×
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
750ml - Case of 3
Bottle: $469.76
I have drunk this a half dozen times in the last six months and it always amazes me. The Recently Disgorged Bolly is...
WE
97
JS
97
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $493.86
Even richer than the brilliant 1990, the 1996 is still tightly wound, but reveals tremendous aromatic intensity,...
WA
98
BH
97
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $668.03
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
750ml - Case of 3
Bottle: $589.95
This shows amazing freshness and depth of fruit while remaining agile and very clean. Full body, dense and layered on...
JS
100
WE
99
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $226.45
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
1.5Ltr - Case of 3
Bottle: $891.67
A sculpted Champagne, with a steely backbone of acidity swathed in a fine and silky texture, offering rich flavors of...
WS
97
JD
96
Sale
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
1.5Ltr - 1 Bottle
Bottle: $580.95 $618.03
Sale
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
750ml - 1 Bottle
Bottle: $3579.95 $3806.72
Somewhat surprisingly, Krug presents the much-anticipated 1996 Blanc de Noirs Clos d’Ambonnay as the first wine in...
WA
95
VM
95
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $620.95
It's hard to imagine how a wine of this power can sustain perfect balance What is now a more nonchalant intensity in...
W&S
100
WS
99
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
1.5Ltr - Case of 3
Bottle: $891.67
THE EYE: A pale, translucent gold, with radiant clarity and subtle glints of apple green. THE NOSE: Fresh and...
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $1504.89
Rated 99 - Maturing into a medium golden color, the 1996 Salon reveals open-knit, alluring scents of butterscotch,...
WA
99
WNR
99
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Sparkling
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $328.95
To the eye, La Grande Dame 1996 presents a color with bright, golden glints. The initial nose reveals a strong,...

Champagne Blend Grappa Ice Wine 1996

The sparkling wines of Champagne have been revered by wine drinkers for hundreds of years, and even today they maintain their reputation for excellence of flavor and character, and are consistently associated with quality, decadence, and a cause for celebration. Their unique characteristics are partly due to the careful blending of a small number of selected grape varietals, most commonly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. These grapes, blended in fairly equal quantities, give the wines of Champagne their wonderful flavors and aromas, with the Pinot Noir offering length and backbone, and the Chardonnay varietal giving its acidity and dry, biscuity nature. It isn't unusual to sometimes see Champagne labeled as 'blanc de blanc', meaning it is made using only Chardonnay varietal grapes, or 'blanc de noir', which is made solely with Pinot Noir.

Like so many of the great spirits of Europe, Grappa was born from a need to make resources go that little bit further, to eke out the last drop of flavor and potential from the crops of winemakers. Indeed, Italian vintners invented Grappa as a way to make use of the pomace - leftover grape skins, stems, pulp and seeds - which remained after the juice was extracted from the fruit needed to make wine. Over the centuries, the process was refined, and the distillation of Grappa became an art in itself. Today, top Grappa producers use a range of state of the art equipment, from continuous stills to pot stills, to manufacture a wide variety of Grappas, each with their own distinct characteristics.


Most of us know Grappa from our local Italian restaurants, where it is commonly served as a digestif. However, in the twenty first century, there is a high interest in unique, boutique Grappas, which showcase the talent of the distillers through a range of interesting qualities. Grappa can be aged in oak, in which case it takes on a beautiful golden color, quite different from the clear Grappas we are most familiar with. The high end Grappas are a world away from the harsh spirit many of us have encountered, and have a smooth, gentle quality which can be nothing short of a revelation.