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Champagne 1996

If the 1995 vintage in Champagne was seen as a welcome relief by the inhabitants of the Côte des Blancs and associated regions, 1996 perhaps exceeded all expectations. Quickly lauded as the most successful vintage for Champagne since the universally declared and delightful 1990, it continues to live up to its early promise. The wines were the result of a long dry summer providing perfect conditions for ripening the fruit, yet not diminishing the acidity which gives Champagne its deliciously refreshing backbone and, of course, the potential for development in the cellar over many years. Even more than ten years later, at the time of writing up this small tasting, there is no clear candidate for the next vintage which will provide us with the quality we have seen from this, the most successful year of the 1990s.

Tasting the wines today only confirms the quality of the vintage, but also reminds us that here we have many wines eminently suitable for the long haul, and some simply demanding to be left alone for many years yet. It is that aforementioned acidity that impacts most, keeping the wines fresh in the bottle and on the palate, and as this settles down in combination with the mellowing of the flavours over the coming years there will no doubt be some truly fabulous wines for drinking in this vintage. A number of these wines are still widely available at the time of publishing these notes, and indeed I had only just purchased the Charles Heidsieck 1996 very shortly before it was tasted here (and I already wish I had bought more). This is a vintage that simply must be represented in your cellar. (10/8/07)

Champagne 1996 - Tasting Notes

Tasted in August 2007. Click to locate stockists:

Charles Heidsieck Mis en Caves 1997 Brut Réserve NV: A non-vintage cuvée blended and cellared by Daniel Thibault in 1997, and based largely on the 1996 vintage. A moderately deep gold hue, with a fair bead. The nose has advanced considerably since my previous tasting (excepting some faulty bottles I experienced), with lots of walnut, honey and brioche character now evident. The palate is full and creamy, with a supple composition carrying along notes of minerals and nuts, with a bitter bite curiously reminiscent of the taste of the papery casing of pistachio nuts. Lovely structure, rather showy, although to be critical not the focus or delineation of a great Champagne, and a little short on the finish. But lovely just the same, and always great value. 17/20

Charles Heidsieck Brut 1996: A fine straw-gold hue, with an equally fine and delicate bead. The nose is just lovely, elegant and seemingly creamy, with brioche and nutty character. There is a great minerality, with fine evolution showing here. The fresh and crisp mousse is supported by a creamy and broad palate of intensely expressed flavours, nutty and slightly mushroomy, but still with a fine, citrus precision. This is lovely now, but has the structure to go on for years yet, rather like the wine's finish. Excellent. 18.5+/20

Perrier-Jouët Grand Brut 1996: A pale, lemon-gold hue, with a fine bead at the core. Some fresh citrus fruit character on the nose, with a thin vein of almond nuttiness coming in at the edge. The palate is quite fine, with a lovely, nutty maturity, with a little mushroom and coffee beginning to show, but still with a very fresh, bright, clean character. Quite a bold, sharp mousse and then a little bitter grip on the finish. Full and flavoursome, quite broad. This is very impressive, and will be even better in 3-5 years. 18+/20

Ruinart R de Ruinart Brut 1996: A pale straw colour, with a sparse bead of moderately sized bubbles. The nose is rather subtle, with restrained, understated aromas of honey roast nuts. It has a fine texture, quite soft and rounded, creamy and mouthfilling, but with fresh and incisive acidity and a prickling, delicate mousse. Quite sharply defined on the finish. It has flavours of nuts, as subtle as they are on the nose, with a toasted almond character, citrus peel and a prickly, nettly, bitter quinine character. This is really attractive, and is very approachable now. Very good indeed. 17+/20

Roederer Brut 1996: Lovely pale straw hue, and quite a fine bead. The nose has obvious and immediate appeal, with a welcoming biscuit-bready character, with fresh citrus nuances and lightly toasted nuts on the edge. A very approachable palate, a little more forward and evolved than many of the other wines. It still has a delightful acidic backbone, but it is softer than the preceding wines, and accompanied by a creamy, rounded nature. Nice. fresh cashew nut elements. Lovely, limpid style, and a nice, fading finish. Much more ready than the other wines. For current drinking, although it will be fine in the cellar for five years if not more. 18/20

Lanson Gold Label Brut 1996: The first bottle was corked, which was disappointing. The second, fortunately, was sound. A soft, golden hue with a fine bead, very bright on the nose, with some evolving deep and brioche-like aromas alongside more herbal freshness. Fine and full on the palate, with a more creamy presence than I recall from my CIB tasting last year, although there is still very firm acidity; this remains very youthful, showing a lot of naked structure, and still needs many years. But I have bumped the score up a not inconsiderable notch. 17.5+/20

Bollinger Grande Année 1996: A fine, lemon gold hue, and a very tight and sparse bead. Wonderful nose, brimming with potential. Very well defined and taut and clean, just a little nutty character. Fresh, limpid, gentle but very persistent mousse couples very nicely with firm acidity and a very broad palate showing some very early mature character. Delicious potential. The most indrawn, most tightly coiled of these wines, but so lovely, and just brimming with great potential. 18.5+/20

Pol Roger Brut 1996: A pale golden colour, showing a little depth of hue, but not at all deep or obviously mature. The bead starts off a little fat, but then calms down to a moderately small size. Very open and welcoming on the nose, starting off with some fresh citrus fruit before it slowly reveals a little early complexity in the shape of some gently nutty praline, with some biscuit and apple notes from the Pinot. Beautifully poised palate, with a wonderful balance of creamy, welcoming texture with well defined acidity and some sherbet-tinged bready flavour. A lovely, delicate, prickly mousse which gives a lot of brightness and should last well in the cellar. There's also a meatiness which I often associate with Pinot-dominate wines. A gently fading finish. Overall really very good indeed, with the structure for future development over the coming years. 18+/20