1996 in champagne. what happened?
by Edouard Bourgeois
November 21, 2025
Ratings for 1996 often use words like "exceptional" and "grandiose," with some comparisons to 1928. What made 1996 objectively unique was the high average potential alcohol (10.3%) combined with high total acidity (10g/litre)—figures rarely seen together. As Charles Philipponnat noted, this is a significant jump from the 9.3% potential alcohol common forty years prior.
Acidity and potential alcohol work together for balance, but typically, when one is high, the other is low. In 1996, both figures were high. Bruno Paillard called it a 'naughty boy' vintage due to its unpredictable nature and the anxiety it caused producers while waiting for acidity levels to drop. However, the result for those with patience is "fantastic."
While acidity is key for aging, the true test is time. Over two decades later, the remaining 1996 bottles reveal which producers succeeded. The best examples are still complex and alluring, where the high acidity is balanced by a wide range of aromas, from brioche to stone fruit. Unfortunately, some other bottlings show only residual acidity, resulting in unbalanced and tart wines.
I recall opening a glorious bottle of 1996 Cristal for my son's birth seven years ago; the wine was still vibrant and charged.
Another fabulous example was made by Krug. As Olivier Krug said, "It’s a year where a good house or a good winemaker will make a good wine... It’s a tricky vintage." Other industry professionals have shared similar sentiments, noting that some vintners either opted out of making a vintage bottling or failed to achieve balance, resulting in wines that are already clumsy or tired.
The 1996 vintage often draws comparisons to its predecessor, 1995. These were the last two great Champagne vintages following the 1988, 1989, and 1990 trio. The 1996s are powerful wines; the best combine weight from ripeness with tension from acidity, providing the interest, complexity, and structure needed for long-term aging.
Interestingly, more houses released 1995 as a vintage Champagne than 1996, with a ratio of roughly 60% (1995) to 40% (1996).
Given its unpredictability, the safest bet for 1996 Champagne remains to go with producers you trust.
While looking for pictures of 1996 Champagne on my IPhone, I also found several other wines from various regions where the 1996 vintage truly shone, as seen in images below;jbgories
What's Pressoir Drinking?
What’s Pressoir Drinking
By Edouard
2/23/21
A comparison of two terroirs from the 2016 vintage, through the lens of Maison Louis Jadot
I have really been enjoying the 2016 red Burgundies lately. If early on the wines could show a bit of firmness, the dense structure today is no longer stealing the show and some tender flesh is finally providing the useful plush to achieve overall balance in the wine. Here, I thought the vintage was particularly well represented by these two classic climats of the Côte de Nuits. We tasted these wines last Saturday to illustrate our last Pressoir.wine At Home Session with Thibault Gagey, deputy General Manager of Maison Louis Jadot.
First, the aromatic 1er Cru “Baudes” from Chambolle-Musigny certainly didn’t disappoint. Powerful yet lacy at the same time, this vineyard shares some of the traits of character with its noble and authoritative neighbor, the Grand Cru “Bonnes-Mares”. On the other hand, the superb “Boudots”, another 1er cru, from Nuits-St-Georges this time, offered its typical aromatics of black cherry and damp dirt. This 15 acre-climat is one of the most prestigious of Nuits-St-Georges, sharing its northern border with another dreamy site, the “Aux Malconsorts” of Vosne-Romanée.
It is no secret for those who know me that Boeuf Bourguignon is a favorite of mine when it comes to drinking Red Burgundy. However, pepperoni pizza with mushroom and hot pepper worked amazingly with these two elegant but well built Pinots.
Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er cru Les Boudots and Chambolle-Musigny 1er cru Les Baudes, are both produced under the “Domaine Gagey” label, meaning the fruit comes from the family estate for these wines.
What's Pressoir Drinking?
by Raj Vaidya
Tuesday, February 9th, 2021
A few weeks ago while Daniel, Edouard and I were visiting producers in France and producing the content for our upcoming La Paulée Mondiale, I had the opportunity to share this tremendous bottle with three of my most revered and respected vignerons. I carried it with us from NY and planned to share it with them over a quick casse-croûte at the home of Frédéric and Jocelyn Mugnier, along with Christophe Roumier and Véronique Drouhin. When thinking of what to bring to share with them, Daniel and I discussed possibly going with a bottle of Chambolle-Musigny, perhaps even an Amoureuses, as this was the topic of our interview and recordings that day. But I figured that would be like bringing a knife to a gunfight, so I suggested a bottle that could invoke similar emotions to the great Burgundy wines we all love and even a slightly similar finesse and delicacy, albeit with totally different aromatics and flavor profile.
We chose to bring this 1961 Burlotto from Verduno in Barolo, a pristine bottle I’d been lucky enough to find at retail last year. Burlotto was responsible for a exceptional bottle of ‘45 Daniel and I drank some years back at a restaurant which was revelatory, so I was excited to try this. Layers upon layers of dried flowers, the typical dried rose for sure but also something akin to violet, even lavender. The wine had that character of tobacco leaves and rust with a distinct sanguine quality also, yet despite all these fairly intense notes was weightless on the palate, extreme and subtle simultaneously. It was a big hit with the Burgundians, which always puts a smile on my face!
What's Pressoir Drinking?
by Raj Vaidya
September 14, 2020
This past weekend as the cool evening air returned to the North East and NYC, I fired up my grill to try and take full advantage of the last wisps of summer. Grilled Tandoori spiced chicken was on the menu, so I figured an aged red with some ripeness would be appropriate. Digging around in my wine fridge, I turned up this delightful bottle of village level wine that proves Daniel’s oft repeated motto: read the label from the bottom up! Drouhin has long been a favorite producer of mine, and the pedigree of their excellence in wine making plus the superlative vintage 1999 promised that this wouldn’t be a simple village level experience. The wine did not disappoint. Layers of spice and small red berries on the nose, tremendous depth on the palate with earthiness just starting to develop but the primary fruit flavors still very much present. Still youthful, though it was delicious and long on the palate. Lesson to be gleaned; age your Villages!
Christophe Roumier Discusses an Already Historic Harvest 2020
Christophe Roumier talks about an already historical harvest 2020
The Pressoir team is proud to present a series of videos brought to us by Richard Betts, our correspondent in Burgundy, who was able to interview some of the most celebrated winemakers of the region. We are really grateful that these talented men and women took the time to share their views on the unprecedented 2020 vintage. Among them, Christophe Roumier, interviewed in his legendary vineyard of Les Amoureuses, a climat classified Premier Cru but believed to deserve Grand Cru status by many, shares some rare and precious news on the vintage. Christophe, with his expert knowledge of the land, explains his strategy on when to pick each parcel, according to the rain that was expected the day after that interview while also touching on the role played by old vines. The winemaker also gives his opinion on the polarizing subject of whole cluster fermentation.
We hope that you will enjoy this video as much as we did. Stay tuned for more of these with other luminaries such as Dominique Lafon, Veronique Drouhin, Jean-Marc Roulot and many more...
Christophe Roumier in his vineyard “Les Amoureuses”