Whether your ‘thing’ is cars, frocks, or champagne, one thing’s for sure: there’s something special about vintage. But when it comes to bubbles – and we’re talking sparkling wines here, not bubble hems – what’s all the fuss actually about? We asked Champagne pioneers Veuve Clicquot to give us the lockdown lowdown on just why vintage Champagne is so very special…

It goes without saying, but vintage Champagne is aged for longer. While Veuve Clicquot's Champagnes are aged for a minimum of 30 months, their vintages are aged for a minimum of 5 years. And just like Chanel suits, they only get better with time.

Veuve Clicquot created the first-ever vintage champagne

While most Champagnes, known as NV or non-vintage, are a delicate blend of years, in 1810, Madame Clicquot invented the first vintage Champagne. It was an incredible year for the vineyards following five years of bad vintages, war, and near-failure. Ever the pioneer, Madame Clicquot celebrated the success of 1810 with the first single-vintage Champagne. The concept became a huge success the following year, when the iconic 1811 vintage Champagne was labeled ‘The Year of the Comet.’

What Makes a Vintage Champagne?

As the name suggests, a vintage champagne comes from the harvest of a single, exceptional, year. Each year’s harvest displays interesting and different characteristics due to the conditions of the year, or the terrior – a French term that encapsulates everything from the soil, topography, climate, and even people. It is up to the Cellarmaster, in Veuve Clicquot’s case Didier Mariotti, to evaluate the quality of the harvest and ‘declare’ the vintage if she or he feels there is an interesting story to tell. 

A bottle of nearly 200-year-old​ Veuve Clicquot purportedly broke the record for the most expensive bottle of Champagne ever sold

In 2011, a bidder paid €30,000 for a bottle of shipwrecked Veuve Clicquot found at the bottom of the Baltic Sea (how romantic!) It was estimated to have been made between 1825 and 1830.

Introduced in 2019, Vintage Brut 2012 is Veuve Clicquot’s 66th vintage champagne release

Vintage 2012 is the expression of a prodigious harvest, despite an extremely challenging climate throughout the year (it sounds a lot like the climate of 2021). According to Veuve Clicquot, "On the palate, the attack is fresh and frank. Then appear the first aromas of fruits with mirabelle tart, candied citrus and roasted pears notes. Finally, refreshing notes of green hazelnuts and almonds arise.” If something as special as Vintage Brut 2012 can be created after a challenging year, it surely gives us hope that we’ll get through 2021. 

If it’s not from Champagne, it’s not Champagne

Vintage or not, sparkling wine can only be identified as Champagne when it comes from the Champagne wine region in the northeast of France. It must be made in accordance with strict Appellation d’Origine Controlée (AOC) regulations. 

Champagne was a happy accident

While wine has been produced in the Champagne region since the 5th century, the effervescence that makes it Champagne was initially considered an error, since it was caused by an interruption to the initial fermentation process brought on by early frosts. It was only in the late 1600s that sparkling wines began to be appreciated.

 So, when is vintage Champage best for drinking? Each year has its own unique characteristics which you can find with a quick google search. 2003, for example, was a hot year which didn’t produce the ideal harvest for vintage. But 2008? Lauded as the ‘Champagne Miracle’ vintage, it’s known to be one of the best years this side of the Millenia. We’ll drink to that.

 And since 2020 and 2021 haven’t exactly been the best years on record (and I’m not talking about grape weather, here), just about any occasion calls for a vintage Champagne in my book. It’s Tuesday? Break out the Veuve Clicquot Vintage Brut 2012!

Go to veuveclicquot.com