Summer 2023 was strange. Especially in France. There was an unusual spell of humidity. Then the temperature dipped. And finally, a record-breaking heatwave struck, particularly in central France and the region of Champagne.
Vincent Chaperon watched it all with a wary eye. Most winemakers did. But Chaperon carries an extra burden. He is the cellar master for Dom Pérignon. And Dom Pérignon is special.
Special in a James Bond, Marilyn Monroe, iconic way. But also special in a wine way – the kind that concerns Chaperon. Dom Pérignon is special because it is vintage-only.
Most of the hundreds of other producers in Champagne make both vintage and non-vintage wine. Vintage, made only from the grapes of a single year, is always a precarious bargain with God and the elements. It’s not unusual for
a champagne house to skip a year and lean on its non-vintage wine for its annual production and sales. Non-vintage champagne comes with lower price points, less lofty expectations and – crucially – can be made from a mixture of years, allowing a winemaker more latitude.
But not Dom Pérignon. Its special origins, peculiar 20th-century rebirth and proximity to sister brand Moët et Chandon contributed to a different path – that of only making vintage wine. The lack of a non-vintage is part of the mystique of Dom Pérignon. Partly because its vintage-only status signals prestige. Partly because it is something that other maisons simply do not do. And partly because the year that a bottle of Dom Pérignon is produced is a crucial part of its mythology.
When Sean Connery’s James Bond picks up a bottle to defend himself against Dr No, the villain counsels him that it would be a pity to break a bottle of Dom Pérignon 1955. Bond agrees and puts the bottle down, before pointing out that he prefers the ’53.
The numbers matter. That becomes abundantly clear when…
