The Story
Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label Brut has been the symbol of the House since 1772. A perfect balance between power and finesse, its complexity comes from the predominant presence of Pinot Noir and Reserve Wines. It showcases our superb vineyards and the consistent style of our House.
Grapes from as many as 50 to 60 different Crus are used for the blending of Yellow Label. The predominance of Pinot Noir provides the core structure of Clicquot, while a touch of Meunier rounds out the blend. Chardonnay adds the elegance and finesse essential to a perfectly balanced wine.
Traditionally, the proportion of each grape variety used is 50 to 55% Pinot Noir, 15 to 20% Meunier and 28 to 33% Chardonnay These figures vary slightly from year to year depending on conditions.
The Chef de Caves has to achieve the total consistency of taste, which makes Yellow Label immediately recognizable, utterly reliable both in terms of quality, color, and aroma.
The blend draws on a particularly high percentage of reserve wines originating from several harvests (usually 5 or 6): from 25 to 35%, sometimes as much as 40% to ensure the consistency of the House style. Each of these older wines - perhaps 9 years old - is kept separately to preserve the unique qualities of the vineyard and the vintage.
Vintage 1990
Three excellent vintages in Champagne were 1988, 1989 and 1990. Initially, many considered 1990 the finest of the trio, but that mantle has since passed to 1988. Some of the 1990 champagnes have evolved more quickly than anticipated, and there can be variation among bottles and producers. Winter and early spring saw warm weather that resulted in an early bud-break, making vines susceptible to the spring frost which duly arrived in April. This led to some uneven ripening and differing levels of maturity owing to the second generation of grapes that appeared after the frost damage and thus ripened later. The summer was generally dry and warm, which produced big, powerful, concentrated and full-flavoured wines.