2018 Bollinger Champagne Brut La Grande Annee

Regular price $259.98

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96 Vinous - Bollinger’s 2018 La Grande Année is quite pretty and delicate. Floral and citrus notes are nicely lifted in a Grande Année that offers notable sensuality and grace. Hints of orchard fruit, chamomile, mint and chalk build through the mid-palate and into the taut, chiseled finish. There’s plenty of energy and focus. More importantly, this is a fine effort in a year marked by high yields in Champagne. I would give this a few years in the cellar.

94 Decanter - 2018's generosity and open-knit structure yields an immediately fine, rewarding Grande Année full of white peach, grilled almond, sweet raspberry and blackberry Pinot fruit, held with customary Bollinger savour in some sea salt and briny restraint. There's a gentle apricot-skin grip speaking of the heat of the year, while a gentle fresh tang of dried citrus from Chardonnay keeps things moving. There's substance and fruit flesh up front here, but it's a less forceful wine than the 2015, well pitched for approaching in its first five years of life as well as beyond.

94 Robert Parker's Wine Advocate - Originating from a hot and dry growing season—particularly from mid-June onward—during which harvest began as early as August 23 and lasted for a full two weeks, Bollinger’s 2018 La Grande Année, composed of 66% Pinot Noir and 34% Chardonnay, was disgorged in March 2025 with a dosage of six grams per liter. The wine has turned out very well in the vintage context, presenting—unsurprisingly—a broader and more succulent profile than the racy, fine-boned renditions of 2014 and 2008. Unfurling in the glass with aromas of peach, yellow apple, and orange peel mingled with freshly baked bread and mango, it is medium- to full-bodied, ample and textural, with a generous core of fruit, animated by a pillowy mousse and laden with ripe yet vibrant acidity, carrying through to a long finish.

Brilliant golden-yellow in color with a persistent, creamy mousse. The bouquet is vibrant and layered, opening with fresh citrus, Granny Smith apple, white peach, apricot, and Mirabelle plum, followed by aromas of fresh almond, brioche, acacia honey, white peony, and chalky minerality.

The palate is rich yet impeccably balanced, revealing flavors of stewed orchard fruit, quince, citrus peel, toasted bread, and subtle spice. A silky, creamy effervescence carries the wine through a long, refined finish marked by freshness, mineral tension, and remarkable elegance.

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