It tells you something when you consider that a 3,750-case estate produces two Tetes de Cuvee; says there's a wine-freak at the helm who never had a marketing-thought in his life. Though it has always been majority-Chardonnay, Billiot has increased the proportions lately. Old bottlings of Laetitia (which I dearly wish I'd kept, damn it) were fathomless and sometimes inscrutable. Leviathans of vinosity, but you had to tuck in and live with a bottle for an hour or so. Not any more. What I tasted was entirely open and forthright, with clear intensity and more Chardonnay hawthorne. It's nowhere near modern but it is more up-to-date; there's more greengage and spiciness, more scallop and saffron, and less of the funky temperament we knew (and yes, loved). This stacks up against any Champagne you'll ever find; a true Tete de Cuvee. In principle this is a solera freshened whenever fruit of sufficient quality comes along. Laetitia herself told me this was 20 vintages from 1983 to 2003, which suggests Serge puts so - Henri Billiot Champagne Cuvee Laetitia NV 750ml -
