Rare
Represented by Christopher Descours
Rare Champagne is of noble origin which dates back to 1785 when Queen Marie Antoinette tasted the House’s first cuvée. Limited-production and unabashedly exclusive, Rare Champagne is a regal rejection of convention and an extraordinary occurrence, with only 11 vintages having been released in the last 4 decades: 1976, 1979, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2006, 2008 and Rare Rosé Millésime 2007 and 2008.
Régis Camus was Cellar Master until 2022, and only produced this iconic champagne in the most exceptional of vintages - vintages with distinctive character and unparalleled longevity. Each Rare Millésime is born from a struggle with nature, for instance Rare Millésime 1976 was created after an exceptional drought and Rare Millésime 1985 was created following a terrible black frost. Defying the usual approach to terroir selection, blending and storage, Régis selected the vineyards according to their expression rather than their rank in the scale of Premiers and Grand Crus. He prefered Pinot Noir grapes from Verzy or Aÿ for their sheer intensity and powerful silky texture and he selected Chardonnay grapes from the Montagne de Reims, a region famous for Pinot Noir. He thought outside the box and used an unconventional blending approach to create an emblematic silky texture, endless freshness and precise minerality. Management of Rare Champagne has since been handed over to Régis’ protégé Emilien Boutillat, who is also the winemaker at sister house Piper-Heidsieck.
One of the top five prestige cuvées of the world, Rare Champagne is internationally renowned for its distinguished style, its unique blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, for its signature exotic notes, and for its infinite freshness and purity. Rare Champagne has been crafted by unique expertise, a sophisticated vision and by the most demanding of standards making it the true exception from the region.
