Champagne Vintage Flashcards
Champagne: 1970
Finely structured, “classic.” Late flowering, but long summer.
Champagne: 1971
Tumultuous weather, but veraison -> forward saw perfect weather. Big crop, very elegant.
Champagne: 1973
Enormous crop; rain at harvest caused some rot. Variable.
Champagne: 1975
September rain = late harvest. Classic vintage, high quality.
Champagne: 1976
Hot year, early harvest. Soft and ripe.
Champagne: 1978
Cool summer; wines are lean and high acid. Little vintage wine produced.
Champagne: 1979
Cold spring, warm summer, late harvest. Balanced, ageworthy.
Champagne: 1982
Excellent weather, large crop. Big, richly styled vintage.
Champagne: 1983
Late flowering, otherwise sunny and warm. Solid, rather overshadowed by 1982.
Champagne: 1985
First half of the season seemed like disaster; crop was down due to spring frost, and the weather was poor. Cleared up and turned around in August; wines are concentrated, stylish, and balanced.
Champagne: 1986
Unpredictable and dramatic weather. Quality varies by producer.
Champagne: 1988
Excellent quality, many vintage champagnes produced. Classic, high acid, austere.
Champagne: 1989
Hot summer, rich, opulent wines.
Champagne: 1990
Exceptional quality and quantity; ripe and concentrated. Overall top three out of 1988-1990.
Champagne: 1995
Difficult vintage, large crop, great ripeness. Some are rich at the expense of finesse.
Champagne: 1996
Very unusual vintage - extreme ripeness and extreme acdidity from millerandage + heat. Wide range in maturity.
Champagne: 1997
Very cold at the outset; rainy in July, but with warm, sunny weather from then. Ripe and opulent champagnes, somewhat overshadowed by 1996.
Champagne: 1998
Roller coaster weather; at the end, the result was heavy crop with high potential alcohol and solid acidity. Firm structure, though less acidic than 1995 and 1996.
Champagne: 1999
Warm but rainy, some dilution at harvest. Wines are ripe, round, fruit forward, somewhat simple.
Champagne: 2000
Fine spring into stormy July, including hail. Warmth through harvest saved the vintage. Rich and weighty vintage, somewhat lacking in precision.
Champagne: 2001
Similar weather to 2000, including the hailstorms in July, but incessant rain at harvest destroyed the crop. The few vintage wines that were made are the result of impressive triage and are well balanced.
Champagne: 2002
Exceptional vintage, rich and weighty but with clarity, finesse, and poise. Most akin to 1990.
Champagne: 2003
Heatwave vintage. Crop was down due to April frost and severe hailstorms over the summer. Variable quality - either rich, weighty, and balanced, or roasted, dried out, and heavy.
Champagne: 2004
Very large crop in rebound from 2003; quality exceptional across the board. Fresh and lively, well balanced if lighter on the feet than the rest of 2002-2006.
Champagne: 2005
Warm, uneventful growing season. High degrees of ripeness and density - possibly becoming overripe?
Champagne: 2006
Uneventful summer; heat wave in september slightly lowered acidity. Ripe and broad, but balanced and fresher than 2005.
Champagne: 2007
Difficult season, culminating in warm weather in August. Early harvest. Great acidity and freshness.
Champagne: 2008
Very difficult growing season (millerandage, coulure, oildium, mildew, hail), culminating in warm, sunny weather in September. Fruit is exceptional, high malic acid and high sugars. Taut and harmonious. The second great vintage of the 2000’s?
Champagne: 2009
Fine summer, high quality grapes, particularly Pinot Noir. Plump and approachable.
Champagne: 2010
Very dry until August, then torrential rains. Heavy disease pressure.
Champagne: Top vintages overall
1971, 1975
1982, 1985, 1988-1990
1995, 1996
2002, 2008, 2012
Champagne: Ripe, opulent vintages
1976,
1983, 1989
1997, 1999,
2003, 2005, 2006, 2009
Champagne: Lean, structured vintages
1970, 1978, 1979
1988,
1995, 1998
2007
