10 best Champagnes for New Year’s Eve

From blanc de blancs to rosé and non-vintage to prestige cuvée, here are the 10 best Champagnes to celebrate the end of 2022 with, as judged during the Global Wine Masters, the UK’s leading professional blind-tasting competition.

Vintage

CHAMPAGNE PIPER-HEIDSIECK, VINTAGE 2014

• Producer: Champagne Piper-Heidsieck
• Grape varieties: 55% Pinot Noir, 45% Chardonnay
• Abv: 12%
• Vintage: 2014
• Dosage: Brut
• Approx. retail price: £60
• Medal: Master

Like the other Heidsiecks, Heidsieck & Co. Monopole and this firm’s ‘sister’ Charles Heidsieck, this Champagne House traces its roots back to Florens-Ludwig Heidsieck in 1785, but its origins as a separate House date from 1834 when Christian Heidsieck formed his own company. From that point, this House is the only one allowed to use the brand ‘Heidsieck’, pure and simple, although most (if not all!) the sales are under the well-recognised Piper-Heidsieck brand. Long a reliable favourite, this bottle is a ‘star among stars.’ This wine, from the 2014 vintage, a possible rival to 2012, gives new meaning to the term, ‘bubbleometry’, with minuscule bubbles and persistent mousse shimmering through its mid-gold colour. A maturing and intense nose of orchard fruits, honey and buttery croissant leads onto an integrated, velvet-textured palate braced by brisk acidity, hints of lime and lemon zest and then to a long plush finish. A sensational wine that delivers for all five senses from the ‘pop’ of the cork to the last lingering sip. (Patricia Stefanowicz MW)

CHAMPAGNE JOSEPH PERRIER, CUVÉE ROYALE BRUT MILLÉSIMÉ, 2012

• Producer: Champagne Joseph Perrier
• Grape varieties: 46% Chardonnay, 54% Pinot Noir
• Abv: 12%
• Vintage: 2012
• Dosage: Brut
• Approx. retail price: £60
• Medal: Master

A stunning example of 2012 vintage Champagne, the wine is mid-straw in hue with tiny persistent bubbles, plenty of griotte and apple flavours and fresh yeast autolysis leading to a concentrated and integrated palate with racy acidity and brittle mousse texture. A long, savoury, bready and complex wine that is an excellent match for rich, intricate dishes, even game birds with exotic sauces. (Patricia Stefanowicz MW)

CHAMPAGNE HENRIOT MILLÉSIME 2012

• Producer: Champagne Henriot
• Blend: Chardonnay: 54, Pinot Noir: 46
• Vintage: 2012
• Dosage: Brut
• Price Category: £50+
• Approx UK Retail Price: £85
• Medal: Master

Hailing from the great 2012 vintage, this marvellous Champagne from the house of Henriot is complete, featuring a hedonistic mix of creamy coffee, toast, gun smoke and tangy lemon and lime characters on the lingering, refreshing finish. (Patrick Schmitt MW)

To read the full 2022 list of the 10 best vintage Champagnes, click here.

Non-vintage

CHAMPAGNE LANSON LE BLACK LABEL BRUT

• Producer: Champagne Lanson
• Grape varieties: 50% Pinot Noir, 35% Chardonnay, 15% Meunier
• Abv: 12%
• Dosage: Brut
• Approx. retail price: £37
• Medal: Master

A famous ‘Grande Marque’ Champagne dating from 1760, Lanson Black Label seems to get better year-on-year. Based on the Crus of Dizy, Verzenay and Trépail with around 30% reserve wines and a low dosage of 6g/l, this is a shining star of Champagne. A mid-straw colour, showing persistent mousse, the wine has red and yellow fruits accented by buttered toast autolytic character, brisk acidity and velvet texture. A mid-weight wine designed for gastronomy and perfect with Thai or subtle Chinese dishes. (Patricia Stefanowicz MW)

To read the full 2022 list of the 10 best non-vintage Champagnes, click here.

