TN: NV (2006) Ulysse Collin Blanc de Noirs Champagne

I admit to not being a fan of Olivier Collin’s Blanc de Blancs, but his Blanc de Noirs is something else. Hailing from the Les Maillons vineyard in the Cote de Sézanne, this pure 2006 (disgorged in Sept. 2009), 100% Pinot Noir, oak aged Champagne is very tasty. Tons of flavor are packed in this bottle with dark, berry tinged citrus, toasted biscuits, smoky minerals, and honeysuckle ruling the roost. There are a few minor, green, vinous streaks and this has an austere bend, but overall, this is well put together and has a great intrinsic sweetness that balances out the lack of dosage. I’m not sure I would plan on aging this, but it should take a few years fine. The Cote de Sézanne excels at early drinking, approachable wines and this wine shows its character perfectly. If you spot a bottle of this (only around 5,000 produced), give it a go. It is great on its own and at the dinner table. Tasty, tasty stuff.

Givin’ it away for free, I see…

But this note is unedited so it is therefore worthless.

What don’t you like about the blanc de blanc Brad? I’ve only had one bottle shared with my wife, and we loved it. It had a richness and moreishness that I wasn’t expecting from this no dosage champagne. It was complex and had a mineral saline undertone that was very appealing.

Edited to mention its the 2005 blanc de blanc.

Bobby,

I’ve always found his BdB to be disjointed and fighting with itself. The oak has always stuck out to me and the low/no dosage hasn’t been a friend to the wine. I’ve also had VA problems in numerous bottles (2005 being the biggest offender). I know others love this wine, but I find it to be a poor example especially at its price point. The BdN was the exact opposite and very surprising. I didn’t expect to like it as much as I did.

Brad
Thanks for the info - I am a fan of BdN
and had no idea Collin produced anything other than
Blanc de Blanc

Take care
Rip

I’ve had many a customer complain about the BdB for the exact reasons you note.

I didn’t like the 2005 Blancs de Blanc because I found it a bit green (think celery) and hard. When I first tried it at the cellars a year ago and I asked if it was an indicative bottle, Olivier seemed quite distressed and opened another. There it was again. He gave me one to cellar, which I haven’t opened yet, but I tried one with him recently and it was still there, but not as intrusive. There was also a nutty component that I didn’t find too appealing.

However, I found the 2006 (tried on April 12, from a bottle disgorged on February 17, with 1.7g/l dosage) miles better – refined, pure, brilliant. It had more colour than the 05, and was showing the oak a little, but I think it will integrate.

The 2006 Blancs de Noir (2.4g/l dosage) seemed much tighter and I figure it needs a fair bit more time. There aren’t 5000 bottles though – Olivier told me there were only 2000 made. This will increase as various plots come online.

He also switched presses from 05 to 06, and he thinks this has made a “huge difference”, bringing more minerality and elegance.

Disclaimer: I’m the Australian agent for Ulysse Collin (yay!)

Neville,

Have to love importer info sheets. The US importer was my source of info for 5,000 bottles on the 2006 BdN. Apologies if this is incorrect. You should try another of the 2006 BdNs - actually quite open right now. Based on where the plot is located, this doesn’t surprise me as I’ve always found the wines of Sézanne to be quite good for early drinking.

I have only tried the 2006 BdB once and wasn’t a huge fan of it either as it seemed a bit disjointed. As it was very young and I have only had it once, I haven’t formed a concrete view on it yet, but I do agree that it appears better than the 04 and 05 at this point in its life.

Not sure it would have changed in 20 days … my stock won’t be disgorged until September anyway.

Neville,

Didn’t realize you only tasted it 20 days ago - which disgorgement did you have?

I’ll have to check in with Olivier on the 2,000 vs. 5,000 number as there are a number of sources claiming 5,000 and I would love to know where they got that number. I wonder if he scaled back the original bottling, bad info got out, or if part of the confusion is that he is releasing the BdN in tranches?

I hope his wines are doing well for you in Australia although I doubt you are having any problems moving them.

I’ve had the BdB and thoroughly enjoyed it, but I don’t remember the “vintage.”

I have had three recent bottles (should be one of the more recent disgorgements) and they have all been excellent–no noticeable oak that I can recall, or that anybody else mentioned. No VA either. And the low dosage made the Champagne to a couple of people with Burgundy palates put off by vigorous effervescence…