It’s officially champagne time. New Year’s Eve is when we pop the most corks. There’s just something about the soft rich bubbles of a good French wine that feels special, rejuvenating, and celebratory. As with most things beer, wine, and spirits these days though, there’s a ton of champagne on the shelf — and it is not all created equal. So to save you from grabbing a sub-par bottle of champers, we’re calling out 12 bottles that are guaranteed to put a smile on your face as the ball drops.
Below, we’re calling out the real-deal bubbly. This is the sparkling white and rose wine from Champagne, France. You can pop prosecco or your local sparkling wines during the hot summer months. New Year’s Eve calls for the good stuff. But as I mentioned above, there’s so much French sparkling wine on the shelf right now that you can easily grab some shitty bottles too. The 12 bottles of champagne that we’ve listed below will help you avoid that.
The nuance there is the flavor profiles. There’s also the issue of the depth of those profiles — which can range from light and airy to “holy shit, where has this been all of my life!?!” So we’ve ranked these 12 champagnes. Our advice is to read through our professional tasting notes, find the bottles of champagne that speak to you, and then hit those price links to get some bottles delivered. Let’s dive in!
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12. Nicolas Feuillatte Brut Champagne
Average Price: $39
The Champagne
This champagne might be the most representative of the region in a single bottle. Nicolas Feuillatte is more of a collective (or union) of 100 individual winemakers and 82 winemaking cooperatives covering over 5,000 vineyards around Champagne, France. That equates to Feuillatte pulling its juice from a swath of vineyards that cover around 7% of the wine grown in the region.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a sense of dry breadiness next to ripe apricots and peaches that draws you in on the nose before a light flutter of clay dirt sneaks in on the back end.
Palate: The body is effervescent and full of bubbles that burst with orchard-pitted fruits alongside hints of vanilla and musty cellars full of old oak barrels.
Finish: The end gets creamy with that vanilla and a twinge of fresh flowers with apricot and peach skins and pits.
Bottom Line:
This is a great (and affordable!) place to start. This wine is a crowd-pleaser and very bright. And while it’s great for sipping (especially when ice-cold), we’d recommend using this one for champagne cocktails.
11. Laurent-Perrier Brut La Cuvee Champagne
Average Price: $54
The Champagne:
Eugene Laurent and Mathilde Emilie Perrier were a husband and wife team who created the third-best-selling champagne in the world. When Laurent died, he left the whole operation to Perrier, who took the champagne worldwide and found even more success.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a beautiful balance of bright lemon citrus and very summery French florals on the nose (think fields of lavender baking in the sun).
Palate: That citrus leads towards a ripe apricot sweetness and body with a buttery underbelly that’s counter to all that dry fizz and tartness from the citrus.
Finish: The end is mellow and embraces the florals, lemon, and apricot.
Bottom Line:
Again, this is bright and airy but has that little bit more depth, which makes it very sippable. If you’re looking for a bright stroll through a fruit orchard in the spring/summer this winter, this is the wine to pour.
10. Taittinger La Francaise Brut Champagne
Average Price: $72
The Champagne:
Taittinger blends old monastery wine-making, modern Chateau culture, and a deep history of Chardonnay grapes. The non-vintage wine leans into the Chardonnay grapes in the blend (basically, flipping on its head the ratio of Pinot to Chardonnay in the average blend), making this an outlier in the world of champagnes. The result is a nice break-from-the-norm bottle of bubbly.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a lightness that’s a bit of a trick, as the nose will tempt you with hints of peaches, buttery and yeasty brioche, summer wildflowers, and a whisper of vanilla.
Palate: The palate holds onto the stonefruit as a fresh honeycomb sweetness arrives late, bringing the whole sip together with a deep almost creamy nature of fresh butter whipped with honey, marmalade, and soft scones.
Finish: The end leans into the creamy honey vibes with a deep sense of dried apricot mixed with fatty nuts and a whisper of those wildflowers on a summer breeze.
Bottom Line:
This takes on a nice buttery depth. The finish lasts here, making this a good and bold sipper for a big meal.
9. Pol Roger Brut Réserve
Average Price: $55
The Champagne:
Pol Roger goes back to the mid-1800s (like so many on this list). The wine was so beloved that it received a “royal warrant” to become the official champagne of the court of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. That tradition carries on today as it now has the “royal warrant” for the British Crown, in large part thanks to Winston Churchill insisting that he only drank this champagne for decades. Translation: It’s really good stuff.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The champagne draws you in with this medley of bright wildflowers next to a brioche folded with stewed apple and a touch of vanilla and jasmine.
Palate: The palate revels in apricot jam, stewed plums, and more vanilla before a bright and slightly burnt orange oil arrives with hints of figs, anise, and beeswax candle wicks.
