Your scribe is a long time admirer of the bubbles from Champagne. Fortunate to try many Grandes Marques celebrating the arrival of 2025 and the recent festive season of 2024. Some maturing exquisite Salon & complex Krug Vintage both from that intense fruit balanced 1985 year hit the spot. Enjoying the balanced Pol Roger in Magnum from 1996 & 1990 both drinking on a wonderful plateau of refined enjoyment. Younger stars like 2014 Roederer Cristal & 2008 Dom Perignon are highly recommended. Though current sale volumes for Champagne are down those who purchased wisely have older treasures to draw on for regular treats. Also, many non-vintage (or rather multi-vintage) have increased amounts of reserve wines now being added. Charles Heidsieck has 50% reserves for fantastic depth plus the great value of fresh fruity Piper is enticing.
Monitor the newer vintages arriving for bottles to buy. Be careful because grapes tend to be ripening under warmer Summer weather that may result in higher Phs and lower acidity, Look for brands like Gosset that don’t go through malolactic fermentation to preserve the best vibrant freshness. There were smaller harvests for 2021, 2020, and 2019 but 2022 & 2023 have bounced back with more volume. Check out detailed vintage information on best Champagne years to acquire with very useful guides available on the internet. Three excellent ones are The Finest Bubble here, Wine Scholar Guild here, and Wine Spectator here.
In hindsight, it was wise to buy vintage Champagne from 2012 & 2008 which have turned out to be classics in the mode of 2002, 1996, 1990 and 1988. They are all well balanced and age exceptionally – especially in larger formats. Wonderful now. These vintages really were good purchases especially from smaller grower champagne producers. One of the first commercially available growers and an exceptional one is Paul Bara pioneered by Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant linked here. On 11 hectares of ideal clay & limestone soils in the Grand Cru of Bouzy they use only the first pressing of grapes. Particularly impressive is their Bouzy Brut Grand Cru Millesime of 2012 & 2008 a blend of 90 % Pinot Noir & 10% Chardonnay. The disgorgement dates on the back label show that 2012 was 05/19 (nearly 7 years on lees) and 2008 on 05/17 (nearly 9). Seek out which vintages of this decade of the twenties will be well structured and balanced for best cellar aging. Put some bottles away for a few years and appreciate the aged dividends they handsomely pay you.
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