The opening bouquet is complex and luminous, a mingling of white flowers, citrus and stone fruit. The overall effect is enhanced by the freshness of aniseed and crushed mint. The final aromas offered by the wine are starting to show spicy, woody and roasted notes.

After a long period of reluctance, the wine is finally opening up. There is complete balance between the nose and the palate. Its slender, minimalist, pure, toned, athletic character is now also expressed with warmth. The fruit is pronounced and clear. The vintage's characteristic acidity is remarkably well integrated. Its persistence is mainly aromatic, grey, smoky and highly promising.

The wine enjoys duality: warmth & freshness, meat & iodine pairings, cooked & raw. Spices enhance and accentuate 2008’s effervescence and densify the wine. Dom Pérignon likes playful experiences: culinary art, textures, and matters.

2008 was dominated by grey, overcast skies – an exception in a decade characterized by bold, generous sunshine. Spring and summer rought the same lack of sunlight and absence of high temperatures. It was September that saved the vintage, belatedly and miraculously. Just when the harvest was getting underway (on September 15), the weather conditions were finally perfect: blue skies and prolonged north-northeasterly winds. Picking was spread out over a long period in order to benefit from this positive turn of events. The grapes were riper than anyone dared hope, and had truly outstanding balance. The vines were in perfect health.

Vineyards: 100% Grand & Premier Cru
Grape Varieties: 50% Pinot Noir | 50% Chardonnay
Lees Ageing: 9 years on the lees
Disgorged: Jan 2018
Dosage: 5 g/L
Alcohol: 12.5%
Drink: Now to 2040+

About Dom Perignon
When Father Pierre Perignon took over as cellar master at the Benedictine Abbey of Hautvillers in 1668, his avowed goal was "to make the best wine in the world". For a young monk just 30 years old, it took a visionary spirit and exceptional audacity to pursue such lofty ambitions. An exact contemporary of Louis XIV, Dom Perignon transformed the history of wine, just as the Sun King revolutionized the very notion of "art de vivre". Wine was the medium for their meeting, as the excellence of "Father Perignon's wine" earned it a place at the king's table.

More than three centuries later, the House of Dom Perignon perpetuates the visionary approach of its founder, widely considered the spiritual father of Champagne. Released only as a vintage, Dom Perignon is cellar aged for at least seven years prior to release. This time is critical for harmonising the flavours and ensuring that the wine’s balance remains elegant, sensual and ethereal. Dom Perignon can also be enjoyed many years later with rare OEnotheque vintages, released by the Chef de Cave at times when the intensity and complexity of the wine has reached optimum levels. Each new vintage is a unique creative act, reinventing the extraordinary style of a wine that only the Chef de Cave may declare a "vintage year".

"The grapes are never the same from one year to the next. If a harvest does not meet Dom Perignon's unyielding standards, there will be no vintage champagne that year. This isn't a value judgment - it's an aesthetic vision" says Dom Perignon Chef de Cave Richard Geoffroy.

The unique personality of Dom Perignon is born of this creative commitment. It is this tension between the distinctive qualities of a year and the timeless spirit that defines Dom Perignon, an unparalleled sensation that imparts weightlessness, airy richness and suppleness from first impression to the long-lasting finish.

Dom Perignon: the best wine in the world.

"The 2008 Dom Pérignon is a huge, powerful Champagne and also clearly one of the wines of the vintage. This is one of the most reticent bottles I have tasted. So much so that I am thinking about holding off opening any more bottles! The 2008 has always offered a striking interplay of fruit and structure. Today, the richness of the fruit is especially evident. Readers who own the 2008 should be thrilled, but patience is a must."
98/100 - Antonio Galloni