A gorgeous wine that's a legend in the making, the 2002 Rare Brut is a blend of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir, with just under 10 grams of dosage. Offering incredible notes of stone fruits, brioche, white flowers, and hints of toasted nuts, this flat out awesome wine is concentrated and opulent, yet still dances on the palate with vibrant acidity and great, great finish. It's going to drink beautifully for another two to three decades. Bravo! This cuvee has only been made in 1976, 1979, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1998, 1999, 2002, and in 2007.

Impeccably balanced and silky, with finely honed acidity shaping the expansive flavors of toasted brioche, crushed blackberry, lemon preserves and honey, revealing hints of Frangelico liqueur and smoked nut. Rich and vivid, offering a lasting finish. Drink now through 2027. From France. — A.N.

The 2002 Rare is starting to really drink well, as the wine is blossoming from behind its lovely structural elements and is really a fine, fine example of the vintage. As I noted in the last feature on Champagne back in Issue 52, the bouquet has gotten toastier as the wine has opened up, with the wine now offering up a fine mélange of apple, white peach, fresh-baked bread, leesy overtones, a lovely base of soil, citrus zest and a touch of white flowers in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and very elegant, with broad shoulders, very elegant mousse, an excellent core, great focus and grip and a very long, complex and beautifully-balanced finish. A superb wine that is just reaching its plateau and will drink beautifully for decades to come.

The pale gold, greenish shimmering 2002 Rare Millesime – 30% Pinot Noir and 70% Chardonnay – offers a very intense and rich, yet fresh nose of exotic fruit aromas of pineapples, mango, kiwi and passion fruit. On the palate, this is a mouthful of luscious Champagne: powerful and intense, but pure and with the complexity of matured wines. The finish is very exotic in its fruit aromas, but also persistently mineral. - Stephan Reinhardt

This is top Champagne from Piper-Heidsieck, offering the delicious airy quality that’s the hallmark of this house, with crisp apple flavor, tangy acidity and the first signs of yeasty, toasty bottle age. Its fruit intensity has transformed into a splendid selection. It’s worth aging for a few more years, though also delicious now.