93 points/'Brut NV Champagne of the Year 2022 (Independent),' Tom Hewson (TimAtkin.com): "The 2019 base of Adrien Dhondt's first cuvée, blending 50% Sézanne Chardonnay with 30% Pinot Noir from Avenay d'Or and 20% Pinot Menuier from Cuis. 100% oak fermentation in barrels between one and five years of age. 30% perpetual reserves going back to 1986. Dhondt's wines just bolt out of the gates with tremendous density and expressiveness, broad with maple and roast apple intensity playing with apricot and praline in a style that is rich, but brilliantly tempered by the natural cut and thrust of the 2019 vintage. A fine success, with an extra notch of precision over 2018. (Dec 2022)"
92 points William Kelley (Wine Advocate): "Disgorged in January 2020 with three grams per liter dosage, the NV Extra-Brut Dans un Premier Temps (2018) is excellent, bursting with aromas of peach, citrus oil, white flowers, fresh bread and stone fruit. Medium to full-bodied, ample and layered, with a demonstrative core of fruit and succulent acids, it's vinous and enveloping, drinking especially well out of the gates. Drink: 2021-2028. (Sep 2021)"
92 points Antonio Galloni (Vinous): "The NV Extra Brut Assemblage Dans un Premier Temps is a blend of 50% Chardonnay from Sezanne, 30% Pinot Noir from Avenay val d'Or and 20% Meunier from Cuis with the Chardonnay very much front and center in the wine's floral and citrus/driven profile. Bright, focused and tightly wound, this gorgeous, entry-level Champagne from Dhondt-Grellet hits all the right notes. This release is 70% 2016 and 30% perpetual reserve going back to 1986. The low dosage of 4 grams per liter adds to the wine's taut feel. Disgorged: March, 2019. Drink: 2019-2027. (Dec 2019)"
91+ points John Gilman (View From the Cellar): "The Dans Un Premier Temps bottling from Adrien Dhondt is composed of a blend of fifty percent chardonnay, thirty percent pinot noir and twenty percent pinot meunier, with the vins clairs raised in both casks and stainless steel tanks and everything undergoing malolactic fermentation. The wine is from the base year of 2016, with thirty percent of the cuvée made up of reserve wines and Monsieur Dhondt allowed the vins clairs to age until May of 2017 before bottling the wine up for secondary fermentation. It was disgorged in June of 2019 and finished with a dosage of three grams per liter. The wine offers up a fine, youthful bouquet of apple, pear, hazelnut, brioche, chalky minerality, discreet smokiness and just a hint of buttery oak in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and youthfully snappy, with a superb core, fine mineral drive and grip, elegant mousse and a long, nascently complex and very nicely balanced finish. This is an excellent bottle in the making, but, at least for my palate, the wine deserves a year or two in the cellar to relax its girdle of acidity a bit more and really start to blossom. It is going to be lovely. 2022-2045. (Sep/Oct 2020)"
92 points William Kelley (Wine Advocate): "Disgorged in January 2020 with three grams per liter dosage, the NV Extra-Brut Dans un Premier Temps (2018) is excellent, bursting with aromas of peach, citrus oil, white flowers, fresh bread and stone fruit. Medium to full-bodied, ample and layered, with a demonstrative core of fruit and succulent acids, it's vinous and enveloping, drinking especially well out of the gates. Drink: 2021-2028. (Sep 2021)"
92 points Antonio Galloni (Vinous): "The NV Extra Brut Assemblage Dans un Premier Temps is a blend of 50% Chardonnay from Sezanne, 30% Pinot Noir from Avenay val d'Or and 20% Meunier from Cuis with the Chardonnay very much front and center in the wine's floral and citrus/driven profile. Bright, focused and tightly wound, this gorgeous, entry-level Champagne from Dhondt-Grellet hits all the right notes. This release is 70% 2016 and 30% perpetual reserve going back to 1986. The low dosage of 4 grams per liter adds to the wine's taut feel. Disgorged: March, 2019. Drink: 2019-2027. (Dec 2019)"
91+ points John Gilman (View From the Cellar): "The Dans Un Premier Temps bottling from Adrien Dhondt is composed of a blend of fifty percent chardonnay, thirty percent pinot noir and twenty percent pinot meunier, with the vins clairs raised in both casks and stainless steel tanks and everything undergoing malolactic fermentation. The wine is from the base year of 2016, with thirty percent of the cuvée made up of reserve wines and Monsieur Dhondt allowed the vins clairs to age until May of 2017 before bottling the wine up for secondary fermentation. It was disgorged in June of 2019 and finished with a dosage of three grams per liter. The wine offers up a fine, youthful bouquet of apple, pear, hazelnut, brioche, chalky minerality, discreet smokiness and just a hint of buttery oak in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and youthfully snappy, with a superb core, fine mineral drive and grip, elegant mousse and a long, nascently complex and very nicely balanced finish. This is an excellent bottle in the making, but, at least for my palate, the wine deserves a year or two in the cellar to relax its girdle of acidity a bit more and really start to blossom. It is going to be lovely. 2022-2045. (Sep/Oct 2020)"
| Product SKU | 341119 |
| Producer | Dhondt-Grellet |
| Country | France |
| Region | Champagne |
| SubRegion | Côte des Blancs |
| Varietal | Champagne / Sparkling Blend |
| Vintage | NV |
| Size | 750ml |
| Color | White |
| Blend | 50%Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir, 20% Pinot Meunier |
| Ships To |
