250 Years of Savoir Faire
PARTNER CONTENT WITH
words by ALEX MAY
At the young age of 27, Barbe-Nicole Clicquot Ponsardin changed the face of Champagne forever. In 1805, at a time when women were deemed second-class citizens, she defied the norms to become the first female owner of a Champagne house and its first female winemaker.
After the untimely passing of her husband Francois, la veuve (widow) dedicated her life to entrepreneurship and the pursuit of perfection in winemaking. Her guidance of the maison over the decades led to more firsts: the first recorded vintage Champagne in 1810 and the first rosé Champagne made with Pinot Noir in 1818.
She also is credited with the invention of the riddling table — a crucial step in méthode champenoise that turned once-cloudy wine into crystal clear elegance by rotating the bottles, which helps separate the dead yeast cells from the liquid.
She not only shepherded the Veuve Clicquot label into a globally iconic brand, her innovation laid the groundwork for modern champagne-making.
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La grande dame
de Champagne
Click to open a profile on Madame Clicquot
In 1810, Madame Clicquot became the first winemaker to release a vintage champagne.
La Grande Dame 2018 marks the 25th vintage since the inaugural 1962 blend in tribute to Madame Clicquot, known as "La Grande Dame".
2018 was an exceptional year in Champagne. Bright sun through the ripening phase and cool soil from intermittent rain gave the wine characteristics of boldness and finesse (not unlike Madame herself).
Cellar Master Didier Mariotti says the winemakers “start with all the base wines and taste about 1,000 wines from the vintage and all our reserve wines.” This allows for the precise blend of old and new.
La Grande DamE 2018
Click to learn about the vintage
"Deep and precise, La Grande Dame 2018 vintage expresses a new facet of l'Art du Pinot Noir."
- Didier Mariotti, Chef de Cave
Composed of 90% Pinot Noir with 10% Chardonnay, the La Grande Dame 2018 is an intricate blend of historical crus — referring not only to the 2018 harvest, but the heritage and significance of the vineyards from which they originate. Many of these crus have been part of the Maison’s estate since the time of Madame Clicquot, and they continue to play a central role in shaping the identity of La Grande Dame with each vintage.
Bright and fresh with a subtle salinity, it has a delicate scent of citrus — lemon, lime, yuzu — that mingles with white fruit, further enhanced by spring floral notes.
Unlike the Brut Yellow Label or Brut Rosé, La Grande Dame 2018 takes the Veuve Clicquot signature style to a whole new level of elegance and precision.
La Grande Dame 2018 is a celebratory bottling that strikes an ideal balance with a perfect harmony of vibrant flavors and intensity.
L’Art du Pinot Noir
Madame Clicquot, La Grande Dame de Champagne, was the first winemaker to use Pinot Noir — her favorite grape — in sparkling wine, hence why La Grande Dame 2018 is made from 90% Pinot Noir.
Madame wrote that "our black grapes give the finest white wines."
The tenth most planted grape in the world, Pinot Noir is also one of the most challenging. Thin-skinned and grown in tight clusters, it has a predilection for lower yields because the fruit is so susceptible to bacteria, disease, and temperature fluctuations which can cause rot or sunburn.
However, it is also capable of being well-structured, versatile, and balanced - qualities that Madame Clicquot recognized that highlight the grape's potential to age beautifully. When able to thrive, a divine Pinot Noir is a pure expression of its terroir.
Following in her footsteps, today's Cellar Master Mariotti carries the torch to perpetuate Madame’s intuition and fine-tune the balance and tension she so admired by selecting Pinot Noir wines for the blend that achieve the unique oenological signature of La Grande Dame — its elegance and precision.
The bold Pinot Noir in the blend is balanced with 10% Chardonnay, giving the sparkling wine finesse, vibrancy, and a precise amount of brightness.
"Only one quality, the finest."
The Champagne Method
In order to produce this iconic wine, every detail matters both inside and outside the bottle.
The grapes are harvested in September, then pressed to extract the juice. To ensure the clearest, highest quality of product, only the juice from the Cœur de Cuvée — the “heart” of the first press — is used.
From there, the primary fermentation takes place over 8-10 days. Once the winemakers have created their desired blend, they add a small amount of tirage — a liquid solution of yeast, wine and sugar — and the secondary fermentation takes place within the bottle. That’s when the real magic happens.
Thanks to Madame Clicquot’s invention of the riddling table, the wine is aged on lees — dead yeast cells — which collect at the bottle’s neck. They are then removed through a process called disgorgement; the neck of the bottle is frozen, which creates a natural plug from the dead lees underneath the cap. Once the cap is removed, the plug is shot out from the carbonation. A cork is put in the bottle until ready to drink.
Solaire sustainability
Following in the innovative footsteps of Madame Clicquot, the 2018 label features a refreshed visual identity that exemplifies the winery’s sustainability initiative. The yellow paper on the new gift box is 60% hemp — one of the fastest carbon converting solutions on earth.
11 Cellar Masters in 250 Years
Click the photo for a mini-profile on Chef de Cave Didier Mariotti
In Veuve Clicquot’s long history there has been a short list of Cellar Masters. The iconic brand is only on its eleventh Chef de Cave. The job is an unending quest to maintain quality and to ensure the style of strength and complexity is expressed inside each expression, including each vintage of La Grande Dame.
With Burgundian and Corsican origins, Mariotti is no stranger to refinement — or Champagne. He arrived at Veuve Clicquot after 13 years at G.H. Mumm and has been working tirelessly to carry on Madame Clicquot’s vision 250 years later.
“We have an amazing diversity of reserve wines that we keep separately by grape variety, cru by cru and vintage by vintage. When you are working on Yellow Label… you have to learn what each element can contribute to the blend. It’s about precision.”
The relentless tasting and blending of the wines leads, 250 years later, to realizing Madame Clicquot’s mantra: “Only one quality, the finest.”
Composed of 90% Pinot Noir with 10% Chardonnay, La Grande Dame 2018 is an intricate blend of historical crus — referring not only to the 2018 harvest, but the heritage and significance of the vineyards from which they originate. Many of these crus have been part of the Maison’s estate since the time of Madame Clicquot, and they continue to play a central role in shaping the identity of La Grande Dame with each vintage.
Click the bottle to the left to reveal La Grande Dame 2018's tasting notes.
Tasting Notes
Bright and fresh with a subtle salinity, it has a delicate scent of citrus — lemon, lime, yuzu — that mingles with white fruit, further enhanced by spring floral notes.
Composed of 90% Pinot Noir with 10% Chardonnay, La Grande Dame 2018 is an intricate blend of historical crus — referring not only to the 2018 harvest, but the heritage and significance of the vineyards from which they originate. Many of these crus have been part of the Maison’s estate since the time of Madame Clicquot, and they continue to play a central role in shaping the identity of La Grande Dame with each vintage.
Click the bottle to the left to reveal La Grande Dame 2018's tasting notes.
La
Grande Dame
2018
BLEND:
90% Pinot Noir; 10% Chardonnay
DOSAGE:
6g/L
2018 HARVEST:
A rainy winter, spring and summer market by above-average sunshine, resulting in a very beautiful balance in the grapes and an exceptional harvest. The wines display finesse, precision and freshness on the finish.