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Champagne 2013: 10 years on

Although it came in the shadow of the blockbuster 2012 vintage, the quietly confident 2013 is proving to be better than anticipated. Tom Hewson picks his 13 favourite Champagnes from the 2013 vintage.

‘You don’t know what you’ve got ‘till it’s gone,’ sang Joni Mitchell in the 1970 song Big Yellow Taxi. Ten years on from Champagne’s initially underrated 2013 vintage, as releases of prestige cuvées and special editions slowly drip through, Champagne lovers are starting to feel the same way. How many vintages like 2013 will we see again?

Julian Gout, cellar master of Ayala in Aÿ, has fond memories of a year that finished almost a month and a half later than many other vintages (such as 2011). It was so late in fact that he was able to squeeze in another harvest beforehand: ‘I harvested two times: once in Tuscany in August, and then in October in Champagne!’


Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for 13 top Champagnes from the 2013 vintage



Champagne 2013: The top 13


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