The true secret of what I would call the resilience of the style is to be found in the incredible diversity, quality and complementarity of our vineyards. One has to know that we mostly use estate fruit, and that the contract fruit is only marginal. In particular I have the privilege to access the 17 Grands Crus of Champagne mostly through vineyards we own. This brings the range of possibilities while blending to another level, allowing me to achieve such a consistency of the style while letting the character of the vintage shine through.
I’m glad you liked the magnums of Original release '59 and '75—I have actually never tasted the '59 Original release in magnum! Staggering is ok, I would have hoped for a Killer Plus!
Can you give us rough hint of the assemblage of Dom Perignon in terms of break down of varietals? Is it roughly 1/3 distribution between Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, or more weighted towards one varietal or another? I can imagine that from vintage to vintage it varies, but any hints as to rough break down?
Hopefully Richard will comment even though it is past his agreed to time frame but my understanding is that it is closer to 50/50 Pinot Noir/Chard but as you mention, varies depending on the vintage.
As explained in the Manifesto, we strive to reach the perfect balance between black and white grapes, between Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Pinot Meunier is never used. You will find more information in my blog entry about the assemblage, with even a few specific examples for various vintages.
It’s interesting that there is no Pinot Meunier used. I wonder if this helps a bit with having a consistent style from year to year, even with aged bottles of Dom Perignon.