Tasting Notes :

On the nose it opens with fruity notes of apple, rhubarb, quince and mirabelle plum.

A wonderful creamy effervescence yields to a delectable and expressive quality.

Exotic flavours, with brioche and hints of stewed fruit, precede a saline finish.

Description and Technical Information : 

Champagne Bollinger owns an impressive 178 hectares of vineyards,

of which 85% are in Grand Cru and Premier Cru villages.

Their land is spread over seven main villages: Aÿ, Avenay, Louvois, Tauxières and

Verzenay planted with Pinot Noir; Cuis with Chardonnay;

and Champvoisy with Meunier. Bollinger are one of the few Houses to produce the majority of

their own grapes for their blends.

Pinot Noir represents 60% of the House's vineyards and defines the House style:

complex and powerful with remarkable structure.

In 2012 Champagne Bollinger was certified High Environment Value (HEV)

this certification rewards a number of environmental procedures implemented at the Maison.

PN VZ16 is the second interpretation in a new series that will be released every year,

always with a focus on one of Bollinger’s Pinot Noir crus, or villages.

Each year the cuvee will be an expression of a different cru from the base year that highlight's its distinctive terroir and taste.

PN VZ16 highlights Verzenay (VZ) which makes up 50% of the blend with

the balance from Avenay and Tauxières.

The blend features 50% from 2016 and 50% of Bollinger's reserve wines with the oldest from 2006.

Weather: 2016 trialled the growers with many climatic hazards from excessive rainfalls to frosts,

downy mildew, hail, draught and, finally, sunburn.

A cool spring saw late-April frost, which cut volumes early on.

Mildew was an issue throughout the region (especially in the Côte des Bar), equally diminishing volumes.

July and August were then hot and very dry months and the resultant sunburn reduced the yields further.

Ripening was uneven, and Chardonnay especially needed time and

was thus considered the most difficult variety for the vintage.