On most bottles of Champagne, you will see NV which means non-vintage. Winemakers are using a blend of grapes grown during many different years to balance out variations in growing conditions that affect the quality of the wine. Using multiple vintages allows them to create a more consistent product year after year. Single-vintage Champagnes are usually only produced three or four times per decade and make up less than 5% of total Champagne production due to the limited number of years with optimal growing conditions. The highest regarded vintage years after the millennium are 2002, 2004, 2008, and 2012. 2008 is widely considered one of the top 2 vintages of this century so far. While vintage Champagnes from top producers like Krug and Dom Perignon can sell for thousands of dollars, there are many more affordable options that the rest of us can enjoy.
Classic champagnes tend to be bright and crisp but I really love rich, aged champagnes that have spent a long time on the lees (yeast particles). A friend brought a magnum of this 2008 Edouard Brun 2008 Vintage Premier Cru on a day out boating recently and it was so good, exactly my style - full-bodied, complex, mature, toasty. This Champagne is 50% chardonnay and 50% Pinot Noir, aged 5 years on the lees. I frequently order wine from Sokolin - a New York based wine retailer that has been in business for 88 years (the original owner received one of the first liquor licenses issued by NY state after prohibition was repealed) - because they tend to have some of the best prices and their customer service is fantastic.
If you really want to splurge, track down Taittinger’s 2008 Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne. James Suckling gave it 100 points - incredibly rare - saying it is “simply breathtaking” and, “Readers who can find the 2008 should not hesitate, as it is a truly brilliant epic Champagne..." Sokolin has it on pre-order for $299. A few other retailers have a bottle or two in stock ranging in price from $285-$299.
