Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame 1976

Was 1976 a good year in Champagne?

Published vintage charts rate Champagne 1976 5 out of 5 stars and 5 out of 5. Rich, vinous, powerful and soft. Acidity was low at 7.2 g/l and longevity was doubted at the time, but the wines have defied time.

A sunny, hot drought year with record European heat. Early flowering led to a very early harvest opening on 1 September, yielding a large 10,359 kg/ha of super-ripe fruit.

What the critics scored the 1976

One critic score is on record: 94/100, November 2015.

By score the 1976 ranks 7th of 16 (tied with 2006 and 2018) scored Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame vintages, 0.1 points above their review-weighted 93.9.

The 1970s by score: 1976 94.0 and 1979 95.0. The 1976 trails the decade.

A big, rich wine, the 1976 La Grande Dame reflects the personality of this drought vintage in its size and slightly forward personality. Dried flowers, spices and dried stone fruits all meld together in the glass. Although it is pretty much mature, the 1976 retains plenty of explosive energy and overall depth. I don't see the 1976 improving from here, but it might hold for quite some time.

What drinkers rate it

92.0 out of 100 from 1 drinker rating, the most recent in September 2019.

That is 2.0 points below the critics' score, on a single rating.

Drinker rank: 11th of 22 (tied with 1983). The most-rated vintage has 270 ratings.

Drinks at Bo and Mich's (Sydney, Australia): 1976 Grand Dame. This took quite a bit of time in the decanter to open up. It was a bit musty at first, a bit tight, but when it opened up, it had a really nice nose of honey, earth, flowers and dried stone fruit, this ringed with just a bit of roasted almond and brioche - very much like an old white Burg. The palate was still really fresh, with tons of zippy lemony acidity running through matured notes of kumquats and browned apples, again with just a little lick of toffee and caramel. Nice Long finish too, with a kick of stony minerality and a nice nutty accents. Lovely stuff. Mature and idiosyncratic, and a lovely pairing for Jamon.

When to drink the 1976

2015 to 2020: 5 years, opening 39 years after the harvest.

Closed 6 years before our 2026 snapshot, so provenance counts for more than price.

Window length rank, longest first: 10th of 11 (tied with 1998).

The 1976 against its neighbours

The 1976 beside its 2 nearest recorded years.

Here, by score, it places 3rd of 3.