Description
Champagne Renaudin, “Réserve Spéciale” METHUSALEH
A methuselah? What the heck is a methuselah? In Champagne-speak, it’s a SIX-liter format (eight bottles in one), and today’s comes from the legendary 1990 vintage making it a staggering rarity of biblical proportions. A few hours ago, I wrote that unless your mode of transportation requires a helipad, you’re simply not drinking ‘96 Champagne magnums whenever you want. Allow me to expand on that: If you’re able to drink ‘90 methuselahs on the regular, you probably own the building on which the helicopter is landing. That said, I still count tonight’s methuselah as one the greatest Champagne deals of the century, despite its hefty price tag. I’ll explain…
First of all, these behemoth formats are produced in painfully small quantities and many are doomed to a decaying, UV-filled life on a display shelf—not the dark, cold corner of the estate’s cellar. Second, just take a gander at the competition: For example, Bollinger’s entry-level 6-liter bottling is fetching $1400—Renaudin’s is $500 less, and it just so happens to be 30 years in the making from one of the finest Champagne vintages in history. And third, well, let’s talk numbers. In my mind, there are three viable options here: (1) If you’ve got the deep pockets to purchase it, kudos, and celebrate safely; (2) split the cost evenly amongst seven of your Champagne friends, $112 per, and you’ll each get the equivalent of a full bottle; or (3) invite over a couple dozen people when it’s finally safe and charge a by-the-glass pour, which breaks down to a paltry $15 per glass. Whichever you choose, there’s no denying that this is among the greatest Champagne deals of a lifetime! Honestly, tonight may be the only chance you ever have to taste perfect-provenance, disgorged-on-order 1990 Champagne, let alone six liters of it!
[NOTE: Like the ‘96 magnums, these 1990 methuselahs are still resting in Renaudin’s pitch-black cellar in Champagne. Once we submit the order, the wines will be disgorged, dosed, corked, and shipped to our warehouse. Please allow several months for delivery. One bottle secures free shipping to your doorstep. These are ineligible for “Build-a-Case” and should not be combined with any other orders.]
Although it has passed through many hands and been rebuilt, Renaudin upholds the traditions of an ancient noble estate (Château de Conardins) that was first established in 1724, making it one of the oldest enterprises in all of Champagne. Today, they own 24 hectares—mostly Premier Cru Chardonnay—that are spread throughout villages in the Coteaux Sud d’Épernay and the Côte des Blancs. Most of their crop is sold off to the blue-chip houses, but a small portion does remain in-house for proprietary production.
Their 1990 comes entirely from Chardonnay vines and was fermented in a combination of stainless steel and neutral barrels. Malolactic was avoided, but they did continuously stir the lees to add additional texture. Upon bottling in six-liter bottles in the Spring of 1991, the wine has remained unmoved for 30+ years. I must note that seeing a wine in a six-liter format is rare in and of itself, but having it age in said format for its entire life is practically unheard of (since many producers use a number of normal-sized bottles to fill a single massive bottling).
Because these 1990 methuselahs are in such devastatingly limited supply, we were unable to taste one, however, Renaudin’s importer has tried them on three separate occasions and couldn’t stop raving about it: “Savory,” “mellow,” “lively” and “incredibly complex” are a few of his descriptors. A couple of other notes: (1) the larger the format, the slower the maturity since there is more liquid and less oxygen, and (2) any 1990 bottlings that remain on the market today will be showing substantially more oxidative qualities since they have long been disgorged and removed from their lees, which acts as a preservative. And, remember, today’s methuselahs are still maturing on their lees. In my mind, you simply cannot ask for a grander way to end 2020. Assuming it’s safe, I recommend waiting for a life-changing event within the next year or two and savoring this colossal Champagne with a host of people. Happy New Year’s Eve, everyone!!!
