Grand marque releases Champagne from legendary 2002 vintage

For those who thought the first releases of Champagne’s 2002 vintage were a thing of the past, think again… one grand marque is only now launching its cuvées from this legendary harvest.

Lanson Noble Cuvée Blanc de Blancs 2002
Lanson Noble Cuvée Brut 2002

At an event in London this week, Lanson unveiled its Noble Cuvée Brut and Blanc de Blancs from 2002, making it the last great maison in the region to release Champagnes from this harvest, which is still widely believed to be the best vintage of the last decade.

Lanson follows other maisons that were late to release their top expressions from this great harvest, with 2002 releases this year from Piper-Heidsieck – for its outstanding Rare 2002 – and Champagne Bruno Paillard, which unveiled its 2002 N.P.U. in September.

At the time of the latter brand’s launch, head of the Champagne house, Bruno Paillard, stressed that this really was the final opportunity to buy on release a prestige cuvée from the prized 2002 vintage, presumably unaware that Lanson still had its Noble Cuvee 2002 in the cellar.

Speaking to db on Tuesday this week, Lanson’s cellar master Hervé Dantan said that the producer’s top expression always spends between 12 and 15 years maturing in bottles before release, adding that both the brut and blanc de blancs Noble Cuvées had been disgorged in June 2015, meaning that the Champagnes from the 2002 harvest have spent 12 years ageing on their lees, and almost 18 months off them.

When asked by db to explain the late timing of the release compared to other maisons in Champagne, Dantan said that due to Lanson’s decision to block the malo-lactic fermentation in the base wines, as well as the selection of wines with high levels of freshness, the Noble Cuvée needs to spend a long period slowly maturing in contact with its lees in bottle.

“Noble Cuvée is a homage to finesse and saltiness, and the wines have to age for a long time; it is not about richness, but delicacy,” he began.

Continuing he said, “Because we are non-malo, we have to be patient, it would be impossible for us to launch the Noble Cuvée [2002] before now.”

However, he also said that the “timing is perfect”, because Lanson has now sold out of its previous vintage of Noble Cuvée, which was from the 2000 harvest.

When asked by db if it was beneficial for the house to be the last to release a prestige cuvée from the famous 2002 vintage, he admitted that it had unleashed a latent demand, but added that waiting longer than other producers was not a deliberate strategy to enhance sales.

“Yes [it has been an advantage to be the last to release a 2002], but that is not what we are searching for – we want a wine with a very good balance, and it will be same for the future: when we launch the 2004 we will be alone. Each time we will be the last to sell a vintage, because the wine needs a very long ageing on its lees, it is not only a marketing point of view, it is about the evolution of the wine,” he stated.

Continuing, he said, “It would have been irresponsible to sell the 2002 [Noble Cuvée] five years ago.”

He also admitted that because of the reputation of the vintage, the 2002 Noble Cuvée is already proving “very easy to sell”.

In a discussion with db about the merits of the 2002 vintage, Dantan said that the wines benefitted from grapes that achieved a “ripeness that was very special”, which was due to a sunny, dry and windy end to the growing season, allowing the bunches to “ripen in perfect conditions without any botrytis.”

He also described the 2002 as “a modern vintage”, adding, “It is maybe too early to say it is the first vintage of global warming, but this was the first time we had a high level of maturity with acidity that was not so high but really well balanced with the richness of grapes.”

Recalling his time making wine from the vintage, which was before he joined Lanson, he said, “As soon as 2002 was born we could say it was a great vintage because the still wines were outstanding – the fruit was so rich and precise with a balance that was incredible.”

Lanson has produced 50,000 bottles of its two expressions of the Noble Cuvée from 2002, and it is being released now with an RRP of £150.

Around 10% of production is put in magnums for each vintage release of Noble Cuvée, but Dantan said that Lanson would not be selling larger formats of the 2002 expression for another 2-3 years, noting that the house is currently marketing the 1998 vintage in magnum, and will soon be moving onto the 2000.

Lanson’s cellar master Hervé Dantan

He also told db that future Noble Cuvées would be released from 2004, 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2012, and “maybe 2013 and 2015”.

The key facets of the Noble Cuvée 2002 from Lanson are listed below:

Noble Cuvée 2002: Blanc de Blancs

Blend: 100% Chardonnay Grand Cru from the following villages:

Avize, Chouilly, Mesnil-sur-Oger, Cramant and Oger

Lees ageing time: 12 years

Dosage: 6 g/l

Noble Cuvée 2002: Brut

Blend: 70% Chardonnay Grand Cru from the following villages:

Avize, Mesnil-sur-Oger, Cramant and Oger

30% Pinot Noir Grand Cru from the Verzenay

Lees ageing time: 12 years

Dosage: 6 g/l