The Henri Laffard Grande Reserve Brut Champagne is a $24.99 Bubbly found at Trader Joe’s. It looks to be a Trader Joe’s US exclusive. This is a Grower Champagne, which is a Bubbly from one of the vineyard owners in the Champagne region. Less than 5% of the Champagne wines in the US are Grower Champagne.
The Story
Henri Lafford is the brand from Rudy Remy, the second-generation winemaker from Bernard Remy Champagne. They are located in the Cotes de Blancs region of Champagne. This Bubbly also includes grapes from Sezannais and Vallée de la Marne.
There are different types of Grower Champagne a two-letter code on the bottle tells the classification, and here we have an NM Grower Champagne. This shows Bubbly to be a Negociant Maniplulant. That means the grapes were purchased by other growers and this is a very common practice.
The Henri Laffard Grande Reserve Brut Champagne is a blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier.
The Grande Reserve in the name is not an official Champagne term, so it has no legal meaning. But like Old Vine Zinfandel is generally accepted to use vines a minimum of 40 years old, Grande Reserve often indicates that the wines in the blend (this is a non-vintage wine that includes wine from different vintages) are over five years old.
This looks to be an export brand, most of the mentions of Henri Laffard are websites with Asian writing, Champagne is especially popular in China.
An affordable Grower Champagne is a rare treat, and to find one at Trader Joe’s is extraordinary. The alcohol content is 12%.
The Henri Laffard Grande Reserve Brut Champagne Tasting Notes
The color is a nice golden yellow with a hint of pink. The nose is lemon mousse, apple, spice, yeasty bread, cherry cough drops, grapefruit, and faint tangerine. The Henri Laffard Grande Reserve Brut Champagne is crisp, with a little bit of weight on the palate, along with intersting flavor and excellent length.
This Bubbly tastes like lemon mixed with pink grapefruit and soft dried strawberry bits. The mid-palate offers brioche, gentle spice, nectarine, and a nutty/salty sensation.
The acidity is bright and zesty and gives this Bubbly very good length.
The Summary
- The Henri Laffard Grande Reserve Brut Champagne is definitely a Bubbly to consider this NYE.
- A Grower Champagne at this price and so easily obtainable is a joy.
- There are other grower Bubbly but you would have to chase down every wine shop in town to find a Bubbly this affordable.
- Give it a try; this is good Champagne.
