bad could it be? Well, the first two bottles were so good, I bought another case when it came up again on Last Bubbles. Well, after those two initial gems, subsequent bottles have vacillated between Outstanding and “Meh”. And this latest try was a decided return to the “worse” version. Rarely have I seen such bottle variation in a champagne. Too bad I bought another case based on the “good” version of this wine. Oh well, worse things happen every day. Very Good. 88 Points.

NV Taittinger Champagne Brut Réserve – FIFA World Cup Edition, Champagne, France: Retail $60. Extremely Heavy Bottle (827g; 29.0oz). 40% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot Noir, 25% Pinot Meunier. A “Special” cuvée made for the 2025 World Cup, which, even though it has a suggested retail of $60, pretty much sells everywhere for $40. My wife picked this up at Costco after all of the matches had concluded, and it is a pretty solid effort. A bit lighter in style than what we normally like, but this has solid pear and golden apple fruit on both the nose and the palate, with adequate acidity, a hint of yeastiness, and a touch of verve. Pretty solid wine at this price, we might buy more (if they drop the price a bit more). Very Good. 89 Points.

WINE OF THE WEEK: As I have mentioned countless times on this site, we drink a ton of bubbles, a ton. And by “bubbles” at this point, I mean “champagne”. Sure, an occasional “outsider” sneaks in (like this week), but the vast majority come from the greatest region in the world for sparkling wine. And while the 2014 Clos Pepe Signature might have technically been the “best” wine of the week, that is not the “award”. No, the honor is “Wine of the Week” and this week it goes to the 1999 Bollinger Grande Année. Not only was it a stellar wine, but the year started with a “1” for goodness sakes. How could it not be the choice?

What was your Wine of the Week?