Dom Perignon P2 Vintage in Gift Box 2003
Winemaker Notes
A perfect balance of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes. Dom Pérignon plays with the paradox of opposite and complementary elements to create vibration and tension. 50% Chardonnay and 50% Pinot Noir. The assemblage is the foundation of the Dom Pérignon signature. It is guided by timeless principles. Slow and long maturation on the lees is the price that must be paid to make Dom Pérignon stand out as one of the most complex of all wines. The Champagne has developed its energy throughout minimum 15 years of elaboration. In the darkness of the cellars, inside the bottles, the wine has gone through an active transformation in contact with the yeast. Elevated to new heights, it unveils a more complete sensory landscape: wider, deeper, longer, more intense.
Critical Acclaim
All Vintages
Dom Pérignon: an absolute commitment to Vintage
Dom Pérignon's commitment to vintage is absolute. Each Dom Pérignon is a true act of creation, made from only the best grapes. The champagne's intensity is based in precision, so inviting, so mysterious. Each Vintage has three Plénitudes, and embodies the total faith in the creation that is constantly renewed by Chef de Cave Vincent Chaperon. Coupled with a bold sense of playfulness, Dom Pérignon inspires the greatest creators in the world.Made only from the best grapes grown in one single year, each Dom Perignon's Vintage represents a harmonic balance between the nature of the year and the signature of Dom Pérignon. After no fewer than 8 years of elaboration, each vintage emerges complete, seamless and tactile. Dom Pérignon Champagne is made through an assemblage of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, created by using only the best grapes harvested from the 17 Grands Crus in Champagne and the Premier Cru of Hautvillers.
Associated with luxury, celebration, and romance, the region, Champagne, is home to the world’s most prized sparkling wine. In order to bear the label, ‘Champagne’, a sparkling wine must originate from this northeastern region of France—called Champagne—and adhere to strict quality standards. Made up of the three towns Reims, Épernay, and Aÿ, it was here that the traditional method of sparkling wine production was both invented and perfected, birthing a winemaking technique as well as a flavor profile that is now emulated worldwide.
Well-drained, limestone and chalky soil defines much of the region, which lend a mineral component to its wines. Champagne’s cold, continental climate promotes ample acidity in its grapes but weather differences from year to year can create significant variation between vintages. While vintage Champagnes are produced in exceptional years, non-vintage cuvées are produced annually from a blend of several years in order to produce Champagnes that maintain a consistent house style.
With nearly negligible exceptions, . These can be blended together or bottled as individual varietal Champagnes, depending on the final style of wine desired. Chardonnay, the only white variety, contributes freshness, elegance, lively acidity and notes of citrus, orchard fruit and white flowers. Pinot Noir and its relative Pinot Meunier, provide the backbone to many blends, adding structure, body and supple red fruit flavors. Wines with a large proportion of Pinot Meunier will be ready to drink earlier, while Pinot Noir contributes to longevity. Whether it is white or rosé, most Champagne is made from a blend of red and white grapes—and uniquely, rosé is often produce by blending together red and white wine. A Champagne made exclusively from Chardonnay will be labeled as ‘blanc de blancs,’ while ones comprised of only red grapes are called ‘blanc de noirs.’
Representing the topmost expression of a Champagne house, a vintage Champagne is one made from the produce of a single, superior harvest year. Vintage Champagnes account for a mere 5% of total Champagne production and are produced about three times in a decade. Champagne is typically made as a blend of multiple years in order to preserve the house style; these will have non-vintage, or simply, NV on the label. The term, "vintage," as it applies to all wine, simply means a single harvest year.