2003 Moët & Chandon, Dom Pérignon

The wine has a typical Dom Perignon nose: slightly toasty, some liminess and maybe some very cool honey. It immediately exudes class – you know there is something intense to come – and there is also a hint of something Chassagne or Puligny-esque. And in the mouth it gets better – the mousse is very fine and the wine achieves a remarkable balance of intensity and delicacy. The core of fruit has a focussed power, though with silkiness all around – there really is an impression of floating – and this is definitely rather special, with a persistence of fruit that impresses all the way through. And, even at ten in the morning, it was incredibly moreish. This wine may well keep and develop for many years – indeed this may turn out to be one of the truly great DPs - but, even now, it begs to be drunk. Beautiful.
BBR Fine Wine, February 2012Dom Pérignon

Disgorged Jun 2010, scheduled for release early 2012. I had tasted a bottle that had just been disgorged a couple of weeks earlier and this second example seemed to have a much more persistent finish. Very much part of the Dom P family with its reductive, smoky nose with tight lemony fruit and a hint of citrus peel. Beautifully balanced - perhaps not quite as intense as the marvellous 2002 but there is no hint of its being a heatwave wine and it still has lots of unfurling to do. Ramrod straight in structure. Bit of a peacock's tail on the finish. Thoroughly satisfying.
Jancis Robinson, February 2012

Unfortunately there is only one new release from Dom Perignon this year. The 2003 is one of the most unusual Dom Perignons I have ever tasted, going back to 1952. Readers will remember that 2003 was a torrid vintage across northern Europe, especially during the critical month of August, when temperatures remained very hot for well over a month. The harvest was the earliest on record, until 2011, that is. I suppose its not that surprising Chef de Caves Richard Geoffroy chose to make a 2003 Dom Perignon, given his penchant for risk-taking, an approach that has yielded so many memorable wines that stretch the perception of what big brand Champagne is and can be.

The 2003 Dom Perignon is a big, broad shouldered wine. It does not have the seductiveness of the 2000, nor the power of the 2002. It is instead very much its own wine. In 2003 Geoffroy elected to use more Pinot Noir than is typically the case, and that comes through in the wine’s breath and volume. The 2003 is a big, powerful Champagne that will require quite a bit of time to shed some of its baby fat. The trademark textural finesse is there, though. I expect the 2003 to be a highly divisive Champagne because of its extreme personality, but then again, many of the world’s legendary wines were made from vintages considered freakish at the time. The 2003 is an atypically, rich, powerful, vinous Dom Perignon loaded with fruit, structure and personality. It is not for the timid, but rather it is a wine for those who can be patient. No one has a crystal ball, but personally I will not be surprised if in 20 years’ time the 2003 is considered an iconic Champagne. Anticipated maturity: 2016-2038.
The Wine Advocate, Antonio Galloni, November 2011