The Expressions of Clos d'Ambonnay
in 2008
An unprecedented offer comprising two expressions of the Clos d’Ambonnay, a remarkable plot of Pinot Noir, in 2008.
These creations illustrate the Maison’s commitment to crafting champagnes of undisputed quality by respecting the individuality of each plot of vines, transforming its fruit into distinctive wines. This art requires careful berry tastings prior to harvest and meticulous fruit selection. In 2008, the Pinot Noir grapes of Krug’s Clos d’Ambonnay revealed unparalleled, beautifully contrasting profiles. Tempted by the fruit, Krug’s Tasting Committee created both a Blanc de Noirs champagne – Krug Clos d’Ambonnay 2008 and, the first of its kind for Maison Krug, a Rosé de Noirs champagne – Krug Clos d’Ambonnay Rosé 2008. Two distinctive expressions of the intensity of Pinot Noir from Clos d’Ambonnay in 2008.
THE YEAR 2008 AT THE CLOS D’AMBONNAY
The Clos d’Ambonnay is a vineyard of 0.68 hectares (1.68 acres) located in the heart of Ambonnay, one of the most distinguished villages for Pinot Noir in Champagne and an essential cru for Krug for generations.
Classified among the cool years in Champagne, 2008 was one of the region’s least sunny in almost half a century. It was a year with an absence of extremes, save for a brief cool period in June which disrupted flowering and led to an heterogenous maturation. Nevertheless, grape maturation was slow and steady, and the fruit remained healthy. The harvest at the Clos d’Ambonnay took place in a single day on September 24, yielding grapes of superb structure and exquisite grace.
TWO EXPRESSIONS OF A SINGLE TERROIR
The heterogeneous maturity of the grapes ultimately endowed certain bunches with the sheer intensity of Pinot Noir so characteristic of the Clos d’Ambonnay, while others stood out as particularly plump, juicy and generous already exhibiting jammy red berry flavours. Berry tastings revealed the potential of these grapes to express themselves as a red and a white wine.
Curiosity piqued, in addition to crafting Krug Clos d’Ambonnay 2008, Krug’s Tasting Committee created an experimental few litres of Clos d’Ambonnay traditionally macerated red Pinot Noir wine from 150kg of grapes they selected one by one. Thus, in 2008, after six months of tasting, they decided to assemble the wines to craft a blended rosé champagne capturing the depth of Pinot Noir. This groundbreaking decision mirrors the nonconformist spirit of Joseph Krug who defied the conventions of champagne making.
Krug Clos d'Ambonnay 2008
The sheer intensity of a single plot of Pinot Noir.
Krug Clos d’Ambonnay 2008 captures the intensity of a single plot, a single grape variety – Pinot Noir – and the harvest of a single year - 2008. An embodiment of exquisite grace, this champagne exerts structure, elegance as well as charisma. The harvest, which took place on 24 September 2008, allowed Krug's Tasting Committee to craft 4,725 individually numbered bottles.
Krug Clos d’Ambonnay 2008 is an enticing champagne offering aromas of toast, caramel, cocoa, and dark chocolate without sweetness. The palate is beautifully balanced, combining roundness and vivacity, expression and elegance. Notes of toffee apple, slightly candied citrus fruit, and smooth lemon give way to an extremely long and chiselled finish with delicate bitterness.
Krug Clos d'Ambonnay Rosé 2008
An unprecedented expression of the depth of Pinot Noir from Clos d'Ambonnay.
Krug Clos d’Ambonnay Rosé 2008 is the Maison’s first blended rosé champagne crafted from a single plot. It is an unprecedented expression of the intensity of Pinot Noir capturing the remarkable depth of the Clos d’Ambonnay plot under the climatic circumstances of the year 2008. Only 326 bottles of Krug Clos d'Ambonnay Rosé 2008 were crafted, each individually numbered.
Today, Krug Clos d’Ambonnay Rosé 2008 is airy, joyful, delicate, subtle, refined and powerful all at once, offering aromas of strawberry tart, almond paste, dried fruits and hazelnuts. Mouthwatering, with great breadth and vibrancy, it opens with ample notes of frangipane cream, flambéed crêpe suzette and panettone with glacé fruit. Deliciously bitter flavours of freshly cut and roasted orange ensue, with nuances of kumquat, which succumb to the freshness of redcurrant and meld into infinite length.
“We could not resist the temptation to listen to the fruit and experiment with a red wine. Just this once, just because climate circumstances were right, just because the tasting commanded us.”
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