Thanks, again, to Johnny for the rare champagne, and nice photos!

Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs 1985 (750ml bottle)

Tasted in end July, 2009

Old gold with amber hue. Almost no bubbles.

The nose showed her age as well, with caramel being a touch too dominant, but there are still nice nuances of toffee, butter, walnut, sea water, honey and coffee.

The palate is quite dense with a basic sweet tone that prevents the wine from being dried out, but apparently she has way passed her peak (maybe 4 to 5 years ago), as most of the vigor and thrill is gone. Still many serious contents here: ripe citrus, toffee, coffee, honey, orange peel and mineral saltiness, proving her glorious past. She held up well for about 40 minutes after uncorking, and then the palate thinned up towards sour-sweet fruitiness of haw.

Very good experience which helps us understand the maturity of Comtes Blanc. According to Tom Stevenson, the ideal drinking window of Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs is 15 to 20 years after the vintage date, for both freshness and complexity. I think this certainly has a lot to do with the fact that Comtes Blanc has been put through malolactic during the first fermentation.