Product Description:
This Bollinger Special Cuvée gift set includes one 75cl bottle of Special Cuvée and two 29cl Bollinger-branded crystal glasses. The set is presented in a limited-edition branded gift box of red and white, making it a perfect luxury gift.
As for the champagne, Bollinger Special Cuvée is the label of choice for spoiling loved ones who appreciate the finer things in life. For over a century, connoisseurs have chosen Bollinger Special Cuvée for its subtlety, consistency, and the glamour it brings to everyday occasions.
This release features a delicate blend of 60% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay, and 15% Meunier, with over 85% sourced from Grands and Premiers crus. Special Cuvée is cellar-aged for double the length required by appellation regulations. It’s equally delectable enjoyed on its own, mixed into a mimosa, or paired with seafood, full-bodied cheeses, or richer meats like venison and beef.
Did you know that in 1911, Georges Bollinger’s British agent suggested swapping the original name, “brut sans année,” for the English word “special” to better convey this Champagne’s outstanding qualities? And thus, a star was born. Bollinger Special Cuvée is the brand’s raison d’être!
The Maker:
For almost two hundred years, Champagne Bollinger has been making powerful, refined and complex wines that express the aromas of fruit in all its dimensions. In 1829, Athanase de Villermont’s vast estate just outside the town of Äy provided the backdrop for the founding of an extraordinary Champagne house - but as an aristocrat, Athanese was forbidden from engaging in commercial trade. With the recruitment of Joseph “Jacques” Bollinger, a Champagne merchant, and Paul Renaudin, a Champernois fascinated by the world of wine, the Bollinger legacy began.
The Bollinger style is inimitable and recognised as such by great connoisseurs. It possesses a dense and subtle presence: a balance of the intensity of great Pinot Noirs and the freshness of Chardonnays from the Côte des Blancs. The house’s offerings are rooted in 5 tangible principles: the vineyards; Pinot Noir; magnums of reserve wines; the barrels, and time. Bollinger wines release a creamy effervescence resulting from vinifying in oak barrels and prolonged contact with the yeasts. Every tasting yields new delights that are guaranteed to transport you.
The Vineyard:
Bollinger has built its vineyards at the heart of the finest crus in Champagne. 180 hectares of vines are made up of 85% Grand and Premier crus and are farmed by our teams of growers across 7 separate vineyards: Aÿ, Avenay, Tauxières, Louvois and Verzenay for Pinot Noir; the Montagne de Reims, Cuis for Chardonnay; and the Côte des Blancs and Champvoisy for Meunier.
Another of Bollinger’s distinctive features are the two plots of Clos Saint-Jacques and Chaudes Terres. There, ungrafted vines are entirely tended by hand and reproduced using a form of layering called provignage, preserving the extraordinary heritage from which the Vieilles Vignes Françaises cuvée is produced.
Pinot Noir is the varietal on which Bollinger has staked its reputation. A demanding grape that requires care at every step, it remains front and centre because of the incomparable finesse it brings to a wine. Today, the Pinot Noir planted around the Montagne de Reims represents over 60% of the Bollinger vineyards. This also just happens to be the exact proportion it occupies in Special Cuvée! Multi-faceted and surprising, its unusually high ratio in the blends is a signature of the Bollinger style, to which it lends power, body and vinosity. It has been one of the founding principles of Champagne Bollinger’s identity from the very beginning.
Bollinger is guided by a responsibility anchored in time and a commitment to people, the earth and our roots. It is committed to the well-being of its teams, preserving biodiversity, and reducing the brand’s carbon footprint.
NOSE - Powerful, complex, red fruits
The beauty of ripe fruit and spicy aromas; hints of roasted apples, compote and peaches.
PALATE - Lush, enveloping, creamy
A subtle combination of structure, length and vivacity; bubbles like velvet; pear, brioche and spicy aromas, notes of fresh walnut.
FINISH - Dry, mineral, petrichor
Mellow and refreshing, punctuated by a crisp bite derived from its Chardonnay component.
Reviews + Accolades:
60% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay, 15% Meunier sourced from more than 300 crus, including 85% grands and premiers crus; 15% fermented in old oak barrels. The complexity and richness of Special Cuvée is unparalleled among the entry non-vintage blends of every Champagne house, short of ascending to the mesosphere of Krug. Its grand recipe explains why, built on incredible depth of 50%-60% reserves. Triumphant complexity is a given at Bollinger, but it’s the dynamic freshness and vitality that really set it apart as one of the most affordable Champagne benchmarks. - Decanter, 96 Points.
Lovely density and a fine-bubble texture. Dried apple and apricot with hints of dried flowers. Medium to full body. with medium-rich fruit. Spice, zest and ginger character. Usually 10% in barrel. 60% pinot noir, 25% chardonnay and 15% pinot meunier. About 40% reserve wine kept in magnums. Always really well done. - James Suckling, 93 Points.
Fine and seamless, with mouthwatering acidity well-meshed with a rich range of crème de cassis, poached apricot, gingerbread and almond extract flavors, plus accents of fleur de sel, Meyer lemon peel and star anise. Long and lively on the creamy finish. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier. - Wine Spectator, 93 Points.
“... this iconic non-vintage cuvée is dominated by Pinot Noir that gives impressive richness as well as ripe stone fruits. Wood fermentation adds further complexity as does the age of this bottling before release. Drink this Champagne now.” – Wine Enthusiast
The Finer Details
Style - Champagne
Varietal - 60% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay, 15% Meunier
Country - France
Region - Champagne
Vintage - Non-Vintage
Bottle Size - 750ml
ABV - 12%
Closure - Cork
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