Dom Pérignon
Dom Pérignon (/ˌdɒm pɛrɪnˈjɒn/ DOM perr-in-YON, French: [dɔ̃ peʁiɲɔ̃]) is a brand of vintage Champagne. It is named after Dom Pérignon, a Benedictine monk who was an important quality pioneer for Champagne wine but who, contrary to popular myths, did not discover the Champagne method for making sparkling wines.[1]
This article is about the sparkling wine. For the monk, see Dom Pérignon (monk). For the medication with a similar-sounding name, see domperidone.Product type
Vintages[edit]
Dom Pérignon is always a vintage champagne, meaning that all grapes used to make the wine were harvested in the same year. The wine is not made in weak years, i.e. when the general quality of the harvest is considered to be too low.[9] The earliest market release of a vintage is usually after 8-10 years for the standard champagne, with longer maturation times for special editions like the Second Plenitude or Œnotheque (see below).
From 1921 to 2013, Dom Pérignon champagne has been produced in 45 vintages. More than two vintage years in a row is a rare phenomenon, which until 2006 had only occurred three times: 1969–1971, 1998–2000, and 2002–2006 (the first time five vintages were produced in a row). The 2008 vintage was the first released out of sequence, after the 2009 vintage.[10]
The 45 white Dom Pérignon vintages up to 2013 are 1921, 1926, 1928, 1929, 1934, 1943, 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2013.[11]
Since 1959 a rosé version of Dom Pérignon is also produced. Twenty-eight Dom Pérignon Rosé vintages have been produced and released until 2023: 1959, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1986 (the first rosé vintage where the white version was not produced), 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008 and 2009.[11]
Second plenitude (P2)[edit]
P2, meaning 'second plenitude'. Dom Pérignon choose the best grapes from any of the 17 Grands Crus, including the legendary Premier Cru, Hautvillers and it is released in three different maturation time periods called Plénitudes. After close to 15 years of slow transformation in the cellars, the taste is, according to Dom Perignon, "wider, deeper, longer, more intense - and gifted further with an extended longevity."[12]
It is the result of extra time of maturation and constantly monitored and tasted by the Chef de cave to determine the perfect time for disgorgement.[13]
The first Plénitude is the Dom Perignon released after 8-9 years of lees ageing. The second Plénitude is released after 15 to 20 years lees ageing. P3 is released after considerably more lees ageing and in very small quantities.[14]
Style[edit]
Dom Pérignon is always an assemblage of Pinot noir and Chardonnay grapes, although the final composition changes every vintage: at times a blend in perfectly equal proportions (e.g. 1990 Rosé), at times up to 60% Chardonnay (1982) or 60% Pinot noir (1969), and only once going over 60% (with 65% Chardonnay in 1970).[15] According to Richard Geoffroy's Manifesto and blog: "Dom Pérignon expresses its first plénitude after seven years in the cellar", with a second plénitude 12 to 15 years after the vintage (first Œnothèque release, now referred to as P2) and a third plénitude after 30 to 40 years (second Œnothèque release, now referred to as P3).[16][17] Around 2016, the producer stopped using the Œnothèque designation and started labeling new plénitude releases as P2 or P3, providing more clarity to the disgorgement date than the Œnothèque designation. The grapes entering the blend come from the best, most sunlit sites. Serena Sutcliffe comments: "With age, Dom Pérignon takes on a totally seductive fresh-toast-and-coffee bouquet, one of the most intriguing scents in Champagne."[3]
Current production[edit]
The number of bottles produced in each vintage is not precisely defined, although it is at least 5 million bottles.[18][19][20]
As of March 2024, the current release of Dom Pérignon is from the 2013 vintage and the current release of Dom Pérignon Rosé is from the 2008 vintage.[11]
Auction market[edit]
Dom Pérignon is often traded at wine auctions, where it is frequently termed "DP". A wave of auction price records started in 2004, with the sale of the Doris Duke collection at Christie's in New York City. Three bottles of Dom Pérignon 1921 sold for US$24,675. In 2008, two sales held by Acker, Merral & Condit also left their mark on the history of Dom Pérignon, with three magnums of Dom Pérignon Œnothèque (1966, 1973 and 1976) selling for US$93,260 in Hong Kong, and a lot of two bottles of the legendary Dom Pérignon Rosé Vintage 1959 selling for US$84,700 in New York. Only 306 bottles of the 1959 Rosé Vintage were produced, and they were never sold. In 1971, it was served in Persepolis at the lavish festivities celebrating the 2500th anniversary of the founding of the Persian Empire by Cyrus the Great.[21]
On April 17, 2010, a new record was set for a sale of wine in Britain according to The Daily Telegraph. A buyer would have spent more than £35,000 for Methuselah (6 litre) 1996 Dom Perignon Champagne Rose (Rose Gold). This transaction took place at the Westbury Hotel at a party that followed the screening of the new film, Boogie Woogie.[22]
A vertical of Dom Pérignon Rosé Œnothèque, a world premiere release from the reserve cellar of Dom Pérignon, never commercially released before, was sold at a record price at a wine auction organized by Sotheby's in Hong Kong in May 2010.[23] The 30 bottle lot of Dom Pérignon Œnothèque Rosé bottles and magnums from 1966, 1978, 1982, 1985, 1988, and 1990 achieved HK$1,331,000 (US$170,641), setting the world auction record for a single lot of champagne and is the first HK$1 million lot of wine Sotheby's has sold in Hong Kong.