Jacquesson Cuvee 744 NV

James Suckling

"Very attractive aromas of cooked apple with fresh brioche. Bread dough and some lemon rind, too. Medium to full body with a creamy and refined mouth feel and a rounded finish. Some almond and cooked apple in the aftertaste. Very drinkable now. 45% chardonnay, 35% pinot noir and 20% pinot meunier."

Wine Advocate 91

The Jacquesson 740 is another worthy addition to the stunning 700 series from Jacquesson. It is based on the 2012 vintage, which Jancis Robinson called an "exceptional" year for Champagne, that resulted in "exemplary" maturity. Jacquesson's hugely successful 700 series differs from other non-vintage Champagnes. Each release aiming to retain the best characteristics of each harvest, while also preserving the variations each year brings. In the words of the house "we strive for excellence, as opposed to consistency". The champagnes are readily snapped up by those in the know, with Robert Parker calling them "excellent" and Galloni writing "this is a champagne that consistently over delivers relative to its peers".

Based on the 2015 vintage and disgorged in August 2019 without dosage, the Chiquet brothers' NV Extra-Brut Cuvée No. 743 is showing nicely, offering up inviting aromas of freshly baked bread, crisp yellow orchard fruit, beeswax and dried white flowers. Medium to full-bodied, pillowy and precise, it's elegantly fleshy, with an enveloping core of fruit, a pinpoint mousse and a nicely defined, saline finish.