AM JUL ISSUE #127

This month has been a

This month has been a busy one and there were a number of events taking place that we navigated between. With JAŸ-Z’s 3 night concert in NYC that took place July 10th - 12th at Yankees Stadium. Leading up to the concert, we were invited to an initimate Armand de Brignac listening party that was hosted by Jermaine Stone (Street Somm, This is Taste, Wine and Hip Hop), a wine expert and hip-hop artist. This listening party celebrated 3 anniversaries of Reasonable Doubt (30 years), The Blueprint (25 years), and Armand de Brignac’s Ace of Spades (20 years). We assembled at Eavesdrop in Brooklyn where we listened to a curated series of songs as they would pair with Brut Gold, Rosé, Blanc de Blancs, and Demi-Sec. REASONABLE DOUBT X BLANC DE BLANCS Reasonable Doubt (July 10th show) introduced a young JAŸ-Z fully in command of his own voice and with a pen game defined by precision. Blanc de Blancs is Armand de Brignac’s most singular cuvée, demanding the same level of discipline in the cellar as he had in the booth. Made entirely from Chardonnay, it leaves zero room for error in the blend, much like an artist’s debut album. THE BLUEPRINT X BRUT GOLD The Blueprint (July 11th show) gave an entire generation of rappers a new flow to build from, one that’s been echoed ever since. Brut Gold plays a parallel role inside Armand de Brignac’s own portfolio. It’s the house’s founding cuvée, a tri-varietal blend sourced from grapes grown across Champagne’s top-rated crus, and the standard against which every other bottle in the range is measured. EXTRA INNINGS X ROSÉ & DEMI-SEC We enjoyed this listening party on July 8th and didn’t know what songs were being performed for the July 12th show. Jermaine imagined fans would explore all of JAŸ-Z’s career-defining songs. The 4:44 album was JAŸ-Z at his most exposed, a deliberate departure from the persona he’d spent a career building. Armand de Brignac’s Rosé makes a similar departure within the portfolio, built from Pinot Noir through a different production process that sets it apart in color, character, and mood from the rest of the range. Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life was JAŸ-Z’s first album to reach no.1 and remains his best-selling record to date. The album pulled in a wider, more mainstream audience, turning casual listeners into fans. Demi-Sec plays a similar role in champagne: it’s Armand de Brignac’s most crowd-pleasing cuvée, with a touch of sweetness that softens the traditionally dry edge and makes it more approachable to drinkers just discovering the category. @armanddebrignac @realwolfofwine @jayz PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY | 9PLAY- LIST PG 64 - 76 Roc Nation | Ace of Spades Listening Party PG 79 - 81 Armand de Brignac | 9PLAYLIST PG 86 - 93 The Rolling Stones |