Based half-each on vintages 2010 and 2009, and with 10% Pinot Noir "smuggled in," Agrapart's NV Brut Blanc De Blancs 7 Crus E13 - named for the seven Cote des Blancs villages from which it is sourced, and in this instance disgorged in May, 2013 - displays uncommon delicacy, buoyancy, tension and nuance for an "intro-level" cuvee, and that uncannily combined with a sense of richness and purity to its white peach and grapefruit. Almond and pistachio cream lend allure; chalk and salt along with piquancy of peach kernel and toasted pumpkin seed impart interest, invigoration and saliva-inducement to an effusively juicy, succulent and refreshingly sustained finish. Seven grams of residual sugar, incidentally, is fairly high by estate standards but perfectly complements this wine's forward fruit without engendering any sense of outright sweetness. This exceptional value in Champagne should remain irresistible for at least the next couple of years, and I shall be anxious to experience what happens further down the pike as I revisit the bottles I recently purchased (because older "intro-level" bottles are not usually something that growers - or, for that matter, most self-styled wine collectors - can lay their hands on to pour for you).

A well-cut Champagne, with a minerally underpinning and a pleasing tension to finely knit flavors of white cherry and Anjou pear, grated ginger and sliced almond. Plush and creamy on the lingering finish. Disgorged April 2020. Drink now through 2023. 3,000 cases made, 500 cases imported.