Millésime

Champagne made from a single year's fruit, and only in years that deserve it.

Where non-vintage blends across years to hold a house style steady, a millésime seals in one year's sun and rain — and the grower's memory of it. The law demands a longer time on lees, and the reward is honey, brioche and dried fruit, and a finish that keeps going. A bottle for an evening you intend to pay attention to: chicken mizutaki, a dish finished with white truffle, a well-aged Comté.

We choose only those millésimes whose maker can answer, in their own words, why this year was worth keeping. The year on the label makes it a fine gift for a birth year or an anniversary.