2008 Champagne Bollinger - RD Extra Brut

Decanter.com – 97 pts – SF: *Bright in colour with gold reflections, the aromatics are immediately captivating, with marzipan, acacia, apricot and patisserie all vying for attention. It’s impossibly youthful yet reassuringly mature, a bread basket of delicious contradiction. Cerebral seduction ensues on the palate, with dried fruits, bergamot and lime joining the party, then come the hazelnut notes – which have been identified as a leitmotif for the vintage – and a clean, almost chalky finish to restore rigorous harmony. Precision in no way undermines generosity, and generosity in no way undermines potential. A very fine piece of work all in all, tasted from magnum, alongside bottle and jeroboam. Disgorged: November 2022. Dosage: 3g/L.* - 03/2023

JancisRobinson.com – 18/20pts – JR: *71% Pinot Noir, 29% Chardonnay. Deliberately released only a few months after disgorgement to preserve freshness. Launched in the UK with great fanfare – or at least bagpipes, from the pipe band of the London Scottish regiment both outside and inside Spencer House in London. The excuse being that Lily Bollinger was a quarter Scottish.
Bottle disgorged October 2022
Lightly smoky nose and extremely tense with some of the mushroom notes that are so characteristic of mature Bollinger. (Though hazelnuts were chosen as the overriding character and theme of the launch dinner by chef de cave Denis Bunner.) Still extremely youthful though it did open out in the glass, auguring well for bottle development.
Magnum disgorged November 2022
Perhaps unexpectedly this was much more opulent and expressive on the nose than the bottle – much more flattering and less demanding. Though still there is piercing acidity and the whole is beautifully long and complete. Bollinger have always thought magnums the ideal size, better than bottles or jeroboams.
Jeroboam
Even paler and with a drier finish..* - 03/2023

Vinous.com – 96 pts – AG: *Bollinger’s 2008 R.D. is a powerful, vinous Champagne. Apricot, dried pear, tangerine oil, hazelnut, dried flowers, chamomile and brioche all race across the palate. The 2008 boasts notable depth and textural intensity, with a feeling of phenolic, almost tannin-driven grip from the Pinot that propels the finish. At times the R.D. is quite exotic, even if there is a good kick of energy from the bright, salivating acids and low dosage. The 2008 R.D. is very much a Champagne for the dinner table, a wine that benefits immensely from aeration. In 2008, the blend comprises fruit from 18 villages, 71% Pinot Noir, mostly from Aÿ and Verzenay and 29% Chardonnay, mostly from Mesnil-sur-Oger and Cramant. Dosage is 3 grams of dosage. I would give this a few more years in bottle to fully come together. Disgorged: October 28, 2022.* - 05/2023