Champagne Brut AOC Vintage 2010 Dom Pérignon

Champagne Brut Vintage represents the history of Dom Pérignon and its fame is spread all over the world. This wine is dedicated to the Benedictine monk linked to the origins of Champagne itself.

It is produced with the best Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes, ripened during a single vintage and harvested towards the end of September. The vinification takes place according to the Classic Method, with refermentation in the bottle. Subsequently the wine ages on the lees for at least 8 years, until the moment deemed appropriate by the Chef de Cave.

The 2010 vintage

After many hot years, 2010 was presenting itself in Champagne as the coldest year since 1995, until the arrival of higher temperatures and heavy rainfall in August. A difficult vintage, with an early harvest to avoid the threat of botrytis. Although much of Pinot Noir had been lost, the Maison believed that the challenge still had to be taken up, because Chardonnay appeared to be one of the best of the past 30 years. These grapes, characterized by a perfect balance between sweetness and acidity, will be the backbone of Dom Pérignon 2010, made even more rare and precious by this careful selection.

Chef de Cave Vicent Chaperon describes it as follows: “The sweetness of tropical fruit shines immediately on the nose: green mango, melon and pineapple. Then more temperate notes emerge: the tingling of an orange peel, the mist of a mandarin. The wine breathes and its freshness is revealed. Flowering after the rain. A tactile sensation of peony, jasmine and lilac. On the palate, the wine quickly reveals its full, rich, intense character. An interesting maturation and a tactile sensation follow the aromatic experience. On the palate the matter takes shape, generous, decisive, controlled. Then it strengthens, making the wine vibrate on spicy and peppery notes. The energy continues, until a magnificent saline ending. "

The birth of the legend

Dom Pérignon was one of the first cuvée de prestige in the history of Champagne, born from the idea of the English advertiser Laurence Venn, employed at the Simon Bros. & Co. agency, English importer of Moët & Chandon, who imagined to create a Champagne of the highest quality to be sold on allocation to the British aristocracy.

The "Dom Pérignon" brand, inspired by the figure of the monk of the Hautvillers Abbey who lived in the 17th century who had contributed to the qualitative growth of viticulture in the Champagne region, registered by the Maison Mercier, had been sold to the Maison of Épernay in 1927 when Francine Durant-Mercier had married Paul Chandon.

In 1935, 300 bottles of the vintage 1926 forerunners of the future "Dom Pérignon" were given to the agency's best customers. The response was so enthusiastic that 100 cases from the 1921 vintage officially bearing the "Dom Pérignon" brand for the first time were immediately sent to the United States, which remained its only market until 1947.

From 1921 to 2009, Dom Pérignon was produced in 43 vintages: 1921, 1926, 1928, 1929, 1934, 1943, 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010.