The Dom Ruinart 2010 was also disgorged by hand.

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2010 wasn't the best year for Ruinart. The spring was extremely cold, dry, and rainy, and the summer was rainy and rainy. Rot struck at the end of ripening.

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Featuring 100 percent Chardonnay grapes in its extra brut Blanc de Blancs Champagne, Dom Ruinart 2010 sells for $295 per bottle. Ruinart describes the wine as having the aromatic freshness of Chardonnay, with floral notes reminiscent of perfumery to spiced notes reminiscent of nutmeg and roasted almonds, and lemony notes at the end. It has been described as having a complex taste, followed by a fresh and slightly bitter finish.

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Champagne's distinctive flavor is enhanced by the use of cork stoppers when it is aged on lees. Although crown caps became more popular over time, the practice was once common. Ruinart's cellar master decided in the late 1990s to age some 1998 Dom Ruinart vintages under cork. Because the material is porous but is very stable, it allows small amounts of oxygen to enter the bottles. The result is a wine with a significantly higher degree of tension.

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A manual disgorging procedure was also brought back by Ruinart for this vintage along with the reintroduction of cork stoppers. A small amount of liqueur was added to each bottle as a rounding agent after the winemakers opened the bottles by hand and removed sediment. After the bubbles were capped with an expedition cork and a capsule marking the vintage, they were left to rest for another year.

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The Dom Ruinart 2010 can probably be enjoyed alone best. The house suggests pairing it with food that is also slightly prolonged in preparation, such as salted, fermented or smoked dishes. This sounds like a great combination if you're thinking about pairing the Champagne with food.