The house of Bollinger was founded in 1829 and is known as a pinot noir house. Their plots are spread about the best pinot villages in Champagne, including Ay, Verzenay, Avenay and Louvois. With nearly 400 acres of vineyards spread across Champagne – almost entirely in Grand Cru and Premier Cru villages – Bollinger is perhaps unique among Champagne’s larger maisons for growing over two-thirds of all the fruit needed to make their cuvees. Two of their plots even survived phylloxera: Clos Saint Jacques and Chaudes Terres. 

The winemaking style of Bollinger is rather traditional, with a focus on barrel fermentations driving that rich Bollinger style. They’ve never abandoned that style. In fact, they are the last of the Grand Marques to employ a full-time cooper – a nod to the importance they place on barrel influence in their final wines. And Bollinger keeps much of its reserve wines in magnums, which is unique in Champagne. Another standout of the label is that they even do lots of hand riddling for their top cuvees. Quality is their utmost priority.

La Grande Année is one of their tête de cuvées that is only made in exceptional years. Only Premier and Grand Cru fruit goes in this bottling. It’s always vinified in oak barrels – another rarity in Champagne – and it’s hand riddled, with aging for seven years or more on the lees. Then, it’s disgorged by hand, a practice rarely seen these days from the larger houses. With a 60-40 split of pinot to chardonnay, this Champagne tastes a little bit like heaven. Blood orange nose as well as herbal notes like eucalyptus and menthol waft up from the glass. In the glass, cedarwood, tropical hints of mango or papaya, and allusions to a delicate fino sherry offer up a brooding and powerful aspect to this exceptional bottling. It is a marvelous way to kick off holiday celebrations, or really any occasion worth marking. For one of the lowest prices on the web, this is your chance to buy now, and buy well!