Duval-Leroy : Fleur de Champagne Brut Premier Cru

In 1911, Raymond Duval-Leroy was the first Champagne house ever to create champagne blending Pinot Noir and Chardonnay selected in villages classified Grand Cru and Premier Cru of the Champagne Region, in order to pay tribute to its predecessors. This wine bears a bright robe and a lace of fine and satiny bubbles. This Fleur de Champagne Brut 1er Cru gives off a wild flower scent that is characteristic of Duval-Leroy, and from which the wine got his name. On the palate, this Champagne audaciously combines a persistent gustatory balance and a distinguished, elegant character. Its aromatic outline is intense and fruity with a subtle hint of minerality. 

Wine Advocate-Parker :
Predominantly based on Chardonnay from the Côte des Blancs, the NV Fleur de Champagne Premier Cru Brut is a very delicate and elegant Champagne with a beautiful bouquet of ripe white fruits, pineapples, butterscotch, nougat, brioche and fresh toast. The assemblage with Pinot Noir from the Montage de Reims and the Marne Valley gives this lean, but impressively balanced Brut a full, round and well-structured taste; whereas the Chardonnay lends silkiness, finesse and a chalky freshness with lovely lemon and grapefruit flavors in the serious, but stimulatingly refreshing and grippy finish. Exclusively based on Grand and Premier Crus, this Fleur de Champagne is a highly recommended soprano aperitif that can easily match lighter, vegetable-based dishes, as well as fish, seafood and white meat. (My sample was from Lot L4183CG31 and according to Duval-Leroy was disgorged in July 2014.)