Although originally founded in 1812, the name Champagne Laurent-Perrier was first coined in 1964. It was Bernard de Nonancourt who initiated Laurent-Perrier’s rise to world fame. One of Champagne’s most important figures in the 20th century, he officially took over in 1948 after a three-year apprenticeship at the Houses of Delamotte and Lanson. During his 62-year tenure, production grew from 80,000 bottles annually to over eight million. Under de Nonancourt, Laurent-Perrier was the first house to use stainless steel vats and the first house to create both a zero dosage champagne (Ultra Brut) and a multi-vintage prestige cuvée (Grand Siècle). Sadly, de Nonancourt died in 2010 and Laurent-Perrier is now run by his two daughters, Alexandra and Stéphanie together with Cellar Master Michel Fauconnet and has become one of the region’s largest producers, they are perhaps best known for Cuvée Rosé, the most recognized rosé champagne on the planet .
Laurent-Perrier chooses to make vintages very rarely, only the very best years. This makes their Brut Millésimé a rare and unique champagne that clearly expresses the specific character of each vintage in the Laurent-Perrier style. It is bottled and aged in Laurent-Perrier’s cellars for almost eight years before being decanted before release.
The weather: The weather in 2012 has been labeled by many as very challenging, but it has created a fantastic champagne. Relatively low yield due to different weather conditions throughout the year. The winter months brought some frost and hail which damaged the early stages of bud burst. August and September were very warm and this helped to save and give the grapes a great maturity.
Technical information:
Vineyards: 100% Grand Cru | Chardonnay: Chouilly, Cramant, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Oger | Pinot Noir: Bouzy, Louvois, Mailly, Verzy, Verzenay
Grape varieties: 50% Chardonnay, 50% Pinot Noir
Read Aging: 8 years
Dosage: 8 g/l
Disgorged: September 2021
Beverage: Now to 2030
Tasting note: A light golden appearance with a delicate fine stream of bubbles, the first notes on the nose are floral and hint of citrus. A well-balanced but direct taste has all the offerings of white fruit and fresh oranges.
Laurent-Perrier was founded as early as 1812, and has today grown into the world’s fifth largest champagne house. Even today, Champagne Laurent-Perrier is family-owned, and run by Alexandra Pereyre de Nonancourt and Stéphanie Meneux de Nonancourt.
Development took off when Marie-Louise Lanson de Nonancourt bought Laurent-Perrier in 1939. At that time, 80,000 bottles were produced per year. After the war, in 1948, the son Bernard de Nonancourt took over the operation, and it is thanks to him that Laurent-Perrier is today one of the largest and most respected champagne houses in the entire world. Today, roughly 7.5 million bottles are produced, and 45 million bottles are in storage in the cellar. Laurent-Perrier’s style is characterized by skillful assemblage, i.e. the art of mixing different crus, vintages and grape varieties into a whole that surpasses the individual elements. The chardonnay grape variety plays the main role in all white cuvées and the proportion of chardonnay in their champagnes is significantly higher than that of most other champagne houses; this noble grape variety contributes freshness, elegance and crystal clear purity. For Laurent-Perrier’s pioneering rosés, however, it is pinot noir that plays the main role.
Bernard de Nonancourt – also known as “Le Grand Bernard” had a burning interest in the production of champagne. Thanks to Bernard, Laurent-Perrier was one of the first champagne houses to store its wines in steel tanks instead of cement during the 1970s. The use of steel tanks led to greater finesse in the wines and is today standard in Champagne. Bernard got the inspiration to leave the cement tanks behind from winemaker Alain Terrier in Bordeaux. Terrier then came to work as responsible cellar master at Laurent Perrier for 30 years. In 1983, Michel Fauconnet became assistant cellar master, and took over as cellar master in 2004.
Bernard de Nonancourt’s passion and curiosity gave Laurent-Perrier its unique stamp as the foremost innovator in Champagne. Several of the cuvées created during Bernard’s time have been pioneers and created completely new product categories in Champagne. In 1959, Grand Siècle was introduced, the first prestige cuvée based on several different vintages. In 1968, new ground was broken with the creation of Cuvée Rosé, which was created by letting pinot noir macerate to give color and character, as opposed to blending red and white wine. In 1981, he created Ultra Brut, the very first cuvée completely without added sugar (dosage).
Laurent-Perrier’s wines are produced from vineyards that are all sustainability certified according to Viticulture Durable en Champagne.
