Champagne Billecart-Salmon 250th Anniversary Cuvée Brut 2018

Billecart-Salmon has been making jaw-dropping Champagne for 200 years – seven generations – all from the tiny village of Mareuil-sur-Aÿ. They farm 100 hectares of their own vines and cherry-pick from another 300 hectares of the region's greatest growers across 40 crus – which is a fancy way of saying they have first dibs on some of the best fruit in all of Champagne. For this 2018 vintage, they grabbed the top lots of the very best Pinot Noir (65%) from the Montagne de Reims and Chardonnay (35%) from the Côte des Blancs, with no corners cut anywhere.

This is a special, commemorative, highly collectible bottling that's usually squirreled away for white-tablecloth restaurants and specialty shops, and not something you’d ever stumble onto at this price. It rested on the lees for a generous five-plus years and got a barely-there 4.9 g/L dosage, so it's crisp, bone-dry, and absolutely electric. The milestone behind it is a double whammy, celebrating both America's 250th birthday and Billecart's own 200th harvest. Two centuries of winemaking meeting two and a half centuries of independence? You don't get a reason to pop a cork much better than that.

Pour it and you get pale gold shot through with shimmering flecks, akin to a sparkly golden firework. The nose is Meyer lemon and warm toasted brioche, followed by a cool chalky note sneaking in. One sip and it's all structure, balance, acid, and fruit locked arm-in-arm, with a mineral streak running straight down the middle. Notes of white blossom, yellow apple, honey-butter biscuit, and a little salty kiss on the finish give it this effortlessly elegant air, and it's clear this is about as good as Billecart gets. Grab a bottle (or three) now, and you'll have the perfect pour ready for whatever this milestone summer throws at you!