Bollinger B13

A lot is beginning to change at Bollinger. For a long time, the house remained true to its clear profile and the range was more convincing through quality than variety. The B13 is now the second new champagne in a short period of time. 2013 was not a super ripe year of concentrated wines in Champagne, but it was definitely good to very good, especially on the Cotes des Blancs. Bollinger says that a low supply of Chardonnay prevented the production of Grande Annee in 2013. At the same time, the B13 is only produced in small quantities. It seems that they want to cautiously test the market's response to these innovations.

The B13 2013 is a Blanc de Noirs that consists only of Pinot Noir. As usual with Bollinger, warm sites like Ay and Verzenais supply half of the grapes, Tauxieres, Mareuil, Louvois and Bouzy are also represented. Despite 7 years on the lees, it seems fresher and fruitier than Grande Annee and has less oxidative notes. Red fruits, peach, mirabelle and even exotic notes like some pineapple or even banana can be detected. This fruit is underpinned by chalky, mineral Pinot Noir notes, which are particularly associated with Verzenay.