Essi Avellan: Scary-looking, deep orange color. Very sweet, evolved, botrytized nose, with apricot and honey. Still, an old-wine nose—hard to imagine it is from 2006. Full-on, rich, vinous palate that finishes dry. Curious but not bad, atypical. 86

Alex Hunt: Very dark, amber-colored wine, yet not oxidized—instead, with a lot of botrytis character. A vinegary edge to the dried-peach palate does little to win this taster over. 75

Tom Stevenson: A deep gold botrytis color. A very curious but not unlikable Champagne. Rich, high-acid, extremely fresh, marmalade fruit, with a very soft, low-pressure mousse. Almost absolutely clean, with just a smidgen of VA that many will not even notice. A bit like, I imagine, a 19thcentury sparkling Sauternes might have tasted. Deliberately and contentiously scored high ... 88