Champagne Bollinger
One of the last independent, family-owned grandes maisons of Champagne, founded in Aÿ in 1829 and famed for its rich, Pinot Noir-driven, oak-fermented style.
About Champagne
Champagne Bollinger was founded in Aÿ on 6 February 1829 as Renaudin-Bollinger & Cie, a partnership between Athanase de Villermont, who held the vineyard estate, Joseph 'Jacques' Bollinger, and Paul Renaudin. It remains one of the few independent Champagne houses still controlled by its founding family, through the holding company Société Jacques Bollinger, though a non-family chairman was first appointed in 2008. Bollinger is known for a powerful, vinous style built on a high proportion of Pinot Noir, partial fermentation in old oak barrels, and extended lees ageing, along with its reserve wines kept in magnum. Its prestige cuvée, La Grande Année, and the rare late-disgorged R.D. are benchmarks of the house. Bollinger has also held a long association as the Champagne of the James Bond films. Reported annual production figures vary across sources.
Flagship wines
- Special Cuvée
- La Grande Année
- R.D. (Récemment Dégorgé)
- Vieilles Vignes Françaises
Editorial notes
Founding year 1829 confirmed on both Wikipedia and the official site (Renaudin-Bollinger & Cie, 6 Feb 1829). Ownership remains within the Bollinger family via Société Jacques Bollinger, but executive leadership has included non-family chairmen since 2008. Production figures conflict between sources (Wikipedia lists 100,000 cases/yr; some trade aggregators cite ~3 million bottles), so the figure is recorded with a hedge.