La Grande Dame 2008 Veuve Clicquot Giftbox

Pinot Noir in the Spotlight

As bold as it was for Demarville to bring oak-aged wine back into the mix, the biggest surprise with the 2008 vintage comes from its blend ratios. Whereas most Champagnes include anywhere from 45% to 55% Pinot Noir grapes, the 2008 La Grande Dame is made up of 92% Pinot Noir. 

Speaking to Decanter back in 2015, Demarville said of the darker blend, “It is a risk we take,” adding, “It’s not because we want to dramatically change the style of La Grande Dame, but because we want to play the game of the elegance of Pinot Noir.” 

Popular perception of Pinot Noir is that the wine is more structured, even heavy, “but that is not the case in Champagne,” said Demarville at the time. “Pinot Noir in Champagne has this beautiful capacity to get full-bodied, but also [to bring] elegance to the wines.”

Ten Years in the Making

In many ways, 2008 was a great year, but the Champagne region had a particularly good season, Demarville explained to Forbes. The grapes benefitted from “a cool and rainy spring followed by a cool but dry summer(land) ripened in excellent conditions.” The amazing grapes from that growing season are now poised to create a great year for sales with the release of this groundbreaking vintage. 

Disgorged January 2018. This is the first Grande Dame made by Dominique Demarville. He decided to push the percentage of Pinot Noir to the max. 92% Pinot Noir, mainly from Verzy (37%) and Verzenay (14%), which represents 51% of the blend. Also 23% Bouzy, 4% Ambonnay and 14% Aÿ. Plus 8% Chardonnay from Le Mesnil. Dosage 6 g/l. Very tight and energetic even if not that much charm. Constant bead. A little introvert and the aroma has to fight a bit to make its presence felt. Dominique says he is concentrating on lightness (corrected later to brightness) for the Grande Dame (and power for the vintage – which seems a little counterintuitive). Lots of acidity and introversion. He recommends this for an aperitif or very light food. Jancis Robinson