Dom Pérignon: A Rosé Retrospective: 1962-2004

Several years in the making, this historic retrospective of Dom Pérignon’s Rosé was well worth the wait. Many of the rarest bottles came from the cellars of two of my closest collector friends who originally conceived of the tasting. Clearly, verticals such as this one don’t happen every day. Upon hearing of the planned private tasting, Dom Pérignon contributed a number of bottles directly from the house’s cellar. When all was said and done, a small group of twelve of us surveyed 27 vintages of the Rosé all the way back to the 1962, the inaugural commercial release

Chef de Caves Richard Geoffroy was on hand to share his perspective on the wines. I was especially interested in the evolution of the Rosé, as the house style has evolved quite markedly since around 2000. It has been obvious for some time that Geoffroy is severely pushing the envelope of what is possible within the world of grand marque Champagne and Rosé in particular. If there was ever any doubt of that, this retrospective tasting erased any lingering question marks. Today, the fruit is being picked riper and there is more still Pinot Noir in the Rosé than at any time over the last five decades, which means current releases are often powerful, vinous and richly-textured. Beginning in 2000, the Rosés all have more than 20% still Pinot compared to the 15-18% that was previously the norm. The current release, the 2004, was made with 28% still Pinot. .

Every wine is served in its own glass…that’s a lot of glasses  

The first Dom Pérignon Rosé was the 1959, but it was not commercially released and is rarely, if ever, even seen. Production started officially with the 1962, which, incidentally, was one of the truly epic wines of the night. This tasting encompassed four versions of the Rosé. The original release starts with standard 750ml bottles, while magnums and other large formats appear on the market a few years later. In top vintages Dom Pérignon also produces their Œnothèque series, which spend more time on their lees than the regular bottlings, and, more importantly, are aged on cork rather than crown capsule. Depending on the vintage, the differences between the regular releases and the Œnothèques are not always significant. It will be interesting to see what happens with the Œnothèque versions of the wines from 2000 and on, when the Rosé became a richer wine. Readers should note that with last year’s releases Dom Pérignon has phased out the Œnothèque name in favor of what the house is now calling P2 and P3, designations meant to describe plateaus of maturity across a wine’s life previously referred to as ‘plenitudes.’ Call me old-fashioned, but I preferred the former Œnothèque name, which was so much more evocative.

View all Dom Pérignon Rosé reviews in the Vinous database

View all Dom Pérignon reviews in the Vinous database

As always, Geoffroy is hard to pin down when it comes to technical details such as dosage and production numbers, although he makes no secret of his pride in achieving high quality along with volume. The reality is that these Champagnes speak for themselves, and do so quite eloquently – once you get past all of the unnecessary glitz Dom Pérignon likes to create around their brand. Of course, Dom Pérignon has plenty of company when it comes to grande marque bling, but at times the marketing can be easily mistaken for gross superficiality, which is a shame for a house that makes serious wines that deliver the goods.  

The tasting starts with the four most recent vintages, wines that are fascinating for so many reasons, including illustrating the house’s very noticeable move towards a more adventurous, provocative style. The 2004 Dom Pérignon Rosé screams out of the glass with stunning energy and layers of bright, saline-infused minerality. Precise and chiseled to the core, the 2004 captures the essence of a vintage that is only now getting its due. As good as the 2004 is today, readers would do well to give the wine at least a few more years in bottle. This is one of the great recent vintages of Dom Pérignon's Rosé – that much is abundantly clear. The 2004 has really come along nicely over the last few years. Disgorged 2014. One of the positive surprises in this tasting, the 2003 Dom Pérignon Rosé is now finally beginning to put on a little weight, although it remains inward and very much tightly wound. It will be interesting to see how the Rosé develops. The 2003 Blanc has always been more impressive than the Rosé. This is the first time I have seen anything that suggests the gap between the two 2003 might narrow some day. Sweet exotic aromatics linger on a finish that remains marked by a slight element of astringency. Disgorged 2012. 

The first flight showcases four contemporary expressions of Dom Pérignon Rosé