2012: An Amazing Vintage

In Champagne, only the best years are vintages.

Unlike BSA, Brut Sans Année, which is composed of wines from different vintages, a single vintage, which has attracted the attention of the winemaker because of its specific characteristics, is used in the blending of a Millésime.

A Millésime is:

- The exception

- A unique Cuvée

- A well thought out vintage

- Typicality

- Aging

In detail: 

1- The Exception

In Champagne, a vintage becomes a Millésime when climatic conditions are favorable and one or all three of the Champagne grape varieties (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Meunier) are of extraordinary quality, possibly combined with quantity.

A Millésime is the exception, not the rule, the balance between two essential parameters: sugar and acidity.

2 - A Unique Cuvée

 Grape is a fruit and, just like strawberry or apricot, it is sensitive to climatic variations. A Millésime coming from the same vineyards and the same terroir will never have the same profile, personality and characteristics from one year to another. This phenomenon makes every vintage a special and rare wine.

3 - A pondered vintage

A Millésime can sometimes, in a promising vintage of great quality, be decided already during the harvest.

With a well-considered and patient harvesting process, the winemaker will be able to direct his choices in anticipation of the production of a Millésime, or even a parcel. In addition, by carefully monitoring the maturity of the grapes, certain plots can offer the possibility of elaborating Champagne with little or no dosage.

4 - Typicality

A Millésime has a personality strictly connected to the climate of the year.

In the choice of clear wines for the elaboration of his Millésime, the Vigneron looks for typicality, character. That extra something that will make his Cuvée, after years of cellar aging on lees, exceptional.

5 - Aging

Millésime is a Champagne wine whose exceptional character justifies the special rules that govern its production: aging on the lees must be carried out for a minimum of 3 years.

Actually, most of the Champagnes Millesimati age in cellar from 3 to 10 years or more before being commercialized. Therefore, they are wines with a beautiful maturity and very well balanced.

The 2012 Vintage: 

The beginning does not portend the happy ending we know today.

A terrible spring with frosts in April and May, followed by hail storms in June and July, destroyed almost 4000 hectares of vines. Cold, rainy weather accompanied the flowering period and produced few grapes.

But a warm and sunny month of August favored a beautiful ripening of the grapes and a perfect sanitary condition of the bunches: "August makes must" according to the famous saying of Champagne.

The Vignerons remained confident: if during the 2012 harvest the quantity wasn't the best, the quality was there.

"The month before the harvest is decisive for quality and we have noticed a magnificent degree of ripeness and a very promising sugar/acidity balance."

And so it was!

Today, nine years later, we are ecstatic and we taste with pleasure and admiration the fruit of this vintage that has confirmed its promises!

Pamper yourself and discover all the facets of the 2012 vintage in Champagne thanks to our Coffret "2012 : A Great Millésime" and meet us at our online Boutique for all the other Cuvées Millésime 2012 in our Collection!!!

Cheers and to your health!