Finish: The end draws the perfect amount of fizzy buzz that’s almost heavy before drawing buttery brioche to a flutter of pain au chocolat.
Bottom Line:
This is getting into the complex and delicious wines. This also pulls off that magic trick of starting light, feeling brash and bold, and ending perfectly balanced between the two. It’s easy to see why the British royals pour this for their everyday champagne needs to this day.
8. Veuve Clicquot Brut Rose Champagne
Average Price: $76
The Champagne
Veuve Clicquot is a great starter champagne when you’re looking to take things up from novice to advanced beginner without getting too deep into the “advanced” stuff. Their Rose offering is made with 50 to 60 different crus that come from largely Pinot Noir grapes supported by Meunier and Chardonnay wines.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Berry tarts with buttery pastry and bright citrus oils pop on the nose next to a flourish of almond and lemon cookies dusted with powdered sugar and a whisper of oak spice.
Palate: Those berry tarts take on a rich strawberry note on the palate that’s fresh and vibrant before that butteriness returns with a moment of vanilla pods and old oak staves soaked in dry brandy.
Finish: A moment of orange oil drives the finish toward dry oak and butter vanilla with a hint of those bright berries lingering the longest.
Bottom Line:
Veuve is already a great choice to pop any ol’ time of year. The specialness of their rose varietal feels that little more dialed to NYE celebrations. Why? There’s more of that holiday dessert vibe with dark berries and lemon cookies with a hint of old oak and dark brandy. Add in the light bitterness and the whole thing feels like the perfect after-dinner sipper.
7. Moët & Chandon Nectar Imperial
Average Price: $68
The Champagne
Moët is a very old-school champagne that goes back to the court of French royalty. The popularity of this wine cannot be understated. They’re one of the biggest producers of champagne in the world. Nectar Impérial is a special blend of reserve wines (old ones) chosen to add a deeper sense of richness and complexity to the bubbly.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The flute pulls you in with a sense of tropical fruits leaning towards mangos and pineapple while stonefruits lurk in the background.
Palate: Those stonefruits take over on the palate with apricots and meaty plums leading toward a white grape touch next to a hint of vanilla.
Finish: Finally, that vanilla takes on a slightly creamy edge (thanks to a touch of Chardonnay in the blend), bringing a well-rounded body to this sip.
Bottom Line:
Creamy vanilla sauce over a bowl of fresh winter fruits? Yes, please! While that does sound like a great after-dinner sipper too, this wine really shines any time of day with any meal, crowd, or vibe. It’s probably the most “for everyone” champers on the list.
6. Louis Roederer Brut Premier
Average Price: $75
The Champagne:
Louis Roederer is one of the oldest Champagne houses that also happens to be one of the few fully independent shingles. The wine made a name as the champagne of the Russian Royal Court pre-revolution. As those royals ran for their lives, they spread the love of Louis Roederer to Paris, London, New York, and Shanghai, helping make the wine a truly international brand.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a real sense of an orchard full of stone fruits next to lightly roasted nuts with a hint of a warm croissant on the nose.
Palate: That butter and yeasty bready fades first as the ripe apricot and gooseberries counterpoint a deep dryness and light bubbles that are dry and full of that dry yeastiness.
Finish: There’s very little sweetness at play as a touch of oaky vanilla pops on the very end with a sense of dry oak, brandy, and apricot just kissed by dry honeycombs and apple peels.
Bottom Line:
This is a dry AF wine. That makes this one a little bit more of an acquired taste for some. The sweetness is drawn way back, allowing the wood and yeast to take center stage. We’d argue that makes this one a wonderful counterpoint for a big fatty meal as a slow sipper. But be warned, some champagne neophytes might not dig this one as much as the sweeter wines on the list.
5. Ruinart Blanc De Blancs Champagne
Average Price: $99
The Champagne
Ruinart Blanc is a very specific champagne. It’s made from 100% Chardonnay grapes. The ripple here is that 25% of the blend is from reserve wines that have settled in oak for several years before batching. Those wines are primarily Premier Crus (premiere vineyards with the best terroir) from the Montagne de Reims and the Côte des Blancs regions.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This nose bursts with a fresh fruit basket brimming with pears, sweet and tart apples, freshly plucked red berries, and a big ol’ pineapple in the middle before hints of summer wildflowers and fresh ginger sneak in.
Palate: The palate is lush with a sense of walnut fats and cardamom pods next to fresh peach tossed with pear brandy and orange zest with a whisper of sea salt.
Finish: The orange takes on a chinotto vibe on the finish as the spices kick in from the oak next to this lush sense of vanilla and butter at the very end.
Bottom Line:
This is a lovely and very bold pour. You’ll want to pour this as a counterpoint to charcuterie boards or as a dessert pour in place of pie and cake.
