Christoph Waltz's Five Rules for Drinking Champagne
"If you’re not prepared to appreciate what you have in your glass, then I advise you to drink beer."
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In the world of Champagne, the harvest of 1998 was what you call a slow burn. At first bedeviled by a weightless quality, it failed to impress the critics. But as it has aged over time, the vintage has taken on a sweet yellow fruit-and-bready character. In the meantime, the flavors have grown more and more popular among consumers and critics alike.
This fall, Dom Pérignon is releasing a selection of its 1998 vintage called P2 ($399.95), short for the “Second Plenitude,” which is basically a fancy way of saying the wine has been aged for a minimum of 12 years. (The First Plenitude is a minimum of 7 years; the Third Plenitude is fermented at least 20 years.)