Champagne Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label Brut | Cooler Edition

(roughly 50% pinot noir, 30% chardonnay and 20% pinot meunier; Lot 14009913): Light gold. Musky orchard fruits and dried fig on the mineral-accented nose. Fleshy and broad on the palate, offering smoky pear and nectarine flavors and a hint of honey. Finishes on a gently spicy note, with very good cling and a touch of bitter lemon pith. Things have definitely begun to turn around for this bottling, which had been lagging behind the winery's vintage offerings for some time.

- Josh Raynolds (12/2013)

Comprising 85% of production, the NV Champagne Yellow Label Brut is 40% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay, and the rest Meunier, with 35-40% reserve wine. Entirely fermented and aged in stainless steel tanks, it spends three years on the lees, and the wine sees 9 grams per liter of dosage, but the house does not disclose the disgorgement date. A golden straw hue, it’s ripe with aromas of yeasty bread dough, peaches, and fresh flowers. Medium-bodied on the palate, it’s ripe and juicy with rounded red berried fruit, a supple texture, a pillowy mousse, and a warming finish. Fresh and inviting, this is a solid and consistent aperitif to enjoy over the coming several years.

- Audrey Frick (11/2023)

This harmonious Champagne boasts a bright streak of tangerine peel–infused acidity, with flavors of ripe green apple, pastry cream and biscuit, plus accents of crystallized honey and candied ginger, all set on the lacy mousse. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier. Drink now.

- A.N.

The latest rendition of Clicquot's emblematic NV Brut Yellow Label contains around 35% reserve wines—mostly from the last five vintages—and was finished with 10 grams per liter dosage. Offering up aromas of warm bread, peach, citrus oil and crushed chalk, it's medium to full-bodied, ample and fleshy, with a sweet core of fruit marked by a touch of sweetness from its dosage, concluding with a clean, nicely defined finish. Almost 20 million bottles are produced every year.

- William Kelley (04/2020)