Originating from a late September harvest and disgorged at the end of 2023 with a dosage of six grams per liter, Krug’s 1996 Brut Collection presents itself with a golden-yellow hue, offering up a rich bouquet of honeycomb, espresso roast and dried apricot mingled with quince and lemon oil, followed by a medium- to full-bodied palate that is layered and structured around a vintage-typical incisive spine of acidity. Though more civilized than is often the case in this vaunted vintage, it concludes with a saline, lemon-tinged finish. It represents an aromatically mature bottle that will delight lovers of older Champagne and serves its purpose by offering a wine of impeccable provenance; yet even if one might reasonably expect its evolution to have followed a somewhat different trajectory from that of the original release owing to its late disgorgement, there is little reason to defer opening it, as it is already drinking at great generosity. Beginning with the 1976 vintage, Krug deliberately retained a portion of bottles for later release, an approach that became more systematic from the 1985 vintage onward.
By Kristaps Karklins April 2026
