Piper-Heidsieck's roots trace back to Florens-Louis Heidsieck, who created the original company of Heidsieck & Co. Christian Heidsieck joined the venture alongside Guillaume Piper and once Florens-Louis died in 1828, the duo decided to continue the adventure side by side, founding Champagne Piper-Heidsieck.

In 2011 both Charles Heidsieck and Piper-Heidsieck were bought by EPI Group headed by Christopher Descours, he has added significant finance into the companies allowing them to grow their vineyard holdings, grape purchasing and production. The brands are now growing their sales fast after many decades of decline. Today, production occurs alongside sister company Charles Heidsieck in an ultra-modern functional wine-making facility on the southern outskirts of Reims. Their characteristics differ quite considerably, with Piper opting for a fruitier and lighter style of base wines.

Piper-Heidsieck Rare is a truly unique prestige cuvée. In the summer of 1976, an unprecedented heatwave struck France, the likes of which the Champagne region had never experienced before. Piper-Heidsieck's winemaking team began to wonder: could it be possible to create a cuvée given the remarkable conditions? Taming the natural forces was no easy task and when assemblage was complete and the final blend bottled, the team were so proud of the final product, they called it Rare. The brand started as Piper-Heidsieck Rare and in 2019 this became simply Rare. These cuvées are only produced in these exceptional years: 1976, 1979, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2006, 2007 & 2008. In 2018 a new rose cuvee was released with 2007, now followed with 2008 and 2012.

Weather: A mild, rainy winter, followed by an unpredictable and dreary spring, with a month of June marked by an abrupt drop in temperature and continuing most of the summer until the 15 August. And then, a miracle of nature: the ominous and extremely rainy weather changed radically to become sunny and dry with warm days and cold nights, lasting throughout the harvest in mid-September.

Technical Information:
Vineyards: 100% Grand Cru | Chardonnay: Avize, Oger, Villers-Marmery | Pinot Noir: Verzy
Grape Varieties: 70% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir
Lees Ageing: 10 years
Dosage: 8.5 g/l
Disgorged: November 2019
Drink: Now to 2035+

Tasting Note: Exquisitely elegant, radiantly fruity and mineral, but still holding back plenty. It is almost like a time bomb having so much fruit and vitality to it that it feels near immortal. Beautifully detailed nose with fresh fruity profile with pineapple, lemon, sweet vanilla and roasted coffee beans meeting liquorice and smoky almonds. The fruitiness is pure, ripe yet crunchy. On the palate it is tightly knit and driven with its crisp acidity perfectly bound to the radiant fruitiness. Lacey texture with shows tension, the wine finishes to a palate-cleansingly fresh salty tang. Really refined vintage of Rare with majestic longevity ahead. Tasting note from Essi Avellan MW