18.5/20
Jancis Robinson MW
“
ID 212018. Disgorged spring 2016. 44% Pinot Noir, 33% Chardonnay, 23% Pinot Meunier. Named ‘Luminous Freshness’. Based on 2004. The beautiful weather in harvest time from mid September to early October made 2004 a generous year following the challenging extremes and limited yields of 2003. This is a blend of 121 wines from 12 different years, the oldest from 1990 and the youngest from 2004.
Very broad and ripe. Much less tense than most. Very accessible. Masses of bruised fruit pleasure. Much less freshness than most. And a little shorter? This tasted relatively mature.”
18/20
Jancis Robinson MW
“ID 312036. 134 wines. Original disgorgement. Kept on cork for re-release.
Complex, intellectual nose with a sort of burnished gold impression.”
92/100
William Kelley
“Based on the 2003 vintage, Krug's NV Grande Cuvée 159ème Édition offers up generous aromas of toasted bread, yellow orchard fruit, mandarin oil, almond paste and candied citrus peel. Medium to full-bodied, rich and open-knit, it's elegantly fleshy, with ripe acids and a pretty pinpoint mousse, concluding with a sapid finish. Readers habituated to Krug's calling-card cut and intensity may find it a little soft and one-dimensional, but it's a creditable effort in a challenging year.”
19/20
Jancis Robinson MW
“ID 214031. This will be re-released this year along with Krug 2004. The re-release will have had longer on the lees than the original release. The re-release may be disgorged later than the sample on which this very enthusiastic tasting note is based.
Smooth and jazzy and utterly swallowable. Long and richly savoury. Fabulous! Open. Perfect now. Rich and exciting.
Drink 2014-2024”
18.5/20
Jancis Robinson MW
“This is the 161st creation of Krug Grande Cuvée, code 312036, based on the 2005 vintage, the oldest wine is from 1990 and the youngest 2005 with 134 wines from 12 vintages to make the Krug signature Grande Cuveé. Reserve wines this year bring brightness, richness and depth to the year's blend, mainly through very beautiful old Chardonnays and multiple expressions of Meunier from different years. 44% Pinot Noir, 37% Chardonnay, 19% Pinot Meunier. Dosage 6 g/l. Disgorged summer 2012.
Tasted blind. Fizzy and tight. But not one of the densest or finest. Based on 2005? Neat bead. Well sculpted rather than dramatic. Lots of youth and acidity. But good balance.”
18/20
Jancis Robinson MW
“ID 215040. Made from the very small crop of 2003 back to 1988 from 120 wines. 51% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay, 19% Pinot Meunier.
Pale, pungent and smoky. Great undertow, and proof that they did not get rid of their heavy wines in the Grande Cuvée.
Drink 2014-2024”
96/100
Michael Edwards
“A real firework of a Grande Cuvée set around the 2004 base, with intricacy from 12 different vintages in total dating back to 1990. A panoply of toasted bread, apple blossom, fresh peach, pear and dried apricot, followed by sensuous notes of almond, ginger and sweet spices. Beautiful mature Chardonnay and multiple expressions of Meunier beyond earthiness, richness with delicacy and vibrant freshness. Perfect now. The Champion today. Disgorged Spring 2012.”
94/100
Antonio Galloni
“The NV Grande Cuvée is absolutely stellar. This is one of the very best Grande Cuvées I can remember tasting. The flavors are bright, focused and beautifully delineated throughout, all of which make me think the wine will age well for many, many years. Lemon peel, white flowers, crisp pears, smoke and crushed rocks race across the palate in a vibrant, tense Champagne that epitomizes finesse. This release is based on the 2005 vintage and was disgorged in winter 2012/2013. The blend is: 44% Pinot Noir, 37% Chardonnay and 19% Meunier. Krug ID: 113001.”
18/20
Jancis Robinson MW
“This is the 159th creation of Krug Grande Cuvée, code 211021, which is based on the 2003 vintage. The oldest wine is from 1988 and the youngest 2003 with 120 wines from 10 vintages. Reserve wines this year, particularly ones from 1996, as well as other truly great white wines from more recent years, give spark and vitality to this year's blend. Disgorged spring 2011. Dosage 6 g/l. 51% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay, 19% Pinot Meunier.
