Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame Champagne 2018
La Grande Dame is Veuve Clicquot's prestige cuvée — the house's tribute to Madame Clicquot, “la grande dame de la Champagne” — and the 2018 is the 25th vintage released under the name. Built on Madame Clicquot's conviction that “our black grapes give the finest white wines,” it is a Pinot Noir champagne first and foremost: 90% Pinot Noir drawn from the house's historic Grand Cru holdings, balanced by 10% Chardonnay. Critics rate it among the finest prestige releases of the vintage — 97 points from Decanter and 95 from Wine Spectator. The 750mL bottle is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor for $229.99.
- ABV: 12.5%
- Size: 750mL
- Blend: 90% Pinot Noir, 10% Chardonnay — 100% Grand Cru
- Dosage: Brut, 6 g/L
- Region: Champagne, France
- Vintage: 2018 — the cuvée's 25th vintage
- Cellaring: Drink now through roughly 2033
The Art of Pinot Noir
Veuve Clicquot has made La Grande Dame the purest expression of its Pinot Noir mastery since the cuvée debuted with the 1962 vintage. For 2018, the Pinot Noir comes from eight Grands Crus — Aÿ, Verzenay, Verzy, Ambonnay and Bouzy among them — with a portion vinified in oak barrels for texture, while the Chardonnay comes from four Grands Crus of the Côte des Blancs: Avize, Oger, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and Cramant. The 2018 growing season — a rainy winter followed by a long, hot, sunny summer — delivered fruit of near-perfect ripeness, and cellar master Didier Mariotti bottled a champagne of unusual generosity held in check by a live-wire mineral core. Explore the rest of our Champagne collection for more of the region's great houses.
Tasting Notes
Lemon oil, verbena and orange rind on the attack, opening into grapefruit, candied orange peel and a whisper of coconut cream over a deeply mineral, tightly wound core. The texture is broad and vinous — the signature of its Pinot Noir dominance — yet the finish stays precise, saline and very long. It sits comfortably alongside peers like Dom Pérignon P2 at the top of the prestige shelf.
How to Enjoy
Serve at 8–10°C in a white-wine glass rather than a narrow flute so the aromatics can open. It is a gastronomic champagne — Veuve Clicquot's own “Garden Gastronomy” program pairs La Grande Dame with garden vegetables, herbs and delicate fish — and it will reward cellaring for another decade. For the house's everyday register, the Veuve Clicquot Brut Yellow Label is the non-vintage benchmark, and our sparkling wine and Champagne range covers the celebrations in between.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is La Grande Dame?
It is Veuve Clicquot's vintage prestige cuvée, produced only in exceptional years from Grand Cru vineyards and named for Madame Clicquot herself. The 2018 is the 25th vintage of the cuvée.
What grapes are in La Grande Dame 2018?
90% Pinot Noir and 10% Chardonnay, all Grand Cru — Pinot Noir from the Montagne de Reims villages including Aÿ, Verzenay, Verzy, Ambonnay and Bouzy, Chardonnay from Avize, Oger, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and Cramant on the Côte des Blancs.
How long can I cellar it?
The house rates the 2018's aging potential at 15+ years from the vintage; it is drinking beautifully now and should hold its peak through roughly 2033.
How does it compare to Yellow Label?
Yellow Label is the house's non-vintage blend, made for consistency year after year. La Grande Dame is a single-vintage, Grand Cru-only prestige cuvée at 90% Pinot Noir — rarer, more structured, and built to age.
Order Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame 2018 online from Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA — the house's defining prestige bottle, ready for the cellar or the table.