4. Armand De Brignac Ace Of Spade Champagne
Average Price: $299
The Champagne
This is a premier cuvée (the first cut of wine from a batch) champagne that’s dialed in for 21st-century palates (thanks to partial ownership by Jay-Z). Beyond those facts, the winemakers keep their cards close to the chest with the details of what’s in the bottle.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Soft peach and fresh apricot pop on the nose and are countered by tart red berries and bright orange that’s part oily and part floral before a buttery and sweet brioche arrives.
Palate: Those red berries sweeten toward a brandied cherry on the front of the palate as lemon-kissed sugar cookies with a creamy honey sweetness drive the palate toward soft oakiness and a hint of dry cedar.
Finish: That dry cedar drives the finish toward a whisper of winter spice barks before the creamy honey and brandied cherries return on the end for a lush finish full of sharp bubbles.
Bottom Line:
This is good and very dry champagne. Given the bottle, this is kind of a show-off wine. But we cannot deny that the bubbly inside is legitimately tasty and has a great holiday vibe balance of dark fruit, winter spices, and fresh bubbles. If you’re serving a buffet of holiday treats — savory and sweet — for NYE this year, then this wine will pair with it all.
3. Perrier Jouët Belle Epoque Brut Champagne
Average Price: $244
The Champagne
Perrier Jouët Belle Epoque is a vintage champagne. That means the absolute best wines (from the top-tier vineyards) from a specific year (2014 in this case) were left alone to mature until ready for release, creating a bit of a time machine to another era of wine-making in France.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Summer wildflowers and white peaches fresh from the tree dominate the nose with a sense of sweet oakiness, soft and very fresh croissant (to the point of almost feeling warm from the oven), and this flutter of almond shell.
Palate: Fresh apple skins and pear stems drive the palate with a whisper of chinotto orange bitterness, soft lemon oils, and more of that nutshell dryness with a hint of soft oak that’s damn near creamy.
Finish: The creaminess amps on the finish as the wildflowers meld with creamed honey, soft stewed pear, and a whisper of winter spice barks.
Bottom Line:
Okay, now we’re into the unassailable amazing wines. This goes with everything wintry while also offering its own feel and depth that makes it singularly delicious as a sipper. You cannot go wrong pouring this wine for anyone from a newbie to a Master Sommelier.
2. Bollinger Brut Special Cuvée Champagne
Average Price: $104
The Champagne
Bollinger has spent centuries becoming the icon it is today. The wine got a huge boost when it became the champagne of Queen Victoria’s court in the late 1800s, which led to it being the official drink of Ian Fleming’s James Bond. Thanks to the guidance of Lily Bollinger post-WWII, the brand became the champagne that the adventurers, jet-setters, and champagne drinkers in the know drink.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This draws you in with a sense of over-ripe peaches next to tart apples and sweet pears stewed with dark spices, sultanas, and buttery wine before hitting this layer of dry oak with a hint of old cedar flakes.
Palate: That spice and apple/pear bring about an almost apple butter feel as the svelte nature of the sip leads towards a brioche loaded with walnuts with subtle winter spice barks and dry yet sweet oakiness.
Finish: The end leans into the sweet creaminess of the orchard fruit with a vibrant sense of flaked sea salt and dashes of brandied raisins and saffron-stewed apricots.
Bottom Line:
This is the wine you pop when you’re about to kiss the one you love as the new year rings in. It’s perfection … just like that kiss should be.
1. Krug Grande Cuvée
Average Price: $299
The Champagne
Krug Grande Cuvée is one of the best pours of bubbly out there (and I’m saying that as a “die-on-a-hill” Bollinger acolyte). The wine is hewn from 120 different wines that are 10 different ages, ranging into the double digits. Naturally, the wines selected are from the best vines with impeccable terroir-driven winemaking at the core of each of them.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is akin to walking through a field of wildflowers with an orange and lemon orchard in full bloom in the near distance next to rich and very good marzipan cut with moist gingerbread houses covered in candied berries, cherries, and citrus rinds.
Palate: Chinotto orange bitterness opens the dry yet creamy palate with a sense of lemon curd and quince jelly before this deep almond oil sense arrives with a hint of petit pains au chocolat aux amandes (very buttery pastries with rich chocolate and almond paste) next to a touch of dried cranberry.
Finish: The end leans into the dried red fruit and almond paste with a nice dry orange bitterness accented by subtle oakiness that’s more like a walk through a wine cellar than holding an oak stave in your hand.
Bottom Line:
This is kind of a show-off wine too (that price is no joke). But where this wine excels is in the excellence of the actual champagne in the bottle. This is a fantastic wine from top to bottom and should be the only bottle in your guests’ hands as 2024 dawns — price be damned!