The potential for a Krug vintage champagne is identified during the blending of Krug Grande Cuvée. Once the non-vintage blend has been secured and all of the reserves earmarked, the wines displaying the most pronounced character of the vintage are blended to create the vintage champagne.

Krug ID: | Whilst bottles of Krug 1996 do not have a Krug ID on the back label, you can use the code on the left to discover the story of this vintage. You can do so using the smartphone App or on the Krug website.

Weather: A year like no other, 1996 in Champagne married the highest levels of sugar and acidity in living memory; the resulting wines are extraordinary in their concentration, yet perfectly poised in terms of structural definition. The year 1996 is to become a year that will go down in Champagne’s history books.

Technical Information:
Vineyards: Predominately Premier & Grand Cru
Grape Varieties: 48% Chardonnay, 31% Pinot Noir, 21% Meunier
Drink: Now to 2030

Tasting Note: A seductive golden colour and a surprisingly forward nose which marries honey, acacia, brioche and truffle. It is on the palate that the identity of the year really starts to sing, with rich notes of lemon meringue, hazelnut and blackcurrant shining through. Beneath this the ripe fruit is slumbering; its ultimate manifestation will herald unparalled complexity and profundity. Similar to the '88 but many suspect it will, over time, be even better.

Just five years after Joseph Krug founded his eponymous Champagne House in 1843, he documented his great vision for Krug in a cherry-red leather notebook. In it, he revealed the principles of creating a champagne of incredible richness yet great elegance, of selecting only the finest elements from the greatest terroirs, rejecting mediocre fruit and making both a non-vintage and a vintage cuvée - revolutionary at the time. Discovered in 2010 by current House Director and sixth generation of the founding family Olivier Krug, the ideals in this notebook and Krug's resolute commitment to them have secured their position as the most luxurious and exclusive of all Champagne producers.

Unlike other Champagne Houses, Krug's range consists of prestige cuvées only. Their iconic non-vintage Grande Cuvée is a masterful blend of some 120 wines, vintage Krugs are renowned as true classics, majestically displaying the characteristics of each harvest and their unique and exclusive single-vineyard champagnes, Clos du Mesnil and Clos d'Ambonnay are the ultimate rarities. The recent introduction of ID codes displayed on the back of every bottle - revealing base year, disgorgement periods and product information - has helped revise the vision of Krug in line with the great founder's philosophy.

Cellar Master: Julie Cavil
Winery Location: Reims | Champagne, France
Champagne Region: Montagne de Reims
Annual Production (bottles): 760,000