Tasted blind. Stern and extremely intense, slightly floral, lightly spicy nose. Then it faded a little soon on the end. Just slightly less vital than the others. 2005 base?”
18.5/20
Jancis Robinson MW
“This is the 160th creation of Krug Grande Cuvée, code 212018, based on the 2004 vintage. The oldest wine is from 1990 and the youngest 2004 with 121 wines from 12 vintages. Reserve wines this year lend harmony, completing the blend without modifying the predominant characteristics of the year. 44% Pinot Noir, 33% Chardonnay, 23% Pinot Meunier. Dosage 6 g/l. Disgorged spring 2012.
Tasted blind. Really exciting nose. Deep gold. Lots of evolution. Mellow, burnished, savoury gold. Great balance. Smoky. Racy. But broader than wine number 5 (which was the Krug vintage 2002 in this blind line-up). Solid but not inspiring. Not that long. Lots of pace. And length. Vintage wine. Savoury end. ”
95/100
David Schildknecht
“Krug’s NV Brut Grande Cuvee ID 112001 -- disgorged already over the winter of 2011-2012 but then further aged before release -- reinforces the belief that, thankfully, even wine lovers of modest means who occasionally splurge on Krug Grande Cuvee will be rewarded with a wine that need not fear comparison with this house’s more limited and far more expensive bottlings, nor for that matter with any other wines of Champagne. The harmonious juxtaposition of creaminess and lees enrichment with bright, juicy citricity and of expansive richness with levity is stunning....Citrus zest notes segue seamlessly into the fine stream of CO2 without bitterness, while succulent white peach garlanded in lily-of-the-valley is laced with rich, subtly piquant nut oils and saliva-liberating salinity. Emerging suggestions of shitake and shrimp shell reduction compound the sense of capital-'U' umami in a vibrantly interactive and refreshing finish. A day after opening, this is even more vividly complex than it had been initially, with hints of fresh red raspberry lending an invigorating tang and sensation of berry seed-crunching that delivers strikingly harmonious counterpoint to both the luscious brightness of fruit and the nutty low-tones....The team at Krug has long taken pains to emphasize that the task of assembling their Grande Cuvee from a hundred or more lots reflecting reserves of widely varying ages is mind-bogglingly complex. So is the result.”
18.5/20
Jancis Robinson MW
“ID 313054. Magnum. Disgorged summer 2013. 44% Pinot Noir, 35% Chardonnay, 21% Pinot Meunier. Based on 2006 with reserves going back to 1990. 142 different wines!
Mid straw. Intense nose demands attention. Savoury. Pretty explosive texture. Bone-dry finish. This is so different from – more complex than – most champagnes! A wine to contemplate that works towards the finish like a great burgundy, but it’s definitely not mouthwash for a big reception. Very long. 12%”
18/20
Jancis Robinson MW
“ID 406001. The blend of 45% Pinot Noir, 35% Chardonnay, 20% Pinot Meunier was based on 2000 but includes 118 wines from 10 different vintages, the oldest being 1990, the youngest 2000. Disgorged 2006.
Fresh, floral tension. Focused thought reticent on the nose. Dense with lots to chew on. A little sweetness and lots of depth.
Drink 2010-2020”
95/100
Michael Edwards
“Beguiling complex colour of twinkling green/gold lights. Inimitably Krug, masterly blending. The Chardonnay scents are at once refined yet dripping in the aroma of crunchy Williams pears. Discreet notes of vanilla, crème pâtissière, spiced lemon and brioche. Then a mouthfeel of body and heft; great Pinot Noir that is miraculously filigreed and ethereal, plus Pinot Meunier succulence. Like no other Champagne.
”
93/100
Stephen Tanzer
“Light yellow-gold. Highly aromatic bouquet of fresh tangerine, candied fig, pear skin and ginger, plus a smoky mineral overtone. Tangy, precise and concentrated, offering a complex blend of citrus and orchard fruit and floral flavors underscored by chalky minerality. Juicy, tightly focused, youthfully angular Champagne, with nervy acidity adding cut to the long, sappy finish. I can see why some long-time Krug fans might be perplexed by this bottling but I think that it will be a really outstanding bottle with another five-plus years of cellaring.”