Krug Grande Cuvée Edition 172, NV

Est. delivery Autumn 2024

Krug's Grande Cuvée 172 continues the numbering system brought in about 10 years ago. The blend this time out is of an astonishing 146 wines over 11 different vintages, ranging from 2016 as the youngest to 1998 as the oldest. James Suckling is the only critic so far to publish a review, but his 97 points puts it alongside the greats. A classically-styled Krug, it will drink as soon as shipped after the summer but will repay many years in the cellar for the patient.

After 7 years on the lees, Grande Cuvée is given more care and attention than most top vintage Champagne which is why it is revered above all. It needs time to develop and unfurl to show its full potential, and when it does, it is simply stunning. The numbering system is really useful for this purpose as it was previously quite hard to track how old a bottle of Grande Cuvée was and it means that earlier numbered releases are now very obviously that bit older, with prices having risen steadily over the years. Tracking down the likes of 162-164 these days will set you back north of £1300 per six in the vast majority of listings.

2016 was a Jekyll and Hyde vintage with a cool, rainy start and a hot, dry finish though grapes were brought in over a long harvest in very good health and like the rest of France, produced great wines with excellent typicity for their respective regions.