Dom Perignon 2003

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Recent Dom Perignon Brut Vintages

| 2000 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |

Dom Perignon 2003 Champagne

Dom Perignon 2003 is rich, ripe, and fruit forward. However, it is not as refined as the 2000 or 2002. Dom Perignon 2003 Champagne should blossom with some aging, but only time will tell for this difficult vintage.

Dom Perignon 2003

Type

Sweetness Level:

Brut

Vintage:

2003

Category:

Basic

Prestige Cuvée:

Yes

Ratings (on a scale of 100)

Price

Champagne 411

Nov. 2013

Average Retail Price

Wine Enthusiast

(750 ml bottle) $160

Wine Spectator

11/15/13

Tasting Notes
Appearance: Pale gold with persistent fine lively bubbles.
Aroma/bouquet: Lemon/lime zest, pear, toast and chalky minerality.
Palate: Green apple, pear, subtle yeastiness with hints of smoke and licorice.
Additional comments: Rich, ripe, fruit forward. Not as refined as the 2000 or 2002.
When to drink: Dom Perignon 2003 Champagne should blossom with some aging, but only time will tell for this difficult vintage. Drink in 2015 - 2025.

Vintage 2003 Details

Label: Dom Perignon Vintage 2003
House/Winery: Moet & Chandon
Wine Category: Sparkling Wine
Region & Country: Champagne, France
Type (Style):Vintage
Sweetness Level: Brut
Dosage: na
Prestige cuvée: Yes
Vineyards: 100% Grand Cru and Premier Cru
Grapes: 60% pinot noir, 40% chardonnay
Alcohol: 12.5%

Go to Champagne Details for a description of the above types, characteristics, and grapes.

Dom Perignon 2003
Production
Dom Perignon uses the méthode champenoise for their champagne production. Dom Perignon only makes vintage champagne, therefore there are no reserve Dom Perignon wines. Fermentation occurs exclusively in stainless steel tanks with cultured house yeast strains and complete malolactic fermentation. No Pinot Meunier is used in the blend. There is balance between the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, so the blend will often be approximately 50% Pinot Noir and 50% Chardonnay, but percentage varies with each vintage and can range from 40% to 60% for each grape. 2003 was a year in which late April frosts damaged the Chardonnay grapes forcing the focus to shift to 60% Pinot Noir for the blend. Problems were further compounded by scorching August heat. 2003 was generally a poor vintage with very few producers declaring. Dom Perignon's Chef de Caves, Richard Geoffroy saw this as a challenge and faced it head on using more Pinot Noir than is typical to make this big, powerful champagne.

Dom Perignon has access to the 17 grand cru villages in champagne. The basis of the blend is typically from the 8 famous grand cru villages of Chouilly, Bouzy, Cramant, Avize, Verzenay, Ay, Le Mesnil and Mailly as well as the historical premier cru from Hautvillers where the Abbey of Dom Perignon is located.

Recent Moet & Chandon Brut Champagne Labels

Non-Vintage Brut

Vintage Brut

Grand Vintage | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2000 |

Vintage Prestige Cuvee Brut

Dom Perignon | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2000 |