Krug, Grande Cuvée, Edition, 167th
Toasty stone fruits on the nose with an abundance of peach and nectarine alongside smoky crushed flint aromas. More citrus led on the palate with lemon tart, orange peel, and chalky minerality. Delicate vanilla scented almond pastry and French toast coalesce on the gloriously long finish. This is still young and primal, but wonderfully structured and poised.
critic reviews
The NV Grande Cuvée 167ème Édition, based on the 2011 vintage, shows just how much can be accomplished in Champagne through the art of the blend. This release includes 191 wines back to 1995 and a relatively low presence (42%) of the base year. But its the whole that counts more than the sum of the parts. In fact, I prefer this wine to the 2011 Vintage. All the elements are so nicely balanced. Citrus, white flowers, mint, white pepper and slate are some of the many notes that build in the glass. Disgorged: Summer 2018. Krug ID: 318036.
Making its debut this year is Krug's NV Grande Cuvee 167eme Edition, a beautiful wine that wafts from the glass with aromas of yellow orchard fruit, peach and waxy citrus rind, complemented by complex notes of freshly baked bread, walnuts and smoke. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied and muscular but incisive, with a deep and concentrated core, a pinpoint mousse and a long, complex finish. Built around the 2011 vintage, the wine includes reserve wines dating back to 1995 and was disgorged in the winter of 2017-2018. Readers are advised to give it at least a couple years of bottle age before popping corks.