Champagne Bollinger owns an impressive 178 hectares of vineyards, of which 85% are in Grand Cru and Premier Cru villages. Their land is spread over seven main villages: Aÿ, Avenay, Louvois, Tauxières and Verzenay planted with Pinot Noir; Cuis with Chardonnay; and Champvoisy with Meunier. Bollinger are one of the few Houses to produce the majority of their own grapes for their blends. Pinot Noir represents 60% of the House's vineyards and defines the House style: complex and powerful with remarkable structure. In 2012 Champagne Bollinger was certified High Environment Value (HEV) this certification rewards a number of environmental procedures implemented at the Maison.

Madame Bollinger created the first vintage of this now legendary prestige cuvée in 1961 with the launch of R.D. 1952. An acronym for Recently Disgorged, Bollinger R.D. is the result of Madame Bollinger's great vision: an expert wine with aromas enhanced by its exceptionally long maturation in the Bollinger family cellars - more than three times longer than required.

2008 is the first R.D. to have been aged in the “1846” Bollinger bottle. This unique shape offers beneficial properties for the quality of the wine. The idea in using the curved shape of the bottle is to get that perfect balance of a “small magnum” with a narrower neck and a wider base, to very slightly slow down the oxygen exchange and therefore give a better quality wine with longer ageing potential.

Weather in 2008: After a rainy but mild winter without any prolonged cold spells, spring arrived with some very localised frosts. Cool weather returned in June and the infrequent sunshine prolonged the feeling of freshness. The spring to autumn weather was bright with sunny spells and the long, hot days and cool nights during September gave the grapes excellent acidity during the harvest period. The 2008 vintage is fast emerging as one of the best since the renowned and now-legendary 2002.

Technical Information:
Vineyards: 18 Crus - 90% Grand Cru, 10% Premier Cru
Grape Varieties: 71% Pinot Noir & 29% Chardonnay
Lees Ageing: 13 years
Disgorged: 28 October 2022
Dosage: 3 g/l
Drink: Now to 2035+

Tasting Note: Enticing aromas of marzipan, stewed apricots, honey and breadcrumbs accompany fresh notes of bergamot. A rich, precise mousse. Citrus notes are followed by flavours of Mirabelle plums and vine peaches. A very vivaciours wine which unfolds to reveal exceptional complexity. Notes of fresh hazelnuts and salinity combine to create an intense, everlasting finish.