2014 Bollinger "La Grande Année" Brut Champagne

Racy acidity drives this mouthwatering Champagne, enlivening the rich panoply of flavors. Features a fine and creamy mousse that's still a lively springboard for aromas and flavors of crème de cassis, glazed tangerine, roasted hazelnut, ground coffee, pickled ginger and white blossoms. Long and satiny, with minerally salt and chalk notes gaining momentum on the lasting finish. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Disgorged July 2021. *Highly Recommended* (AN)

Grande Année manages to be both deeply resonant and surprisingly subtle in 2014 – a delicious conundrum. Beneath fragrant blackberry and roasted plum fruit sits the richness of chestnut honey, rye bread and cocoa. There’s zesty brightness and roasted orchard fruit, perfectly integrated and composed, shaped with precision and energy. One of the top 2014s. Six and a half years on lees. (TH)

The 2014 Bollinger La Grande Annee Brut Champagne is from an excellent "traditional vintage" (cold weather) and a 200 year old winemaking family that still runs the show. Bollinger loves Pinot Noir, and the Grande Annee is 61% Pinot Noir and 39% Chardonnay sourced from 19 different crus in Ay, Chouilly, and Verzenay, and spent 8 years aging on the lees. Very aromatic - white flowers, red fruit, green apples, baking spices, and salt framed by deep brioche. Barrel fermented, this is a big, bold, full-bodied champagne with a rich creamy texture and vibrant acidity. On the palate there is complex brew of ripe red fruit, tart apples, hazelnuts, and a chalky minerality with a long persistent finish. Structured, powerful, and elegant, the Grande Annee is ready to drink now, but will age forever (give or take a couple of years). A top champagne from a top vintage deserving of all its critical acclaim!

This latest release of the Grande Annee has a nose of almond croissant, with Anjou pear, golden apple and nutmeg. On the palate, tends toward the richer side with baked caramel apple, saline, lemons and roasted hazelnuts. Superb acidity that makes this a good candidate for the cellar. I opened a bottle of 1990 La Grande Annee at a Champagne Club meeting and it held up beautifully. This will give you an idea of the longevity of these wines.