By Saralyn Mehta, Sommelier( ISG), CSW

What is it that makes champagne so special? Why is it the wine that ushers in Presidents, Queens and Prime Ministers? Why do we toast with it at weddings, put diamonds in it to propose marriage or raise our glasses full of it to start each year? I used to think it was a brilliant marketing ploy; and then I tasted Krug’ s Grande Cuvée.

Krug has historically been a family-owned and operated business that was founded by Johann-Josef Krug. Krug started his career with Jacquesson, the oldest independent Champagne house in France. He took to winemaking immediately, and, within a year, had been made partner. Soon after, he fell in love with Adolphe Jacquesson’ s English sister-in-law, Anne Jaunay, and married her. This union seemingly solidified his place within Jacquesson, so it came as a surprise to all when, just one year after his wedding, he left Jacquesson, and Châlon-sur-Marne( which was re-named Châlon-en-Champagne in 1998), and set out with his wife to create a new Champagne house.

The pair settled in Reims. Although Joseph’ s early experience had been with Jacquesson, he had also been working for a competitor, Hippolyte de Vivès. This partnership gave rise to the Krug we know today. By 1843, Krug and his wife had their own Champagne house: Krug was born. Since then, the house has been handed down from father to son. Most recently, brothers Henri and Rémi have started handing the controls over to Henri’ s son, Olivier, and a team of employees.

In 1999, Krug became part of the super luxury conglomerate Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy( LVMH). Although this technically means it is no longer a“ family business,” the Krug family and their associates have

retained a good deal of autonomy under LVMH. The historic quality of Krug remains untouched. The great example of their travails is their entry-level wine: Krug Grande Cuvée. Though the price of the Grande Cuvée matches that of other houses’ prestige cuvées( the top vintage blend of a Champagne house), it is a non-vintage cuvée( made from a blend of several vintages). So how do the great minds at Krug differentiate their multi-vintage Champagne?

Many Champagne houses blend between 20 and 30 per cent of their reserve wines in their non-vintage cuvées, usually from fairly recent vintages. All of the three main Champagne grapes can play a significant role, although Chardonnay usually plays second fiddle to the two Pinots. A typical Grande Cuvée will be a blend of up to 50 wines from between 20 and 30 separate crus( specific terroirs). At Krug, the reserve wines make up anywhere between 35 and 50 per cent of the final blend and are sourced from a multitude of mature vintages held in stock.

All of the fruit for the wines of Krug is first fermented in 205 litre oak barrels made from Argonne wood. The use of oak barrels is distinctly Krug; in other houses, primary fermentation in oak is a rarity. The barrels must undergo meticulous preparation to prevent the new oak from dominating the wine. After they are“ de-seasoned” with water, the barrels are used to store press wines( which are sold to other producers) for several vintages. Once the fermentation is done, the wines are racked twice and then stored in stainless steel vats, where they wait to be either blended or kept as a reserve wine— a key to creating the classic and memorable Krug style. All of these intricate choices make Krug Grande Cuvée legendary. �

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