1996 vintage Champagnes are getting hard to find in the stores. (For those of you lucky enough to have laid down a case or two of this vintage, and still have it, I am: 1) insanely jealous; 2) willing to be your dinner guest at any time; 3) making plans to raid your wine cellar).However, as a recent experience showed me, a little hunting and they can be found, especially in bigger cities or in auction.
I cannot recommend enough making the effort to hunt down some of this vintage. Never has wine-searching time been better spent.
And there's no need to seek out Dom or Sir Winston Churchill 1996s, either (though both would be blockbusters as well as wallet-busters). 1996 is such a dazzling vintage, full of structure, heft and an amazing citrusy mouth-filling flavor that the non-luxury cuvees offer luxury-cuvee experiences at less than half the cost.
Having had several of the '96's -- including the lovely Billecart-Salmon Blanc de Blanc, pictured, as I was reminded by a commenter -- I can categorically say this is the greatest vintage of any single wine area I have ever tasted. I don't know enough 1982 Bordeauxs to comment about them specifically but I would make that comparison: big, bold, gorgeous wines that age for years.
Now: when to drink? The luxury cuvees have 10 more years, almost certainly, but would be spectacular now. But after a ravishingly luxurious, almost decadent '96 Laurent-Perrier Brut Millesme passed my lips this weekend, I would say that the basic Pols and Veuves -- if not Krug -- are ready to drink now.
In other words, for $60-$80 and some patience, you can enjoy one of the all-time best vintages of one of the world's classic vintages at its peak RIGHT NOW. What are you waiting for? Go get some.
Recommendations, you say? I should say right away that my ideal Champagne and my fallback favorite for any occasion is Pol Roger. I adore its combinaton of lightness and freshness with structure and character, and it refreshes as few other wines can. Pol equals class. If Pol's not about, Veuve is a good, solid, middle-of-the-road choice. L-P and Tattinger are lighter but in '96 still very substantial. Lanson is always dependable.
But almost anybody made great wines that year, and smaller produces such as Jose Michel, Diebolt-Vallois and Henri Mandois made gems worth seeking out.
Have a spring wedding, graduation, or other such celebration coming up? These wines will make it memorable. But don't save Champagne just for celebrations, especially the '96s -- great food wines and marvelous aperitifs for any occasion.
And they're at their best now. Good luck on the hunt.
1 comment:
I am surprised you didn't mention the Billecart-Salmon Blanc de Blanc from 1996. Certainly one of the best bottles of wine I have ever enjoyed. In fact it can be used as a good measuring stick as to the greatness of the vintage, for I had the same cuvee from 1998. While it might seem slightly unfair to judge the '98 at such a young age, it is clear to me that it is not a patch on the B-d-B from 1996.
The 1996 champagnes will be a good judge of a wine lover's patience. One can't both drink 96 Pol Roger AND have it in the cellar for decades.
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