1998 Champagne
Learn more about 1998 Champagne
1998 in Champagne, like, say, 2004 in Spain, is a vintage that has continued to grow in reputation with the passage of time. For some its putative progress has been the reverse of that of vintage 1996, so lauded in the early days and now causing a little concern as some of the wines appear to lack inherent balance, some still with searing acidity and yet others oxidising quickly………..not all I hasten to add.
Anyway, 1998 is the vintage for which one takes out and polishes either the cliché helter-skelter or the cliché roller-coaster. Both are equally apt to describe this extraordinary year; a sunny winter, then a very rainy April, then an early summer which alternated between extremes of temperature ( there was even frost late in May) and then a heat wave in August to threaten yields. Rainstorms in early September and sunshine at harvest time complete the picture. Empiricism and patience have been the only way to judge, although the matching high levels of both sugar and acidity from the outset were good omens. Now the wines seem to get better and better. Outstanding examples were made by Billecart Salmon, Mailly and Dom Ruinart.
Simon Field MW, BBR Champagne Buyer
Elegance abounds, the nose is of citric fruit with notes of freshly cut bread and Spring flowers to the fore. On the palate the wine is long, its stone fruit beautifully balanced by hints of bergamot and honey. Finesse with quiet power, this is an archetype of Grand Cru Chardonnay from the very best vineyards of the Cte Des Blancs.
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
The blend is shared between with 75% Pinot Noir , which dominates benevolently and lends rich savoury notes, and a balance of Chardonnay which is effortlessly elegant, floral and poised. Characteristic and seductive notes of acacia, ginger and cinnamon complement the usual descriptors of brioche, pear and blossom, lending complexity and fascination, qualities which are underlined yet further by the subtle nuances bequeathed by fifteen years of lees ageing.
Simon Field MW, Champagne Buyer
Magnum 1 x 150cl 1cs
"...While I don't doubt this wine will age perfectly for twenty years, it is disarmingly delicious right now.... It is the most forward vintage for years and it is stunning."
(Matthew Jukes - The Wine List 2006 - The Top 250 Wines Of The Year)
Jeroboam 1 x 300cl 1cs