Rare Champagne has unveils its latest vintage release Rare Millésime 2008, only the 12th vintage Champagne since it was first made in 1976.
The prestige cuvée, a blend of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir selected from eight grand cru vineyard site in Champagne, is now available in Hong Kong via its importer Northeast Wines and Spirits.
Rare Champagne has declared only twelve exceptional vintages of Rare Millésimes Brut & Rosé since its inception in 1976: Rare Millésime 1976, 1979, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2006 and the latest 2008 vintage and Rare Rosé Millésimes 2007 and 2008.
Each vintage is a labor of love for Cellar Master, Régis Camus, former chef de cave at Piper Heidsieck and after retirement has solely focused on the premium cuveé.
According to the Champagne house, The Rare Millésime 2008 embodies the “harmony between Régis Camus’ state of mind and the gifts offered by Nature”.
The 2008 vintage is described as a “spring-like” cuveé from a cool vintage, marked by what the house calls “unpredictable” weather – a mild winter, a cold spring and a raining growing season.
A sudden cold snap in the midst of June struck the vineyard in mid-flower. Fortunately, July and August fostered a harmonious maturation. Following an ominous, extremely rainy period, the providential return of beautiful, dry cool weather coincided with a perfectly mature harvest, continuing through the first two magnificent weeks of September.
The resulting wine is “a fresh, structured, harmonious composition”.
Of the new release, Camus stated: “For me, Rare Millésime 2008 embodies the infinite, with its unlimited, rich, constantly present youth and freshness. These sensations intertwine on the palate in a constant cycle of flavours, each more precise and harmonious than the one before.
“While already a pleasure to drink, this vintage has now acquired an exceptional complexity and mineral character, punctuated with Oriental notes that promise infinite longevity.”
While most Champagne houses released their 2008 vintage Tête de Cuvées Brut Champagne in 2018, Camus did not, tasting and reviewing the wine in the cellar until his “labor of love” was ready to be released in 2021.
The Champagne is also chosen by Aveline Gallery director and 18th Century Art owner Marella Rossi to sublimate the decor of her exhibition “Les Petits Plats dans les Grands” in tribute to the 280th anniversary of the Manufacture de Sèvres.
For its part, the Manufacture de Sèvres has chosen the Aveline Gallery to create an event outside the walls and to promote the French Gastronomic Meal, which has been classified as an intangible heritage site by UNESCO for a decade.
“The exhibition directed by Camille Leprince and Marella herself allows us to inscribe the fundamentals of our history. We are delighted to be at the heart of it. It’s like a gift.” explains Maud Rabin, in charge of Rare Champagne.
