1999 Champagne

(Simon Staples, Berrys' Fine Wine Director)

Toasted gingerbread, stone fruit and a hint of smoke on the nose. Broad and rich on the palate. This is another great example of Pol Roger at their finest. Drinking beautifully now, this would make a decadent treat with fish and chips!


A serendipitous luncheon with his soon-to-be muse Odette Pol Roger, proved to be the start of a very happy relationship between Churchill and the famous Champagne House, a relationship now in its twelfth vinous commemoration with the launch of the 1999 Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill, a wine made only in very special years. Challenging is perhaps an equally appropriate epithet for 1999, some untimely rain in September taking the edge off what hitherto looked set to be an excellent vintage, which has had to settle for recognition as merely a very good one. Very good indeed, in point of fact for the Pinot Noir, which dominates this blend, outweighing the Chardonnay by a factor of three to one.

1999 was the first vintage vinified by Dominique Petit, formerly of Krug, and perhaps it is not entirely whimsical to detect a trace of the Krug power and concentration here. But above and beyond that of course is the supreme elegance and harmony for which Pol Roger is famous, the wine demonstrating an almost baletic elegance on the tongue to belie its ten years of cellaring.

The mousse is generous and the fruit is both pure and powerful, backed up by a subtle minerality and gentle hints of ginger and spice. A long finish presages ageing potential until 2018. All in all a very worthy wine to celebrate the 150th anniversary of this great House.
Simon Field MW, Champagne Buyer

This magnificent vintage cuvee is a true expression of the intensity and the richness of Grand Cru Pinot Noir which accounts for 80% of the blend. The remaining 20% is Chardonnay, also from Grand Crus vineyards, aged for more than 6 years before release. The result is a sumptuous, generous and full-bodied Champagne brimming with notes of honey, acacia, toast and chestnuts. From a top-rated vintage.

Dom Pérignon was the 17th century Benedictine monk who has gone down in history as the person who “invented” Champagne, and the name Moët & Chandon uses for its prestige cuvée, which was first released in 1937. A rigorous selection process in both the vineyard and winery ensures that only the best grapes go into Dom Pérignon.

From the ripe and approachable 1999 vintage, this has typically encyclopaedic notes of angelica, hazelnut, cinnamon and tobacco; how it manages to do all this is a well-guarded mystery, courtesy of the Chef de Cave, Richard Geoffroy. Exotic elements are harnessed by hints of peppery spice with notes of brioche, peach and quince all vying for attention. A powerful wine and one that will continue to develop over the next decade but which can also be enjoyed now.