Champagne Bollinger Grande Annee 1995
The 1995 La Grande Année from Bollinger is a vintage brut champagne from the Champagne region, classified as a Grand Cru. This cuvée blends Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Jancis Robinson awards it 17/20 and recommends drinking between 2008 and 2026. Critics describe a champagne with a rich nose marked by notes of truffle and mushroom, featuring very ripe fruit on the palate; a profile well-suited for gastronomy.
Identité du vin
- Couleur
- Sparkling White
- Pays
- France
- Région
- Champagne
- Producteur / Domaine
- Bollinger
- Cuvée
- La Grande Année
Cépage et assemblage
- Grape Variety
- Chardonnay, Pinot Noir
Bollinger
Founded in Aÿ in 1829, Bollinger is a Champagne house that has remained under family control. Its vineyards cover 179 hectares, spread across seven vineyard blocks, 85 per cent of which are classified as grands crus or premiers crus. Pinot Noir predominates here, and the house continues to vinify some of its wines in small oak barrels.
- Owner
- Société Jacques Bollinger (famille Bollinger)
- Surface (ha)
- 179.00 ha
- Production (average bottles per vintage)
- environ 2 500 000 à 3 000 000 bouteilles/an
Histoire du domaine
The company Renaudin-Bollinger & Cie was founded in Aÿ on 6 February 1829 by Athanase de Villermont, Joseph (known as Jacques) Bollinger and Paul Renaudin. Athanase de Villermont contributed the land inherited from his family, whilst Joseph Bollinger took charge of marketing and Paul Renaudin of the cellar. Georges Bollinger, Jacques’s son, subsequently ran the company during the phylloxera crisis and the First World War. On Georges’s death in 1918, his son Jacques took over the management of the business, expanded the facilities and, notably, acquired vineyards in Tauxières. Following Jacques’s death in 1941, his wife Elisabeth Law de Lauriston-Boubers, known as Lily Bollinger, ran the house until 1971, through the war and the subsequent post-war recovery. Under her leadership, Bollinger expanded its international presence and, in 1967, launched the R.D. champagne, standing for ‘Récemment Dégorgé’ (recently disgorged). Claude d’Hautefeuille then took charge of the house from 1971, before Christian Bizot succeeded him in 1978; the latter formalising a charter of ethics and quality in 1992. Ghislain de Montgolfier took over as head of the house in 1994, followed by Jérôme Philipon, who became chairman in 2008 – the first non-family member to hold the position. Charles-Armand de Belenet was appointed managing director of Champagne Bollinger in 2017. The house remains part of the Bollinger Group, a family-owned group which also comprises other houses and estates.
La Grande Année
La Grande Année is the vintage champagne crafted by Bollinger only when the harvest is deemed exceptional. Produced from Grand Cru and Premier Cru grapes, it is vinified in old oak barrels, aged extensively on lees under a cork stopper, and then riddled and disgorged by hand. Vintages with the greatest aging potential may continue their aging to become Bollinger R.D.
- Origin of the cuvée name
- In 1976, Bollinger Vintage was renamed Grande Année; the article "La" was added starting with the 1997 vintage.
- Cuvée creation year
- 1976
- Style of the cuvée
- A vinous, structured, and complex vintage champagne, generally dominated by Pinot Noir. Vinification in wood and extended aging on lees impart depth, texture, aromatic finesse, and significant aging potential.
- Position within the range
- The House's grand vintage champagne, positioned above the non-vintage cuvées and serving as the foundation for Bollinger R.D.
Histoire de la cuvée
This cuvée continues Bollinger's historic vintage champagnes. Bollinger Vintage became Grande Année in 1976, and then La Grande Année starting from the 1997 vintage. It remains closely associated with the House's traditional savoir-faire, notably wood-aged vinification, cork-aged maturation, and manual riddling and disgorging operations.
