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
News from the Vineyard - Special Harvest Edition
August 25, 2020
by Justine Puaud & Max Goldberg Liu
August 25, 2020
by Justine Puaud & Max Goldberg Liu
NEWS FROM BURGUNDY
Côte de Beaune
This year is historically early for many growers in Burgundy.
Guillaume d’Angerville finished on August 25th which was the start date of his previous earliest harvest - 2003. This is a very different vintage than 2003, however - so far the grapes coming in have been very well balanced with good concentration due to the late summer drought, and are not at all overripe or dramatically low in acidity. Sanitary conditions are excellent as well - there is almost no need for a sorting table.
Thus far, weather conditions have been perfect - beautiful sunny days and cool nights, and growers are crossing their fingers that it continues.
Frédéric and Clothilde Lafarge finished the first day of harvest with a big smile, declaring the quality of the grapes to be amazing and forecasting 2020 as a great vintage. So far, the Lafarges are equally happy with the quality of both the whites and the reds. They should finish the harvest Friday evening and will be celebrating their Paulée with the vendangeurs.
Be sure to check out the video below with Fred Lafarge that our friends Richard and Carla Rza Betts captured the other day. Richard and Carla are in Burgundy this week capturing exclusive content for the Pressoir.wine Club, so be sure to look out for more footage from the harvest.
Beautiful cool harvest weather (Nicolas Rossignol, August 24, 2020)
Rapid fermentation of Clos du Château des Ducs (Clothilde Lafarge, Domaine Lafarge)
Early morning at Domaine des Comtes Lafon in Meursault Charmes (August 23, 2020)
Côte de Nuits
As is usually the case, the Côte de Nuits was generally a little behind the Côte de Beaune in starting the harvest, and the quality is looking to be equally as high.
Véronique Drouhin remarked that her Griotte-Chambertin was quite small in quantity but that the small bunches look magnificent.
Bonnes Mares (Domaine Hudelot-Baillet, August 25, 2020)
La Romanée being picked on August 26, 2020 (Louis-Michel Liger-Belair)
Griotte-Chambertin (Véronique Drouhin, August 22, 2020)
NEWS FROM CHAMPAGNE
2020 is also a historic vintage in Champagne: the earliest harvest on record.
This is the third warm year in a row producing beautifully ripe grapes. Many Champenois are comparing the trio of 2018, 2019, 2020 to the heralded trilogy of 1988, 1989, 1990. There are many similarities in growing conditions, precocity of the harvest, good ripeness, and clean fruit.
Many of the winemakers are finishing picking and pressing Pinot Meunier and Pinot Noir. Some of the Chardonnay is in but growers in the Côte des Blancs are waiting a bit longer to pick.
Rodolphe Péters of Pierre Péters is proud of how his Chardonnay vines have handled the changing climate: “This brings me to a thought about VERSATILITY, having a look back to the recent history of Champagne. What was the grape variety which used to be harvested the first when the climate was very challenging and cool and harvest was taken place in late September or October? And what is now the latest grape variety to be picked, while we face impacts of the global warming and must manage every year earlier and earlier harvests ? Only one answer in both cases: Chardonnay.”
Our friend Marie-Pascale Do-Dinh is in Champagne this week - we look forward to sharing the footage and photos of her visits with you in the coming weeks.
Pinot Noir from 1er Cru Les Noues in Ecueil at Champagne Frédéric Savart (August 26, 2020)
AR Lenoble is finishing pressing Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.
Harvest started simultaneously in Krug’s Clos d’Ambonnay and Clos du Mesnil. (Olivier Krug, August 26, 2020)
Chardonnay from the top part of Les Hautes Chèvres (Vincent Laval, August 25, 2020)