Savor the Last of Krug's "Grande Cuvée" 172ème Édition
Tastes Best Once It Is Sold Out…
In another month or two, we will be all sold out of the Krug "Grande Cuvée" 172ème Édition Brut Champagne $259.99 98WE 97DC 97JS 95JD 95WA 95VN and will have moved onto the new batch, 173rd edition.
While some may disagree with me, I think that the Grande Cuvée isn’t just the equal of the other offerings at Krug; I think it is their best wine. The thing that I like the best about it is the combination of youthful exuberance and profound, aged depth that it shows at the same time. This is something that just gets better with age. Every time that I have done an event with Krug, it has been the oldest Grande Cuvée that has been my favorite wine, and I have been lucky enough to do a lot as a Krug Ambassade.
When we come to the end of a batch, the wine really starts to sing, and for New Years Eve 2025/2026, I drank a bottle of the 172nd edition, and wow was it singing. It was just Cinnamon and I, the perfect number of people for one bottle of Krug, and we started out pairing it with caviar on homemade blini, then moved on to white truffle pasta for the main dish. Both pairings were spectacular—the pasta surprisingly went every bit as well as the caviar. This is a wine that takes over two decades to make; the oldest of 11 different vintages in this bottle is from the last century—1998—and the youngest is now 10 years old now—2016. In all, a staggering 146 separate wines were blended in this one bottle of Krug—it lives up to its name, the direct translation of Grande Cuvée is “great blend.” The wine is composed of 44% Pinot Noir, 36% Chardonnay, and 20% Meunier. While $259.99 is a steep price for any bottle of wine, I am a firm believer that Krug Grande Cuvée is one of the very best values in world-class wine. With another five years in the cellar, there is no blowout wine night where it would not be in contention for the best of the night. And right now, at the end of this edition’s run, it will stand on the table with any wine—and I mean any wine.
It has a gorgeous light gold color, and a nose of the finest brioche, punctuated by an almost Puligny-Montrachet-like lime element. In the mouth, it is generous, with a full-bodied character that is super satisfying, but never goes over to heaviness. I always find that bottles of Krug are empty before I am ready for them to be. But the best feature of this wine is the finish, it always delivers a peacock’s tail display, with everything from savory truffle to pure citric zing, from pastry dough to chalky minerality. I can still almost taste it. Treat yourself to some Krug—you won’t be disappointed.
A toast to you!