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Words by: JPS for duncan quinn
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It’s rare that something truly new comes along in the Champagne world which has basically been doing the same thing – extremely well – since those crafty Benedictine Monks first came up with the idea of sparkling wine in the 1500s. But Möet & Chandon’s new ultra-luxury prestige cuvée MCIII aims to be a game-changer. A rare blend of vintage champagnes spanning a full decade, it’s made up of wines aged in three distinct environments: wood, metal and glass. The innovative cuvée is the brainchild of Benoit Gouez, chef de cave of the storied house of Möet, established in 1743 – and, among other honors, official champagne of Formula 1 from 1966–1999, which is why so many of our motor racing heroes from Jackie Stewart to James Hunt have been photographed swilling and / or spraying it. |
| Designed to appeal to both the champagne connoisseur and luxury collector, each of MCIII’s aging environments is represented in the bottle’s design of wood, metal and glass. Eschewing the bling beloved of rap stars – no gold here – it’s sophisticated, modern and obviously expensive without being too obnoxious. Purists may sniff at the non-traditional bottle top – give us the good old cork-and-foil any day – but at $450 a pop it’s either pretty damn good (and no doubt M. Gouez made sure of that) or it’ll be gathering dust on wine shop shelves everywhere. We wouldn’t want that to happen, natch, so DQ hereby volunteers to sample a case and share it with our inner circle of like-minded souls who appreciate the finer things in life, be they sartorial or oenological. All in the name of science, of course… |
