Moet & Chandon Collection Imperiale Creation No. 1
Moet & Chandon Collection Imperiale Creation No. 1 is the house's new prestige cuvée — a multi-vintage Brut Nature champagne blending seven remarkable vintages under the direction of cellar master Benoît Gouez. The 2013 Grand Vintage forms the base (42.5%, aged in stainless steel), joined by 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, and 2000 aged on oak casks (42.5% combined), topped with 15% of the 2004 aged on its lees in bottle — a 40% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir, 20% Meunier assemblage bottled at 12.5% ABV with zero dosage in a 750mL bottle. It is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.
- ABV: 12.5%; Brut Nature (0 g/L dosage)
- Size: 750mL, gift box
- Blend: Seven vintages (2013 base + 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2000, 2004)
- Varieties: 40% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir, 20% Meunier
- House: Moët & Chandon, Épernay, France (founded 1743)
Seven Vintages, One Vision of Haute Oenologie
Created for Moët & Chandon's 280th anniversary, Collection Impériale is Gouez's "ultimate composition to date" — the successor to the discontinued MC111, and the first Brut Nature the house has ever released. Drawing on one of Champagne's largest reserve wine libraries, each vintage component matured differently — stainless steel, oak foudres, bottle on lees — then was layered together into a wine Gouez calls dark and deep, with reductive, grilled characters and salinity alongside the house's signature fruitiness. Only 75,000 bottles were produced. Explore the Moët & Chandon collection, browse more champagne, and shop the full wine cellar at Del Mesa.
Tasting Notes
Bright fruitiness — citrus, white flowers, orchard fruit — over an elegant, mature core of brioche, roasted nuts, and pastry; the palate is seductive and layered, with saline minerality, fine bubbles, and a long, complex finish that keeps unfolding with air. The absence of dosage keeps it taut and precise.
How to Enjoy
Serve well chilled (8–10°C) in a white-wine glass rather than a flute to give the complexity room; let the first glass breathe a few minutes. Pair with seared scallops, aged Comté, or roast poultry.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Brut Nature champagne?
Brut Nature is champagne with zero dosage — no sugar added at disgorgement (0 g/L). It is the driest champagne style, prized for purity and precision; Collection Impériale No. 1 is Moët's first-ever Brut Nature.
Is Collection Impériale a vintage champagne?
No — it is deliberately multi-vintage, an assemblage of seven harvests (2013 base with reserves back to 2000), released as Création No. 1 in a biennial series running to the house's 300th anniversary in 2043.
What replaced MC111?
Collection Impériale effectively replaces Moët's discontinued MC111 prestige cuvée — Gouez describes the new wine as fresher and lighter in the Moët style, where the 2003-based MC111 was heavier.
Order Moët & Chandon Collection Impériale Création No. 1 online from Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA — the new pinnacle of one of Champagne's oldest houses.