House of Arras Tasmania EJ Carr Late Disgorged 2008

Green apple, gunsmoke, citrus, nectarine, with grip and just a ton of pleasure. Tasted alongside the warmer 2007 and 2009 vintages, all late disgorged, all excellent but this one stood out for me as a little fresher and crisper, still with the flakey pastry, spice and saffron edge that comes with the extra time on lees. Tasted with producer and all-round sparkling wine legend Ed Carr. Less than 5% of Arras is currently sold outside of Australia, so if you do see this, I strongly suggest picking up a bottle. Méthode Traditionelle, 2g/l dosage, late-disgorged after 14 years (they do an earlier release after seven years) then held for six months in bottle before release – it is also the only Australian sparkling to be included in the Langton’s classification. I also had the 2006 late-disgorged this year at 67 Pall Mall in London, so fully immersed myself in this exceptional wine over the past 12 months…