It has become common to call on very large glasses for Champagne now – Burgundy glasses in this case. It is a much better way to drink these complex, long lees-matured Champagnes. It is also a reflection that the Champenoise seem to consider themselves in a more general, wine-like way these days, whilst still harnessed to the magical aura they have worked so hard to create.
This newly-released RD 2002 from Bollinger is a fairly quick follow-on from the La Grande Année 2002 release back in 2011, the main difference being the extra time on lees. The La Grande Année was a superb release as you can see by my note below, looking tight-wound and full of potential, scintillating and already complex.
Both wines were bottled in 2003. The 2002 La Grande Année was disgorged in July 2010 whereas the 2002 Bollinger RD (recently disgorged) has spent another 39 months on lees prior to disgorgement in October 2013. The effect? Well, it’s more compressed, more composed and more complete looking Champagne. The lees have further strengthened an already powerful cuvée and it’s also more complex, although this is discreetly expressed for now.
The rarity factor is also a major difference, with RD released in much smaller quantities and classified among an elite group of wines, the first release being the 1952 vintage. The more recent regular release of RD prior to this 2002 vintage was the 1997, with the 1999 released exclusively in magnum and a special release of only 350 jeroboams of 2000 RD, so it has been some time since most people have seen one. There are whispers that 2004 may well be shaping up as a much quicker follow on from here.
The relationship between the La Grande Année and RD programs is an interesting one, with the wines being put down essentially as one tranche, then monitored through to release. “There is no obvious evolution for the two to follow suit,” says Bollinger commercial director, Guy de Rivoire. “But, when we declare, we hope that the vintage will become Bollinger RD.” In this case I doubt there was ever any question!
Click for notes.
2002 Bollinger La Grande Année
Nick Stock is a renowned Australian wine writer, author, presenter and filmmaker who reports on his worldwide wine tasting experiences for JamesSuckling.com.
http://www.saq.com/page/en/saqcom/champagne/bollinger-rd-1999-1999/11698897?selectedIndex=2&searchContextId=63164740918161986