NV Krug Grande Cuvee - 166th Edition

The “166ème Edition” Krug Grand Cuvée was not yet ready for tasting at the time of my March visit to the estate in Reims, but as a bottle arrived at my office prior to the publication of this issue, I include the note on the wine here. This is from the base year of 2010 and is composed of a blend of forty-five percent pinot noir, thirty-nine percent chardonnay and sixteen percent pinot meunier. Forty-two percent of the cuvée is composed of reserve wines, but as Cellar Master Eric Lebel observes, many of the reserve wines were relatively young in the blend this year. The wine was disgorged in the winter of 2017 and offers up a superb and absolutely classic nose of apple, pear, caraway seed, sourdough bread, a complex base of soil, a hint of orange peel and a smoky topnote. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and rock solid at the core, with impressive focus and grip, elegant mousse, seamless balance and a very long, complex and vibrant finish. This is superb. 2018-2050. John Gilman 94+