House of Arras Vintage 2013 (75 cl)
Chardonnay Pinot NoirAustralie
Average critic rating: 95,8
Decanter : 98 Suckling : 96 The Wine Front : 95 Falstaff : 94
With 7 years of aging on lees, this Australian sparkling wine is on par with the best French champagnes.
Of great complexity, this wine, whose flavors are guided by the Chardonnay, is perfectly balanced by the structure provided by the Pinot Noir. It is opulent, rich, vinous, elegant and powerful with a beautiful refreshing minerality.
Lemon, Peach, tropical fruits, red fruits, dried cherry, candied fruits enhanced with toasted nuts and an armful of spices.
To be drunk with a bar in the oven.
Decanter : 98/100
This wine exudes opulence on a grand scale, from its rich, lingering mousse to the complex flavors that wash luxuriously across the palate. With 62% Chardonnay which displays a radiant personality and assured citrus flavors, everything in this blend is perfectly balanced: bright fruit, mineral dynamism, great depth of taste, refreshing acidity, extraordinary length in the mouth and firm persistence.
David Sly : 4 Mai 2022
Maturity: 2022-2040
James Suckling : 96/100
Complex autolysis with aromas of spicy red fruits, lemon, peach, candied orchard fruits and dried cherry. The palate is layered with impressively complex flavors of dried fruit, peach and toasted nuts. Soft and dry finish. Drink over the next four years.
James Suckling - February 3, 2022
Maturity: 2022 - 2026
The Wine Front: 95/100
The 2013 harvest was 62% chardonnay and 38% pinot noir, “our magic numbers,” says Ed Carr, “it’s amazing how, when you put the styles together, you get to 65% chardonnay.” . Approximately 10% (new) French oak barrels are used. "This is a fundamental wine for Arras, I love the Chardonnay dominated style, but it is the seamless integration between Chardonnay and Pinot Noir that has made this wine so appealing. Dom Pérignon does this very well, the grape varieties come together and there is no difference; a perfectly homogeneous palate."
We are not far from the truth. A phenomenal wine of balance, fluidity, elegance and power. It's heady and winey, rich in fragrance, deep in flavor, marked by chalkiness, saline minerality, tropical fruits and stone fruits, tons of woody and exotic spices, but all in one flow of kaleidoscopic and integrated flavors. Incredibly harmonious, decadent and undulating with fine bubbles. Fresh on the finish. Very... Brilliant. Ready for another big gulp. A stellar sparkling wine in every language.
Mike Bennie - September 2021
Maturity: 2021-2040:
Falstaff: 94/100
Fresh Amalfi lemon zest and more generous notes of lemon pastry, tending towards Mirabelle plum with more air. The palate then reveals a fine and elegant mousse with new sweet notes of lemon and mirabelle plum, as well as a beautiful backbone of slightly bitter lemon zest. The wine is lean but supple, taut but ready to offer more of those slightly salty but exquisite lemon notes. A wine still closed, but very elegant and subtle. Wonderful.
Anne Krebiehl MW: August 8, 2021