“Not every market will have access to the new Collection Impériale as only six markets have been selected for the release – UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy and Japan. Interestingly this does not include the United States with no explanation given at this stage as to why,” writes Scarpazza.
The most extensive Champagne house Moët & Chandon is set to release in selected markets a new ultra-premium Champagne Collection Impériale – Création 1 leading the countdown to its 300th anniversary.
The Collection Impériale – Création 1 is hitting the shelves in November this year at an advised price of £206 per bottle which is the highest price point for the famed house –Moët & Chandon’s core production, the Brut Imperial, currently sells at £43.
It is not every day or every decade that the estate releases a new collection, so why now of all times?
With 20 years to the 300th anniversary, the estate is planning to release 10 iterations of the Collection Impériale ‘Créations’ one every two years and each one unique, “a preparation to the anniversary, and a reminder that we are almost 300 years old,” says Benoît Gouez, Moët & Chandon’s cellar master. The project is planned to continue past the anniversary.
Gouez held a presentation of the new cuvée in an intimate setting at 67 Pall Mall in London, at which he described the Collection Impériale as ‘Haute Oenology’ – taking words from the books of the Champagne House’s owner LVMH. With this latest addition to its portfolio, Moët & Chandon is looking outside the wine world to set up a new strategy mirroring, if you like, the range of a luxury fashion company – having products ‘prêt-à-porter’, ‘collection’ or ‘bespoke model’. After all, if it works for DIOR it could potentially work for Moët, time will tell.
So what is Collection Impériale exactly?
The new Collection Impériale is described by Gouez as “Our culmination of blending mastery – multi-variety, vintages, and different winemaking techniques.”
As per estate tradition the Collection Impériale is a blend – Moët has no single varietal in its portfolio) – and one that is based on seven different vintages. The most is from the 2013 vintage (42.5%) with a further 42.5% of the blend made up of reserve wines from 2012, 2010, 2008, and 2006, with the remaining 15% from the 2004 vintage sur latte.
Gouez explains that each component, has different winemaking techniques and the wine wants to showcase the best winemaking techniques available in the market at this time. Choosing the base wine from the 2013 vintage for its vibrancy Gouez says “the harvest was in late October, the only one this late, in my time 25 years at Moët & Chandon, it doesn’t happen anymore” this results in a Champagne that has great energy and deeper fruits.
The reserve base wines were matured in 10-year-old oak barrels, for about one year, building it over the years. The 15% of 2004 reserve wine, he notes “adds complexity to the wines, that needs time to open up, showing the various layers… it takes some time for the reductive element to show through.”
The Collection Impériale is a rendition of the MC3 released in the early 2000s, which you’ll be excused if you didn’t know that such a wine existed as it failed to conquer the markets – £400 a bottle did not help. Based on a heavily-oaked, opulent 2003 vintage also did not help. Gouez added that it was ‘a winemaker project’, and it was a mistake, I sensed that in the past 20 years he has learned from it.
Choosing a Brut Nature style
The new Collection Impériale will be a Brut Nature – the first in the estate history – a culmination of decreasing dosages.
Like many Champagne Houses, the sweetness levels at Moët & Chandon have been trending down generally over the years as Gouez explains: “it’s not always a better wine because it has less sugar but with more maturation and riper fruits we have the natural richness to balance the Champagne. When I started the Brut Imperial 25 years ago the Brut Imperial had 13-14 grams then 11 grams and now it has 7 grams.”
Moët has not released any specification as to which vineyards or zones of Champagne the base wine for Creation 1 comes from, as Benoit explains “at the beginning we looked at what we had in the cellar to create CI, but now we are moving to bottle more volume to support this project.” He was quick to point out that each Creation is his personal creative choice.
Moving forward Gouez is planning to select specific vineyards to be the core for the next Creations and he is hoping that they will be from the original 20ha owned by the founder, or I’m sure, he’ll be able to select some from the 1,150ha owned from the estate!
Not every market will have access to the new Collection Impériale as only six markets have been selected for the release – UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy and Japan. Interestingly this does not include the United States with no explanation given at this stage as to why.
So how is Collection Impériale tasting?
In London Gouez decided to show the Collection Impériale – Création 1 alongside Brut Imperial and Grand Vintage 2013
Benoît Gouez’s tasting notes are as follows:
“Collection Impériale Création No. 1 exhibits a captivating deep, bright yellow hue, reminiscent of a canary diamond. Its aromatic profile is initially reserved, gradually revealing intriguing tertiary, reductive, and mineral dry notes such as licorice root, mocha and toast. As it unfolds, secondary aromas of madeleine, fresh hazelnut and vanilla, then luscious fruit, emerge, accompanied by hints of dried fig and Mirabelle plum: flavors that evoke a concentrated, candied citrus evocative of fruitcake, and developed over time.”
“On the palate, the maturity of Collection Impériale Création No. 1 shines through: it offers a generous and serene experience akin to a beautiful home opening its doors. It envelops the senses with an aromatic sweetness that embraces its creamy and delicate effervescence. The champagne’s palate expands, delighting with an interplay of freshness and bitters. The finish is earnest and lingers on notes of smoke and licorice, leaving a mouth-watering impression of freshness.”
I would add… that Collection Impériale Creation 1 shows the multilayers of the blend’s responsively, fresh aromas at first evolving into dried fruit, the palate fresh with some density. This is a deeper style of Champagne compared to others that are usually produced by the Maison, it feels mature from the get-go.
The following wines were also tasted on the day:
Brut Imperial, an exemplary well executed NV Champagne, with a clear imprint of fruits and lively acidity.
Grand Vintage 2013, chosen to show the base wine of the Creation 1. Fresh fruits, light and vibrant, citrus aromas, underfloor, with melon cream.
- To emphasise the importance of the launch Moët & Chandon invited The Buyer this Spring to visit Château de Saran, Moët’s unique Château, an insightful trip which you can read about in Roger Jones’ report here.
