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Wine Description
The Story
Dom Pérignon vintages are released after 7 years of ageing. A small portion of each vintage is kept on the lees even longer, to continue the evolution and magnify its natural qualities.
Only one person - the Dom Pérignon cellar master - can decide if and when to re-release a vintage. The P2 label indicates that the vintage has reached its second peak in maturity, with optimized intensity (15 to 20 years after harvest). The P3 label indicates its third peak, with optimized complexity (after 30 years on the lees).
The maturation of Dom Pérignon occurs not in a simple linear trajectory, but in successive leaps into new expression, each of which are called Plénitudes. In the long journey of elaboration, the wine goes through this metamorphosis, a transformation. Each Plénitude contributes to Dom Pérignon’s singularity. In the darkness of the cellars, from one plénitude to the next, Dom Pérignon will grow and blossom, transmuting time into energy.
Wine Information
The year was full of contrasts, with a variable summer. The wetter periods never quite made up for the earlier moisture deficit. Eventually, in the month before the harvest (which began on September 16), spells of hot weather and northeasterly winds gave the vintage an unusual maturity.
The intense nose is daring, with surprising Mediterranean influences mingling dried roses, citron, saffron, figs and bay leaf. The bouquet expresses darker, silvery notes that are briny and peppery.
The wine vibrates and alternates between light and shadow, freshness and gravity. The note holds in pointillist touches arriving in successive waves. Each sensation is light, savory, precise and contained. The acidic imprint that distinguishes the vintage is perfectly integrated here. The wine glides without any dryness as the appealing bitterness of spicy citrus lingers on.
Vintage 1995
A welcome relief after some difficult years in the region. Quantity-wise, it was the seventh high-cropping year in a row. But, in 1995, the quality also excelled, and particularly so for Chardonnay. There were significant frost damages during the spring and the warm but wet weather in the summer ignited mildew and rot problems. The vines cropped heavily and rigorous vineyard work and selection during harvest led to best results. Harvest commenced on September 18th and yielded grapes of a fine balance of sugar and acidity. The vintage has turned out to be much better than first expected and it has emerged from the shadow of the much-hyped 1996. This vintage is marked by elegance of its inviting fruitiness, beautiful balance and slow-building finesse. Its greatest examples include Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millénaires, Dom Pérignon (whole range), Louis Roederer Cristal and Cristal Rosé, Bollinger R.D, Krug Vintage and Taittinger Comtes de Champagne.