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Wine Description
The Story
Celebrating 200 years of elegance, Champagne Laurent-Perrier has unveiled a limited edition prestige cuvée paying tribute to the Bicentenary - Les Réserves Grand Siècle.
Representing the same unique style used to create the Grand Siècle by Laurent-Perrier - the first multi-vintage prestige cuvée to be introduced, Les Réserves Grand Siècle is the epitome of Laurent-Perrier’s pioneering approach to wine-making and dedication to the art of assemblage.
Known as Cuvée Nº 571J, a small number of bottles have been preserved neck down before being riddled manually on traditional racks.
Using 50% Chardonnay and 50% Pinot Noir, Les Réserves Grand Siècle is crafted from 10 top Grand Crus rated 100% from three exceptional years declared vintage by Laurent-Perrier (1990, 1993 and 1995).
Adding to its exclusivity Les Réserves Grand Siècle has been sold to order in Magnums and Jeroboams, in the iconic swan neck bottles. Only a limited quantity of bottles are being produced. Hand crafted, silver-plated plaques adorn the bottles with the Laurent-Perrier logo, whilst metal eyelets are engraved with the number of the reserve cuvée.
In 1955, Bernard de Nonancourt had the idea of creating a premium cuvée that would depart from conventional champagne wisdom at the time, namely that a premium cuvée had necessarily to be a vintage wine.
For him, the flagship Laurent-Perrier cuvée had to have a unique style highlighting the art of blending taken to new heights through a selection of the very best years, the best crus, and the best grape varietals.
Made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir varietals exclusively grown among ten of the most famous of Champagne’s foremost 100% Grands Crus vineyards, the cuvée Nº 571J is a blend of 3 of Laurent-Perrier’s best vintage years: 1995, 1993 and 1990.
Wine Information
Labelling has been entirely done by hand and was specially designed of this limited edition. The cork closure, the cabochon (specially engraved with the number of the cuvée), and the spliced cover made by a master upholsterer for the characteristic swan’s neck of the bottle, all testify to the painstaking craftsmanship involved at every stage in the creation of «Les Réserves Grand Siècle».
Made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir varietals exclusively grown among ten of the most famous of Champagne’s foremost 100% Grands Crus vineyards, the cuvée N° 571J is a blend of three of the best Laurent-Perrier’s vintage years.
• 1995 harvest:
The wine growing year got off to a good start, but was marked by unreliable weather towards the end of the season and its consequences. Spreading the harvest from September to early October allowed growers to get the best of the various crus. Those who were patient obtained the quintessence of a fine, balanced year
• 1993 harvest:
With hindsight, the harvest had enormous potential, but the truth was that the winter and spring conditions led to growth problems. In May, there were devastating hailstorms in some areas, followed by heavy rain during the harvest in early September. Ripening was disrupted and uneven. In the chardonnay grand cru areas, still wines of outstanding finesse were identified
• 1990 harvest:
The year was marked by a very mild winter. A hot, dry spell in March triggered meteoric early growth. A hard frost followed by much lower temperatures that would severely damage the young shoots in some sectors. After that, came a heat wave, and some new shoots, which growers had thought killed off, began growing again. The harvest was spread from 11 to 24 September, with the result that the quality of the still wines was rich and elegant
