Originally Posted by
slawecki
For excellent non-vintage , throw out the 10-15 branded wines, and choose any of the rest:
Find a Therry Theise import. he has far and away the best selection, the best growers, and with all grape blends. very few, if any major houses grow any of the grapes that go into NV wine.
I am forever amazed as to how strongly the FT group follows the brand name.
For the non-initiated, a brand name is often a good guide. Even you seem to trust the Therry Theise brand even though you are critical of the well-known champagne houses.
I would also disagree with your statement that you find better nv champagnes by throwing out the brand names. I challenge you to find no-name champagnes that are consistently as good as e.g. Pol Roger or Billecart-Salmon NV. I've had several (not all by any means) of the less known champagnes on the list and IMHO they do not measure up.
Cheers,
T.