Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Françaises: a rare prestige cuvée

‘Bollinger’s Vieilles Vignes Françaises remains one of the original cult Champagnes,’ according to John Kapon, chairman of New York-based wine auction specialist and retailer Acker.

‘Blanc de noirs are rare in general,’ he explains, ‘and this is without question the best of them all. The microscopic production has Champagne collectors fighting over bottles when they appear.’

Scroll down for tasting notes of 7 vintages of Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Françaises, including one that scores 100 points

Ungrafted vines

The secret to this rarity – and desirability – lies in the unique way the wine is produced.

Although the bottling is called Vieilles Vignes Françaises [‘Old French Vines’], the vines are not particularly old. The secret of the rarity is that the vines are grown in the same way that they were before the phylloxera scourge ravaged French vineyards beginning in the mid-19^th century.

This tiny insect, imported from America, was nearly always fatal to European vines, which had to be grafted onto resistant American rootstock to survive. Despite the near-universal triumph of root louse over vine stock, pockets of ungrafted vines persist and these furnish the raw material for this extraordinarily rare fizz.

Special plots

Before the phylloxera invasion, grapevines were not planted individually as they are today. Instead, they were propagated via layering. New vines were established by burying the cane of an existing vine in a trench about six inches deep, a process called provinage (see main image). This cane would then develop roots, and consequently, large swaths of vineyards (called crus, or growths) all shared the same root system. The planting system was known as ‘en foule’ – literally, ‘in a heap’.

Vines planted this way have long been part of Bollinger’s rich patrimony of vineyard holdings in the southern part of the Montagne de Reims. Family matriarch Lily Bollinger decided in the 1960s to vinify the plots separately at the suggestion of wine writer Cyril Ray. The first vintage was 1969, timed to coincide with her 70^th birthday.

Grand cru fruit

Until 2004 Bollinger retained three small vineyards of ungrafted vines.

Two are in the grand cru village of Aÿ in the lieux-dits of the Clos-Saint-Jacques (vineyard size: 0.21 hectares) and Chaudes Terres (0.15 hectares). Most of the vines here are ‘en foule’, although some are ungrafted but planted in rows on stakes.

Until 2004, there was also a third vineyard of 0.16 hectares located in Bouzy grand cru called Croix Rouge. Unlike the sites in Aÿ, this was not enclosed with walls and eventually succumbed to phylloxera. The last vintage that included fruit from the site in Bouzy was the 2004.

Rich style

As with many blanc de noirs made exclusively from Pinot Noir, VVF (as it is affectionately known to devotees) is an incredibly rich Champagne.

The nose often shows notes of ripe apricot, marzipan, and white blossoms overlaid with notes of smoke and brioche from the decade it typically spends on the lees.

There is also a tangy edge and dense, creamy texture that both come from the cask fermentation.

In my experience, the wine requires several years of bottle age after release for it to show at its best.

Associate chef de cave Dennis Brunner describes it thus: ‘We consider this Champagne above all as a grand vin – the wine is so dense one can almost forget the effervescence! It is characterised by its opulence, intensity and persistence on the palate, sensations tied to low yields, high-density planting (24,000 vines/ha), and its warm microclimate within the walls of a clos. For us it is the memory of an eternal Champagne.’

Vintages and pricing

Vintages released have included 1969, 1970, 1973, 1975, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1992, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009 and 2010, with the 2008 due to be released later this year.

The current 2010 vintage averages $1,165 (£826) at retail. The average price at auction for the maturing 1996 vintage last year (including premium) was $1,770 (£1,250), while just one bottle of the landmark 1979 vintage has sold thus far in 2021, at Zachys Wine Auctions in New York, for $3,968 (£2,802) including premium.

Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Françaises: a vertical tasting

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