Over the last three decades, few years were sufficiently out of the ordinary to justify the creation of a rare vintage. To take a basic step back, a vintage means that the grapes that make up the wine were grown during the same single year. So a 2000 vintage means that that wine is made from grapes grown only during the year 2000. A lot of wines are nonvintage, or blends of different years.
During the hot summer of 1976, France was hit by an unprecedented drought. Under such extreme conditions, winemakers wondered if the creation of a vintage worthy of the house of Piper-Heidsieck could be achieved. However, such an extraordinary event could give rise to an extraordinary vintage and confounding all expectations, the vintage created in 1976 was one of extreme purity. It was given the name Rare as a reminder of the events which shaped it. Ever since, special vintages have been produced in those rare years in which nature shows its unpredictable side, each time very different but always exceptional.
All of the wines below were made during rare, or unusual years, when the temperatures were extremely odd. But they’re all in the same family because they are all made of the same rare blend: Chardonnay, completed with Pinot Noir.
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