Champagne Brut
Rare Millésime 2013

Rare Champagne preserves in every Millésime a heritage dating back to 1885, when for the centenary of the cuvée presented by Piper-Heidsieck to Marie Antoinette the jeweller Pierre-Karl Fabergé envisioned an enamel decoration that, too fragile for the crystal, lives on today in the foil that forms its habillage. From that vintage springs a rigorous selection that in more than forty years has declared only fourteen vintages, each one born of an atypical year, of the expertise of the Chef de caves and of the time of rest.

This edition, Millésime 2013, comes from a changeable climate, with a cold and rainy winter and spring followed by a summer of sun, drought and thunderstorms, and bears the mark of a sudden autumnal cooling in September that, aided by strong winds, pushed the harvest into October. The blend brings together the singular minerality of the Chardonnay grapes from the Montagne de Reims and the rich, velvety texture of its Pinot Noir with a long maturation on the lees able to enhance its purity and freshness.

In tasting, Rare Champagne 2013 stands out for an effervescence that takes on a pale gold, intense and luminous, and introduces a two-phase nose moving from white flowers, black tea and the citrus of kiwi and kumquat towards linden blossom, green tea and fern, before closing on greengage plum, chestnut honey and marzipan. On the palate its two souls, velvety and lively, are confirmed, with meringue, whipped cream and almond paste followed by kumquat, blood orange and kiwi, through to a fragrant, smoky finish, dotted with subtle bitter notes and a fleshy breadth of tropical minerality.