On the contrary to common myth, few wines are meant to age, and it’s especially true for sparkling wines. We got 2014 Sonoma-Cutrer Grand Cuvée in the spirit of our wineswinging adventures because we know ageing Champagne and other sparkling wines is a tricky business.
Most Champagne produced today are non-vintage blends of a few recent vintages and meant to be consumed as soon as they are released.
In the exceptional years, which doesn’t happen very often, French winemakers produce small lots of millésime Champagne (with vintage year on the label). Only some are meant to be aged for over three years, and only a select few of millésime Champagnes can last and improve over a decade or more.
French had centuries to perfect their sparkling craft, while in California high-quality winemaking industry is a little over 50 years old. Naturally, we are interested in comparing sparkling wines from all over the world with Champagne.
2014 Sonoma-Cutrer Grand Cuvée
One of the reasons we purchased this bottle, we were already familiar with this producer. 2017 Founders Reserve Pinot Noir impressed our tasting buds very much earlier this year!
We were tasting 2014 Sonoma-Cutrer Grand Cuvée in 2021, and seven years is a lot for Champagne and even more so for American sparkling.
In the Bottle
2014 Sonoma-Cutrer Grand Cuvée is a Méthode Traditionelle sparkling, meaning it’s made following the Champagne method.
Moreover, winemakers used a classic blend of 60% Chardonnay and 40% Pinot Noir grapes. Chardonnay was sourced from the estate Vine Hill Vineyard and Pinot from Owsley, both in the Russian River region of California. The Pacific Ocean influence helps the grapes retain acidity, which is very important for sparkling production.
The grapes were hand-harvested, gently whole-cluster pressed, and fermented in stainless still vats to keep bright color and fruit characteristics.
Then Chardonnay and Pinot Noir were blended and bottled for the second fermentation in the bottle. Bottle fermentation transforms still wine into sparkling wine and produces the effervescence we all love so much.
According to French rules, vintage Champagne must spend at least three years in the bottle. Sonoma-Cutrer winemaker went further and kept it in the bottle for four and a half years, hence “Late Disgorge” on the label.
In the Glass
It greets you with notes of a ripe yellow apple, brioche, apple candy, ripe lemon, and cookie dough.
On a palate, juicy lemon, brioche, and apple are highlighted by the elegant structure and fine mousse.
We enjoyed this sparkling on several occasions and it was always a pleasant experience.