Ayala : Blanc de Blancs 2016

Lime, smoke, and hazelnut aromas, with a lovely brown tarty pastry note and some dried tropical fruits and cocoa. Fresh acidity with flavours of lemon, lime juice, basil, apple and a bit of white pepper. Toasty and rounded.

This is really delicious, with buttered-brioche and bread-dough character. It's full-bodied but not heavy. Just rich and plush. Creamy and round-textured. Extremely long aftertaste. Pure Chardonnay. Aged six years on the lees. 5 g/l dosage. Drink now.

Full bottle 1,698 g. Disgorged January 2022. It's not often that I think a champagne smells of ripe bananas. Also golden apples. Wisps of smoke and nervous citrus acidity tighten up a loose-knit, honeyed palate that seems to be inclined to splay broad and generous – seduction over precision. Mythology over mathematics. Gold over silver. But then there is that quicksilver whiplash of smoke and citrus, and everything is back in place. Correct. (TC)

The 2016 Le Blanc de Blancs is one of the better wines I have tasted here of late. Exuberant and quite expressive, the 2016 soars with scents of lemon confit, marzipan and sweet spice, all in a forward, open-knit style that offers good near-term appeal. All this needs is a bit more focus in its bouquet, but it is still a big step up from the past. Light tropical accents linger on the close.

Pale yellow-green with silver reflections, fine, lively mousse. Delicate white tropical fruit, a hint of vineyard peach, candied lime zest, fine blossom honey; complex, elegant, with fine minerality and a refined structure. Finish of green and ripe apple, taut, very persistent, very youthful, will benefit from a few years of maturation.

Moving into the 2016 Champagne Le Blanc de Blancs Brut, this displays more floral softness, with notes of shortbread cookie, white flowers, and candied melon. It has a bit more energy on the palate and an airiness about it, with green apple and lemon pith. It is refreshing and clean, although it feels a touch hollow. It is perfect for drinking over the next 8-10 years as an aperitif.