Moët & Chandon has revealed that the 2004 vintage will follow the recent release of its 2002 Grand Vintage.
It will be released at the end of next year, Moët winemaker Axelle Araud told Decanter.com.
‘The ’02 is very complex but I think the ’04 will be a bit more subtle, more delicate,’ Araud said. ‘It has been on lees since 2005 and it should be very classical. It was a good ripening season.’
She would not divulge the composition of the blend, which changes each vintage. In 2002, it consisted of 51% Chardonnay, 26% Pinot Noir and 23% Pinot Meunier.
Moët, the world’s biggest Champagne house, produces Grand Vintage only in ‘exceptional years’, and took the unprecedented move to launch the ripe 2003 vintage prior to the 2002, which was slower to evolve.
Araud also said 2005 will not follow the 2004 vintage.
‘2005 was a great vintage in Burgundy and Bordeaux but not Champagne – it rained too much and was not well balanced. It will be not be a Grand Vintage.’
Written by Rebecca Gibb
