Personal advice
Krug Vintage 2006 is one of the very few 2006 Champagnes that achieve a near-perfect balance between structure, body and freshness. It will improve significantly with further bottle age and has a very long life ahead. At the same time, it is already a serious pleasure to drink today.
On the nose it shows roasted almonds, pear tarte tatin, mandarin liqueur and praline. On the palate appear nougat, frangipane, candied orange peel and pink grapefruit — a dense yet silky fruit profile, carried by a creamy texture, mineral tension and a long, multi-layered finish.
Krug stands apart from most other prestige houses by continuing to use Pinot Meunier in its great vintage Champagnes — a variety many houses have entirely removed from their top cuvées. In the 2006 Vintage, Meunier accounts for around 17%, blended with 48% Pinot Noir and 35% Chardonnay.
Krug sources Meunier from over 80-year-old vines in Leuvrigny and Sainte-Gemme. These parcels do not show the usual light, early-ripening Meunier fruit; instead they are firm, aromatically dense and extremely age-worthy. For the Pinot Noir, only a small portion came from the Grande Vallée in 2006; the majority is from Ambonnay and Verzenay, with a significant contribution from Les Riceys. The Chardonnay is mainly from Trépail, Villers-Marmery, Avize, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Oger and Cramant.
Drinking window: now until approximately 2040–2045+ (with good storage)
A glance at the Alfavin cellar
A glance at the Alfavin cellar
A glance at the Alfavin Cellar