critic reviews
Based on the 2020 vintage with 35% of reserve wines, the Imperial NV is aged 24 months with an additional 6 months post disgorgement and seven grams per liter dosage. Lemon gold color, it opens with poached orchard fruit, lemon zest and faint honeyed notes. Medium-bodied, the lemony palate is fresh with green apple notes and assertive acidity that finishes fresh with toasty notes.
Based on the challenging 2017 vintage, the current release of Moet & Chandon's NV Brut Imperial was disgorged with seven grams dosage (representing a reduction of around 50% in the last 20 years) and contains an unusually high proportion of reserve wines. Offering up aromas of pear, peach and citrus oil mingled with hints of fresh bread and white flowers, it's medium to full-bodied, ample and pillowy, with racy acids and an enveloping core of fruit, complemented by a pinpoint mousse and concluding with a nicely defined finish. Impressively seamless, it's a fine rendition of one of Champagne's largest bottlings.