Champagne Krug is a launching a new ID code for its top non-vintage blend bearing the disgorgement date and other information.
Krug Grande Cuvée will in future show when each bottle is disgorged – and the code will also link to information about the harvest conditions prevailing in the year on which the wine is based, which makes up the majority of the blend.
In London for the launch of Krug Vintage 2000 and Clos du Mesnil 2000, director Olivier Krug (pictured) said though both he and chef de cave Eric Lebel attach little importance to disgorgement dates and he doesn’t think Krug drinkers do either.
But, he said, giving more detail about the Krug Grande Cuvée, a radical departure from previous practice at the house, was aimed at giving Krug lovers more information about the wines they may have in their own cellars.
‘We know that Krug lovers are interested in how Grande Cuvée ages and this information will enable those with several different blends in their cellars in five years’ time to see which is the oldest.’
He said they would not reveal exactly which years the grapes came from: ‘it’s more about conveying the challenge we face every year in making the Grande Cuvée blend from what nature has given us.’
To emphasise the point that he doesn’t see the particular harvest base as important Krug said that at a recent blind tasting of six past consecutive blends of Grande Cuvée, the tasting team all chose the same vintage.
‘We all three picked the blend based on the 2001 harvest as our favourite, despite this being the poorest harvest by some way of the six we tried.’
The ID codes will be on all bottles leaving the house since the start of July 2011.
- Champagne Krug is setting aside barrels of its top wine Grande Cuvee in order to release a second batch of the blend after even longer lees ageing. Grande Cuvée is already aged for seven years before release, but Julie Cavil from the winemaking team confirmed they have been keeping extra volumes of Grande Cuvée from each blend since 2009, giving the opportunity for the company to sell a second release of the wine.
Written by Giles Fallowfield