Prestige cuvée

CUVÉE WILLIAM DEUTZ 2013

• Producer: Champagne Deutz
• Grape varieties: 77% Pinot Noir, 20% Chardonnay, 3% Meunier
• Abv: 12%
• Vintage: 2013
• Approx. retail price: £140
• Medal: Master

Owned by the Roederer group, Champagne Deutz is itself a House with distinctive style: firm, flavour-packed with finesse. This wine shows a pale lemon hue with tiny persistent bubbles and a tight cordon. Mid-weight, displaying ripe apricots, yellow plums with buttered toast and honey nuances, the palate is braced with lively acidity and creamy mousse texture. An elegant style suited to delicate canapés or pristine Asian cuisines. (Patricia Stefanowicz MW)

GRAND SIÈCLE, ITERATION NO.25

• Producer: Champagne Laurent-Perrier
• Blend: Chardonnay: 60, Pinot Noir: 40
• Vintage: NV
• Dosage: Brut
• Price Category: £50+
• Approx UK Retail Price: £175
• Medal: Master

Relatively under the radar for a house so famous for its rosé, this prestige cuvée is a stunner. Blending the best wines from a mix of fine vintages (2008, 2007 and 2006), Laurent-Perrier eschew the usual single harvest approach for their top expression, and craft this layered, thrilling Champagne for immediate consumption, or, should you like a more evolved fizz, further ageing. The style is a delicious mix of semimature and fresh fruit flavours, with some tinned pineapple and dried citrus, creamy coffee and roasted nuts, then baked bread, crisp apple and Comice pear, complemented by a long, dry, chalky-tasting finish. (Patrick Schmitt MW)

RARE MILLÉSIME 2006, IN MAGNUM

• Producer: Rare Champagne
• Blend: tbc
• Vintage: 2006
• Dosage: Brut Price Category: £100+
• Approx UK Retail Price: £tbc
• Medal: Master

My top-scoring wine of the tasting, this magnum of Rare 2006 – the single harvest prestige cuvée brand, and formerly the flagship expression of Piper-Heidsieck – is a magnificent Champagne. Yet to hit the market – this was a special pre-release tasting – this 2006 is a fizz that combines maturity and richness with freshness and energy in a wonderful way that so few manage to master in Champagne. It could partly be due to the ‘magnum effect’, which slows down the evolution of fruit flavours in fizz, but I believe it’s primarily due to the strict wine selection and skilled handling in the cellar. After all, Rare cuvées in standard formats have consistently been top-performers in the Champagne Masters. So what is it like to drink? A light pale gold appearance draws you in to its cappuccino and vanilla pod aromatics, with notes of stone fruit. On the palate, there’s charred bread and grilled nuts, pear and peach fruit, with a touch of bitter orange on the finish, which is long, dry, and chalky – the wine’s flavours gradually taper to a mouth-watering finish. Rare 2006 in magnum will be available from September 2022. (Patrick Schmitt MW)

To read the full 2022 list of the 10 best prestige cuvée Champagnes, click here.

Blanc de blancs

HENRIOT BLANC DE BLANCS

• Producer: Champagne Henriot
• Blend: Chardonnay: 100
• Vintage: NV
• Dosage: Brut
• Price Category: £50+
• Approx UK Retail Price: £50
• Medal: Champagne Master

If you like your Chardonnay smoky, then this Blanc de Blancs from Henriot will appeal greatly, with its flavours of toast, struck match and grilled lemons, complemented by hazelnuts and pear, along with orange and grapefruit zest on its persistent dry, fresh finish. (Patrick Schmitt MW)

PERRIER-JOUËT BELLE EPOQUE BLANC DE BLANCS 2012

• Producer: Perrier-Jouët
• Blend: Chardonnay 100%
• Vintage: 2012
• Dosage: Brut
• Price Category: £50+
• Approx UK Retail Price: £340
• Medal: Champagne Master

Reaching the high point among the Blanc de Blancs in 2022 was this rare prestige cuvée expression from Perrier-Jouët, with its complex, mature aromatics of dried apple, burnt orange, honey and roasted coffee, and then flavours of hazelnut and grapefruit, lemon zest and chalk, with a texture that’s mouth-filling, but fresh and moreish too. (Patrick Schmitt MW)

To read the full 2022 list of the 10 best prestige blanc de blancs Champagnes, click here.

Pink

Read more: 2022 Champagne Masters medallists

 

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