Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millenaires 2017 (Champagne, France) - [JS 100] [DM 96] [WA 95+]
Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millenaires 2017 (Champagne, France) - [JS 100] [DM 96] [WA 95+]
Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millenaires 2017 (Champagne, France) - [JS 100] [DM 96] [WA 95+]
Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millenaires 2017 (Champagne, France) - [JS 100] [DM 96] [WA 95+]
Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millenaires 2017 (Champagne, France) - [JS 100] [DM 96] [WA 95+]
Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millenaires 2017 (Champagne, France) - [JS 100] [DM 96] [WA 95+]

Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millenaires 2017
(Champagne, France) - [JS 100] [DM 96] [WA 95+]


$380.00 $299.99 Save $80.01
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JS100 DM96 WA95+
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About the winery:
The winery was founded in 1851 by 28-year-old Charles-Camille Heidsieck. The very next year he took the unusual step, at that time, of journeying to the United States to sell his Champagne. In fact, he was the first Champagne producer to visit the U.S.A. "Champagne Charlie", as he became known, was a gracious gentleman and a born salesman, personally selling 300,000 bottles of his Champagne in the U.S. in one year! With a beginning like that, you would think that Charles Heidsieck would be a big-selling, well-known Champagne in the U.S. and throughout the world. But it is not.

The winery has undergone a number of changes of control during the 20th century and in 1985, Rémy Martin Cognac (a.k.a. Rémy-Cointreau) purchased both Champagnes Charles Heidsieck and Piper-Heidsieck(it had purchased Champagne Krug previously). Rémy-Cointreau's first move was to re-hire the brilliant Daniel Thibault in 1986 to be Chef de Caves for Charles Heidsieck. Régis Camus joined Charles Heidsieck as assistant winemaker in 1994 and has been the head winemaker of the House since 2002, since the untimely death of Daniel Thibault. In 2011, the winery was sold to the privately-owned French luxury goods group EPI founded by Christopher Descours (of Ralph Lauren fame).

Notes from the Winemaker:

In the early 1980s, the Charles Heidsieck Cellar Master decided to reserve the very best Chardonnays for a cuvée named Blanc des Millénaires. Across forty years, only nine Blanc des Millénaires have ever been produced; 1983, 1985, 1990, 1995, 1996, 2004, 2006, 2007 and 2014. The House’s exacting requirements for quality and ageing potential show how exceptional the Chardonnays from these harvests were.

The 2017 vintage signals the latest iteration of Charles Heidsieck's 100% Chardonnay cuvée, called Blanc des Millénaires. Two varieties compose it: chardonnay and time.

Born from a remarkable year, this vintage is the result of 7 years of anticipation and harmonious ageing in the thousand-year-old Crayères, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

If every cuvée is the exclusive product of great chardonnays from iconic terroirs, exceptional for their incomparable texture, aromatic complexity and ability to mature, each one will develop its own personality, linked to the organoleptic profile of its vintage year.

The year 2017 was a contrasting year, yet one that ultimately showcased the strengths of the Côte des Blancs, unveiling a blend of great purity for Blanc des Millénaires 2017.

BLEND: 100% Chardonnay

DOSAGE: 9g/l

Ratings & Reviews

100 Points - James Suckling:
"A very precise Blanc de Millenaires with subtle aromas of honeysuckle, jasmine, stones, steel, chalk, watercress and some white peaches. Medium- to full-bodied with transparency and clarity that come through clearly and go on and on, The first year they used wine from the grand cru village of Chouilly. Complete and unique. Refined and structured at the same time. Drink or hold."

96 Points - Decanter:
"Chardonnay in the well-drained chalk soils of the Côte des Blancs performed so well in torrid 2017 that Charles Heidsieck produced only the fifth vintage of Blanc des Millénaires in 30 years, hailing predominantly from the grand cru village of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger alongside surrounding grand and premier cru Chardonnay. With a moderate yield, some early season heat and a good retention of acidity, the 2017 is both aromatically inviting and reassuringly ageworthy. With orange citrus, jasmine, sweet toasted almond and richer pear tart flavours building, this ultra fine blanc de blancs is cut with a dash of smoky, charry energy and citrus syrup length, already expressive yet bound to ramp up the nutty, toasty headiness with further time. This will prove itself one of the wines of the vintage. Drinking Window: 2026-2040." -Tom Hewson (Mar 2026)

95+ Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate:
"The 2017 Blanc de Blancs Blanc des Millénaires—disgorged in 2025 with a dosage of nine grams per liter—continues to develop nicely, unfurling in the glass with aromas of almond paste, brioche and pear mingled with notes of orange oil and burnt buttered toast. Full-bodied, broad and nicely concentrated, the palate is built around a deep, generous core of fruit, complemented by ripe yet lively acidity that carries through to a long, saline finish. Darker and more concentrated than several of its immediate predecessors, it is also more structured, representing a considerable success in the context of this rain-soaked vintage, which fortunately turned dry around harvest time. Drinking Window: 2027-2046." -Kristaps Karklins

18.5+/20 Points - The Finest Bubble:
BdM 2017 I tasted in Lehmann Synergy 60cl and it really brought forward the recent disgorgement; bundles of citrus, ripe lemon, grapefruit and hints of lychee all wrapped around a pronounced chalky core. The palate brings more citrus forward, some pithy grapefruit and hints of fresh pineapple. No shortage of freshness and a bundle of salinity give this a great finish. Super long flavours showing well for a champagne 7 months post disgorgement. FYI: 30% of the grapes are from Mesnil-sur-Oger and just over 20% from Vertus, which helps explain the mineral core of Mesnil and richness from Vertus.” Drinks well now, will benefit from at least 5 years ageing.