Bolliner has launched a limited edition vintage Champagne called B13 to express a “turbulent” harvest in the region.
The expression, which was officially unveiled today, is a Blanc de Noirs that hails from the 2013 harvest in Champagne, when the producer recalled that it faced “turbulent circumstances”, and yet managed to make a vintage quality wine due to its attentive and sustainable vineyard management practices.
A limited edition called B13 – which stands for Bollinger 2013 – it comes from a year when the Champagne region faced “a long winter punctuated by snow and frost, a wet and hesitant spring, then a very hot summer with violent thunderstorms”.
Despite such challenging weather conditions, and a “particularly late harvest”, Bollinger made a vintage from Pinot Noir grapes – the specialism of the house, with an extensive landholding in the Montagne de Reims are of Champagne.
Bollinger also said that due to “ethical farming practices”, including, “minimal agricultural inputs, controlled yields, precise management of the grape’s maturity throughout the course of harvesting”, that the producer is able to reliably produce “high-quality grapes, no matter how difficult certain years can be.”
The new release is said to be “characterised by freshness,” with “a unique profile, expressed by both fruity aromas – unconventional notes of citrus and yellow fruits – and gourmet ones – with flavours of tarte tatin and fresh almond”.