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Something NewNonvintage champagnes for snobs who prefer the good stuff.

By Mike SteinbergerPosted Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2007, at 12:11 PM ET

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Not far behind is the Bollinger Special Cuvée ($55), a rich, bone-dry champagne with a terrific medley of fruits and spices on the nose and an intriguing peanut-brittle note in the mouth; it is a superb wine from a great house. Taittinger has two nonvintage offerings. The Taittinger Brut La Francaise ($55) is a creamy, spicy champagne that finishes on a peachy, slightly sweet note. It is a good wine, but I think the Roederer and the Bollinger are better bets. The Taittinger Prélude Grands Crus Brut ($75) is a step up from its sibling in price and quality, with a seductive bouquet of baked spiced apples and smoke, and a pronounced mineral edge. It is a lot of money for a nonvintage, but it goes down exceedingly well. Another excellent option is the Pol Roger Brut Extra Cuvée de Réserve ($36.99), which tastes literally like a liquefied green apple (that's a compliment). It is a mellow, caressing champagne that begs to be drunk by a fireplace.

But there are also some less heralded houses producing delicious nonvintage wines. Billecart-Salmon is the best-kept secret in champagne—a small producer with an impeccable line of champagnes. The Billecart-Salmon Brut Réserve ($40) is a supremely elegant wine with an ideal balance of ripe fruit and chalky minerality, and a complexity that belies its nonvintage status.

Philipponnat is known mainly for its tête de cuvée, the Clos des Goisses, one of the most coveted vintage champagnes. But its nonvintage offering, the Philipponnat Brut Royale Réserve ($50), also does the maison proud. It is a solid, winey champagne with notes of hazelnut, white chocolate, and toast, and a long, citric finish; really impressive. Henriot is on a roll these days; everything I've tasted recently from this firm has been sublime, and the Henriot Brut Souverain ($40) is no exception. Like the Philipponnat, it is a rich, vinous champagne with a refreshing green-apple core and a nice savory kick, as well. It also offers excellent value (comparatively speaking, of course).

Gosset is another name that deserves more recognition. Like Taittinger, it puts out two nonvintage wines. The Gosset Grande Réserve Brut ($63.99) boasts a pleasantly spicy nose with hints of red berries and has a somewhat burly, mineral-rich presence on the palate. The Gosset Brut Excellence ($46.99) is also a mouthful: It is a full-bodied, sinewy champagne with winsome peach and floral notes and a big yeasty backbone. It is a bubbly that will snap you to attention if you begin to flag on New Year's Eve.

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Mike Steinberger is Slate's wine columnist. He can be reached at . His book, Au Revoir to All That, is about the rise, fall, and future of French cuisine.

Photograph of champagne by Digital Vision. Photograph of champagne bottle on Slate's home page by Stockbyte.

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