What is a vintage champagne ?
A vintage champagne is created exclusively from grapes harvested in a single exceptional year, capturing the unique character of that season.
At Maison Perrier-Jouët, each vintage reflects the harmony between exceptional terroir, time and the Cellar Master’s expertise.
The expression of an exceptional year
Every vintage begins in the vineyards of the Champagne region, where climate, soil and grape varieties come together to shape the character of the harvest.
Each year tells a different story. Variations in sunshine, rainfall and temperature influence the ripeness, freshness and aromatic profile of the grapes. When these conditions create exceptional quality and balance, the year may be declared a vintage.
For Maison Perrier-Jouët, this decision reflects a commitment to capturing the most remarkable expressions of the terroir while remaining true to the House’s signature style.
Each year tells a different story. Variations in sunshine, rainfall and temperature influence the ripeness, freshness and aromatic profile of the grapes. When these conditions create exceptional quality and balance, the year may be declared a vintage.
For Maison Perrier-Jouët, this decision reflects a commitment to capturing the most remarkable expressions of the terroir while remaining true to the House’s signature style.
Because only exceptional harvests are selected, vintage champagnes represent rare expressions of time, place and savoir-faire.
Recognising a vintage
Creating a vintage champagne requires patience, precision and expertise. After the first fermentation, the Cellar Master carefully tastes and evaluates the still wines to understand their potential.
At Maison Perrier-Jouët, Séverine Frerson selects only the finest years to become vintage cuvées. Her role is to reveal the personality of the harvest while preserving the elegance, floral freshness and harmony that define the House’s style.
At Maison Perrier-Jouët, Séverine Frerson selects only the finest years to become vintage cuvées. Her role is to reveal the personality of the harvest while preserving the elegance, floral freshness and harmony that define the House’s style.
A vintage is the expression of a year, a moment in time captured through the personality of the wine.
Séverine Frerson, Cellar Master
Time reveals the character of a vintage
After bottling, vintage champagnes spend several years ageing in the House’s cellars, where time allows aromas, texture and complexity to develop.
Through patience and time, each vintage reveals its own personality, offering a unique interpretation of the House’s relationship with nature and craftsmanship.
Through patience and time, each vintage reveals its own personality, offering a unique interpretation of the House’s relationship with nature and craftsmanship.
Vintage and non-vintage champagne: what is the difference?
Vintage champagne
A celebration of one exceptional year
A celebration of one exceptional year
- Made exclusively from grapes harvested in one year
- Reflects the conditions of that growing season
- Reveals the personality of a specific terroir and harvest
- Often benefits from extended ageing
Non-vintage champagne
The signature of a House style
The signature of a House style
- Created by blending wines from multiple years
- Allows consistency of style from one year to the next
- Reflects the Cellar Master’s ability to create harmony across vintages
The Art of Vintage
The Belle Epoque collection
At Maison Perrier-Jouët, the art of vintage finds its most iconic expression through the Belle Époque collection. Created exclusively in exceptional years, these cuvées reveal the singular personality of each harvest while preserving the House’s signature elegance, floral freshness and finesse.
Guided by the expertise of the Cellar Master, each Belle Époque vintage captures the character of a particular season, offering a unique expression of the Champagne terroir and the House’s savoir-faire.
Guided by the expertise of the Cellar Master, each Belle Époque vintage captures the character of a particular season, offering a unique expression of the Champagne terroir and the House’s savoir-faire.
The Belle Epoque collection
A celebration of Art and Nature
Beyond the wine itself, Belle Époque embodies the enduring dialogue between art and nature that has inspired Maison Perrier-Jouët since its foundation. The iconic anemone design, created by Emile Gallé in 1902, reflects this connection through its organic forms and poetic interpretation of nature.
Like each vintage, the anemone design celebrates a singular expression of creativity, craftsmanship and time — a moment preserved through both wine and art.
Like each vintage, the anemone design celebrates a singular expression of creativity, craftsmanship and time — a moment preserved through both wine and art.
