An elegant Champagne, with a finely detailed mousse and a bright streak of lemon peellaced acidity carrying well-meshed flavors of patisserie apple and pear, biscuit, smoke and candied ginger. An aperitif style, showing good focus and length. Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay. Drink now.

(roughly 50% Pinot Noir, 35% Pinot Meunier and 15% Chardonnay; 9 g/l dosage; LAIBG): Light, bright yellow. Musky pear and toasty lees on the nose and in the mouth. Fleshy and open-knit, with a hint of bitter lemon pith adding back-end cut. Finishes on a gently smoky note, with very good cling and focus and a hint of bitter quinine. This must be the best example of this bottling that I've had in years, if not decades. In the past the Imperial Brut received a dosage of 12 g/l, but no more; in fact, there's talk that in the near future it may be dropped down as far as 7 g/l.

Well balanced, this Champagne, even with its enormous production, remains a benchmark and is always enjoyable. In this bottling, ripe white fruit is cut with citrus, with an edge of toastiness that gives complexity. Drink now.