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Wine Description
The Story
Originally this cuvee has been a private reserve for the Dampierre family and released only in the best vintages. It always comes closed with a hemp thread of French origin. The Chardonnay grapes for this superb champagne come from Oger (50%), from Mesnil-sur-Oger (40%) and Cramant (10%). Family Reserve is a grand cru champagne and a “blanc de blancs”.
Traditional style tying: noblesse oblige
This craft-man’s work dates back to the XVIIIth century. Traditional tying symbolizes French luxury and sets off the elite vintages: Family Reserve and Cuvée Prestige.
A twine seal rather than a metal hood!
When de Dampierre ancestors started to sell their first bottles of great cuvees, they were sealing the corks onto the bottle by mean of a locally produced twine, made of hemp. This tradition had long ago become part of the Dampierre unique identity.
“Ficelage” is the ancestral method of tying the cork to the bottle with twine and is an ageold tradition that requires immense skill: concentration and finesse are essential in the art of tying as in many handicraft, time is here of the utmost importance.
Even an expert only completes 50 corks in an hour. The “ficeleur” ties intricate knots whilst the twine is still attached to the ball and then cuts both ends; this process is repeated twice, forming a cross on the top of the cork.
Vintage 1998
This year's harvest is the largest the region has ever seen. Every corner of the appellation has managed to achieve the maximum authorized harvest yield of 10,400 kilos of grapes per hectare. Producers were also allowed to harvest an additional 2,600 kg which was allocated to the Champagne reserve, called blocking. This led to 330 million bottles of champagne being made in total. The lock-in system (which allows more production than necessary to meet demand) was the main tool for maintaining a stable price level in the 1990s.