Bollinger La Grande Année 2015 is a vintage, prestige-cuvée Champagne produced by Bollinger in Äy, France. Bollinger is a name synonymous with sophistication and quality in Champagne. In 1976, the maison`s vintage Champagne was renamed Grande Année, becoming La Grande Année (with the `La ` prefix) in 1997. Made only from Grand and Premier cru grapes, this wine is typically aged on lees for a decade before release. "The 2015 Brut La Grande Année was disgorged last year with eight grams per litre dosage. The wine has turned out beautifully, exhibiting a more muscular, old-school Bollinger profile in contrast to the unusually racy, fine-boned 2014 that preceded it. Wafting from the glass with notes of pear, orange oil and white flowers mingled with notions of mocha, toasted hazelnuts and fino sherry, it’s medium to full-bodied, layered and textural, with a dense core of fruit framed by chalky structuring extract, concluding with a long, sapid finish." William Kelley, 2024
Bollinger's 2015 Brut Grand Année is an intriguing wine in that is clearly reflects the decision to pick on the later side in order to avoid vegetal notes derived from the mismatch of alcoholic and phenolic ripeness. "Balance was hard to achieve in 2015," Chef de Cave Denis Bunner notes. "At 10% in sugar, the fruit was simply not ripe. We had to wait to reach the optimal window of ripeness." Bunner also opted to increase the Chardonnay, so the blend is 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay, as opposed to the more typical 70/30 blend, with more Verzenay than Aÿ in the Pinots. Dried citrus peel, sage, menthol, sage, tangerine peel and spice build with some coaxing. Light tropical overtones develop with aeration. There's real density and textural richness here. This will be a fascinating vintage to follow. Stylistically, it is the complete opposite from the much more linear 2014 that precedes it. Dosage is 8 grams per liter. Disgorged: May 2023.Antonio Galloni26th March 2024
96The Wine Independent
Velvety burnished gold in color with near imperceptible fine bubbles, the Grand Année 2015 is a 60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay blend of 11 crus, 79% Grands Cru and 21% Premiers Crus, that is 100% barrel fermented, aged 7 years on lees and finished with an 8 grams per liter dosage. It opens toasty and rich with red forest fruit aromas accented by bruised apple, warm spice, Acacia honey, and a refreshing whiff of chalk. Plush and generous, the medium-bodied palate fills out with a seamless depth of orchard fruit concentration lifted by buoyant, finely spun acid energy and a satiny, pinpoint mousse. This 2015 lingers long on the palate and has an attractive kiss of bitterness. Disgorged October 2023.Sarah Mayo6th November 2024
17Jancis Robinson
Full bottle 1,637 g. A blend of 11 crus, 79% Grand Cru, 21% Premier Cru, predominantly 60% Pinot Noir from Verzenay, Aÿ and Mareuil-sur-Aÿ and 40% Chardonnay from Chouilly and Avize. All oak-fermented and hand-riddled. Disgorged June 2023. Dosage 8 g/l.Mid straw. Very deep-flavoured on the nose. Some richness and only the beginning of Bollinger`s trademark mushroom flavour which I would expect to develop with time. Lighter on the palate than the nose at the moment. It`s currently a little more sprightly than some Grande Années.(JR)
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Synonymous with sophistication and quality, Champagne Bollinger was awarded the Royal Warrant as Official Purveyor of Champagne to Queen Victoria in 1884. From special cuvées and Rosé Champagnes, to rarely seen vintages, luxurious large formats and Recently Disgorged styles, this is a wonderful House to discover. Bollinger wines even have a close association with James Bond - and rare limited editions have been released in celebration of the films from Moonraker to No Time To Die.
The Bollinger vineyard covers 179 hectares, with 85% of these Grand and Premier Cru. One of the last family-run Champagne houses in the region, Bollinger is located in the village of Aÿ, near Épernay. A number of practices are key to the Bollinger approach: the majority of grapes used in the wines have to come from the Maison's own vineyards; Pinot Noir must play a dominant role in the blend; the role of micro-oxygenation from barrel fermentation; and long periods of bottle aging (two to three times longer than required).