The “Spécial Club,” known as Club Trésors de Champagne since 1999 is one of the most rigorous wine organizations on earth. Other than being one of the 28 qualifying members—which happens only through private invitation—a series of fortunate events must occur should you want to display “Spécial Club” on your label. First, it must be a Vintage Champagne from a year deemed worthy by the committee (in the stellar 2012 growing season, there wasn’t a shred of doubt). Second, your wine must be blind tasted twice by a nonpartisan panel of enologists and winemakers—once as a base wine and then again after three years of bottle aging. If one of them is downvoted, your wine no longer qualifies for the “Spécial Club. If it does meet all of the requirements then, and only then, can you use today’s specially designed squat-shaped bottle, which is trademarked exclusively for the club’s usage. 

In the glass, there’s incredible tension and multi-layered richness keeps the palate building with each passing second, and an extraordinary ripe fruit/crushed mineral infusion allows it to soar. This is a paragon of world-class Champagne and around 50-55 degrees in all-purpose stems (Burgundy stems are also fine), it comes alive: Explosions of ripe quince, apricot, and yellow apples dominate the center stage, followed by toasted nuts, brioche, salted lemon peel, citrus blossoms, oyster shell, acacia honey, lees, vanilla bean, and finally crushed chalk. Despite the powerful minerality at play here—we have time-honored Grand Cru terroirs to thank for that—there is so much suppleness to be had. The palate is full, rich, and luxurious, all with an underlying intensity that leaves a long-lasting imprint.