Champagne Bollinger presented itself in London yesterday with the chief viticulturist Gilles Descotes and winemaker Mathieu Kauffmann presenting the changes they are currently effecting.
Most interesting to me were the following general changes that have been observed in Champagne over the last 20 years as a result of climate change:
Average alcohol levels in base wines have risen by 0.8%.
Average acidity has fallen by 2 g/l (as measured in sulphuric acid).
Vintage start dates are now on average 14 days earlier, typically about 15 Sep (although 2003 and 1976 were exceptionally early).
In that time the average age of...