Personal advice
Laurent Perrier stands for fruity, mineral, and fresh champagnes that slowly develop their aromatic profile. To avoid oxidative notes, the house was the first to switch from wooden barrels to stainless steel tanks for aging. The entry-level Laurent Perrier Champagne program is sometimes a bit clean, light, and acidic, but Grand Siecle in particular stands out. Today, Grand Siecle is, alongside Krug's Grande Cuvee, the most well-known NV Prestige Champagne. The current Edition 26 exhibits more aromas and opulence even when young. Could this be due to new yeasts? Edition 25 is still classic Laurent Perrier and even finer, thanks to the outstanding base year of 2008.
The Nonancourts bought Laurent Perrier at the beginning of World War II, on the verge of bankruptcy. The house was still called Veuve Laurent-Perrier & Co, and from 1964 onwards, Laurent-Perrier. Bernard de Nonancourt took over in 1948, with production at 80,000 bottles per year. At his death in 2010, the company produced 8 million bottles and was one of the largest houses after Moët and Chandon.
The house is innovative. As early as 1968, they introduced an NV Rose that combined structure with vinous richness. Ultra-Brut is the first zero-dosage champagne from a major house.