Dom Prignon Vintage 2003 – Plnitude 2, after close to 15 years of transformation, the lengthy realization of the potential in the maturation sets the vintage on its path to future horizons.

The Seasons:After a particularly harsh, dry winter, early April brought severe frosts that caused significant losses.

Going from one extreme to the other, temperatures began rising in late May to reach exceptional highs a heat wave that brought the Champagne region its hottest summer in fifty-three years and the driest in a decade.

With ripening accelerated by the heat and low grape yield, to everyones surprise, harvesting began on the 21st of August. It was the earliest Champagne harvest since 1822, producing a ripe and healthy crop. Ultimately, the contrasting weather conditions during the year resulted in remarkably luscious, highly concentrated grapes, recalling the legendary vintages of 1947, 1959 and 1976.

Nose: The bouquet reveals itself in a spiral. Out of the floral softness of lime tree emerges the grey, toasted, ashy minerality so typical of Dom Prignon.

A taste of dried fruit apricot appears, then the candied fruitiness of raspberry and fig. Unexpectedly, the freshness of lemon verbena, white pepper and rosemary rises for an instant, before plunging into the darkness of spices and liquorice root.

Palate: This is a physical wine. It calls to you and draws you in, more tactile and vibrant than aromatic. Like a wave, it is built on rhythm and breaks: first it unfolds, then envelops generous and structured before withdrawing into a deep, dark verticality that slowly stretches towards a bitter, sapid iodine sensation.

Vincent Chaperon, August 2019