From the village of Bouzy (designated as Grand Cru) this Pinot Noir dominant Champagne is a winner. It’s from a small estate, totally grown, hand-picked and made by Hervé Saves (pron. Sa-vess] in a careful and perfection-minded approach. It’s been kept almost four years in the bottle before release.

The NV Brut Carte Blanche is a pretty wine laced with silky, perfumed fruit. Crisp pears, green apples, mint, flowers and chalk are some of the nuances that are woven into the wine’s pure, generous frame. Readers will find no shortage of character and class here. The Brut Carte Blanc is 75% Pinot Noir and 25% Chardonnay, vintages 2006 (60%) and 2005 (40%). The Pinot is sourced from Pinot Noir from Bouzy, Ambonnay and Tours-sur-Marne (all Grand Cru), while the Chardonnay hails from Tauxieres, which is a Premier Cru village. WINE ADVOCATE

I liked this cuvee quite well eight months ago when I tasted the last release, but [this same release with additional bottle age] is even better than the bottle I reported on last September. The nose is deep, complex and impressively complex for a non vintage brut, as it offers up a fine mélange of oranges, fresh-baked bread, lightly toasted almonds, a touch of coconut meat, and lovely minerality. On the palate the wine is full bodied, focused and beautifully, balanced, with fine mid-palate depth, refined bubbles, and outstanding length and grip on the complex and snappy finish. Clearly this is a wine with some four or five year-old wine in the blend, and is a superb bottle of non-vintage brut. For a basic bottling, it is flat out superb. 2007-2015+. 92. JOHN GILMAN, A View From the Cellar.