Krug 2006: Nature and savoir-faire

The product of a capricious year, Krug 2006 has shown to be extraordinarily generous in the glass, with an apparent immediacy that will become more complex with age.

The latest vintage from Maison Krug to reach the market has been given the nicknamed Capricious Indulgence. The nickname for each vintage sums up the essential traits not only of the wine but also of the harvest. For example: Luminous Freshness for the 2004 and Vivacious Radiance for the 2003. And this is because Cuvée N.2 – as it was baptized by founder Joseph Krug to differentiate it from Cuvée N.1, today called Krug Grande Cuvée – is a wine that tells the story of a specific year using the three Champagne grapes to depict the specificity of something that by definition will not be replicated.

Considered to be a hot year, with 23 consecutive days with temperatures above 30°C, 2006 was dubbed capricious due to the rainfall during two weeks in August that was so intense that many thought could compromise the harvest. Fortunately, the sun returned for the harvest and in the end allowed for a balance similar to that of esteemed years like 1989, which produced wines that were memorable for their roundness and generosity. And the same can be said of this 2006 Krug, a Pinot Noir-based blend that is by tradition almost half (48%) Pinot Noir with the grapes mostly from Montagne de Reims and the celebrated village of Les Riceys in the Aube, while the opulent and full-bodied Chardonnay (35% of the blend) is joined by the freshness of the Pinot Meunier (17%) from Leuvrigny and Sainte-Gemme.

For the official presentation of Krug 2006, the Maison, as it often loves to do, offered another Creation based on the same vintage: Krug Grande Cuvée 162éme Edition. This symphony of 142 wines recreates the complexity of Krug beginning with vintage 2006 and achieving its harmony with reserve wines dating back to 1990. The comparison between the two wines was interesting because while they shared certain traits of 2006’s generosity, what became most evident was the fil rouge of the Maison’s style, the Krug style that gives the Champagne its capacity to be recognizable while never being the same. Krug 2006 today is very generous in the glass, but this apparent immediacy that the harvest gave is only an indication of many good things to come as it ages, appealing to those who along with freshness seek an evolved complexity that only a great Champagne can offer.

Krug 2006 Brut 

97/100 - € 350

Krug ID 118.014 – Over 12 years in the Krug cellar developed the harmony of this mostly Pinot Noir Champagne, which is also about a third chardonnay and the rest Pinot Meunier. The wine has a bright, golden color and, above all, an incessant effervescence that will usher in a delicate, soft and wrapping creaminess to the mouth. The bouquet has intense aromas of crispy, golden delicious apple, ripe white peach and bergamot, with sensations of hazelnut butter and honey-laced brioche and a suffused whiff of fresh verbena. The mouthfeel is rich and, at the same time, vibrant with notes of marzipan and tangerine peel alternately becoming wrapping and taut, with a persistence that finishes with the elegance of dried fruit.

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