Vintage Champagnes or Millésime must mature for at least three years according to the requirements of the "Champagne" Appellation - which corresponds to about 1,000 days.
Discover our selection of vintage Champagnes and our special recommendations!
Discover our selection of vintage Champagnes and our special recommendations!
"Millésime", who are you?
Vintage Champagne - also known as Millésime - is the reflection of a year, of a harvest: if the wine of a harvest is exceptionally good, the Champagne can be made exclusively from the wine of that vintage. These Champagnes must be stored for at least 3 years in the winemakers' cellars before they can be offered for sale.
Tasting notes
Vintage Champagne is a Champagne with great character, which has gained good length and a beautiful aromatic complexity through aging in the cellar. These Millésime Champagnes offer a complex palette with tertiary aromas of evolution: honey, stewed or dried fruits, toasted notes, spices...
Vintage Champagne is a Champagne with great character, which has gained good length and a beautiful aromatic complexity through aging in the cellar. These Millésime Champagnes offer a complex palette with tertiary aromas of evolution: honey, stewed or dried fruits, toasted notes, spices...
Pairings
It is excellent as an aperitif to discover new, more intense aromas, but also as an accompaniment to refined dishes such as stews, scallops, or foie gras. The only golden rule when combining food and Champagne is to follow your desires and, above all, to treat yourself and your guests!
It is excellent as an aperitif to discover new, more intense aromas, but also as an accompaniment to refined dishes such as stews, scallops, or foie gras. The only golden rule when combining food and Champagne is to follow your desires and, above all, to treat yourself and your guests!
Aging
Vintage wines can last for years after their fermentation phase, with a cellaring potential of ten to twenty years after commercialization, managing to preserve freshness, youthfulness, complexity, and refinement.
In Champagne, there are great vintage wines, e.g. 2008, 2007, 2006, 2004 or 2002, as well as the more recent vintages 2017, 2014, 2011, 2010 and 2009, whose potential is guaranteed.
Vintage wines can last for years after their fermentation phase, with a cellaring potential of ten to twenty years after commercialization, managing to preserve freshness, youthfulness, complexity, and refinement.
In Champagne, there are great vintage wines, e.g. 2008, 2007, 2006, 2004 or 2002, as well as the more recent vintages 2017, 2014, 2011, 2010 and 2009, whose potential is guaranteed.
The special features
The terroir, i.e. the soils, are of great importance in Champagne and give the Champagnes identity and distinctiveness, depending on whether the vineyards are located in Cramant or Epernay, in Aÿ or Bouzy, in the Aube or in the Marne.
A vintage is influenced by several other factors. The weather conditions of a year will affect the development and ripeness of the grape berries. Weather conditions mean three essential factors: sunlight, precipitation and temperature. Added to this is the grape variety factor, a key element that will also shape a vintage.
The terroir, i.e. the soils, are of great importance in Champagne and give the Champagnes identity and distinctiveness, depending on whether the vineyards are located in Cramant or Epernay, in Aÿ or Bouzy, in the Aube or in the Marne.
A vintage is influenced by several other factors. The weather conditions of a year will affect the development and ripeness of the grape berries. Weather conditions mean three essential factors: sunlight, precipitation and temperature. Added to this is the grape variety factor, a key element that will also shape a vintage.
Conclusion
A vintage Champagne is the reflection of a single year with an exceptional harvest. Each vintage is therefore unique, like the year it was created, and rare, as it is produced in smaller quantities.
A vintage Champagne is the reflection of a single year with an exceptional harvest. Each vintage is therefore unique, like the year it was created, and rare, as it is produced in smaller quantities.
