1945 Champagne Vintage

The 1945 growing season in Champagne was defined by extremes. Early bud break was followed by a catastrophic frost on the night of 29 April that obliterated 75 percent of newly emerging buds in the Montagne de Reims villages of Bouzy, Ambonnay, and Trépail. The vines were slow to flower, though coulure and millerandage were relatively limited. Far more damaging was the worst outbreak of Rotbrenner in Champagne's recorded history, a fungal disease that caused widespread defoliation and further stripped yields. Despite all this, the year's defining characteristic was its extraordinary dryness: 1945 was the driest year since 1873, with just 475 mm of rain recorded in Paris. This arid summer suppressed disease pressure, concentrated sugars, and delivered grapes of exceptional ripeness by early September.

• Spring frost on 29 April wiped out 75 percent of buds in Bouzy, Ambonnay, and Trépail
• Worst recorded outbreak of Rotbrenner (Pseudopezicula tracheiphila) in Champagne history caused additional yield losses
• Driest year since 1873, with only 475 mm of annual rainfall in Paris, suppressing grey mould and concentrating fruit
• Harvest opened 8 September with average potential alcohol of 10.5% and acidity of 6.5 g/l H₂SO₄

Champagne endured four years of German occupation from mid-1940 until late August 1944, when Allied forces liberated the region. The Germans extracted an estimated 86.3 million bottles during the occupation, demanding up to 400,000 bottles per week from the Weinführer, Otto Klaebisch, a former Lanson agent appointed to manage the region's cellars. In response, the Champenois founded the Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (CIVC) on 13 April 1941, under co-chairs Maurice Doyard and Robert-Jean de Vogüé, to present a united front and distribute the burden equitably. Producers concealed their finest stocks behind false cellar walls and in unmarked galleries. The limestone chalk cellars of Épernay and Reims protected much of the aging stock throughout. By the spring of 1945, General Eisenhower had moved his headquarters to Reims, and on 8 May 1945, Germany's unconditional surrender was signed there, triggering celebrations across the region and the world.

• Germans extracted an estimated 86.3 million bottles from Champagne between mid-1940 and mid-1944
• The CIVC was established 13 April 1941 to coordinate producer unity and negotiate with the occupying Weinführer
• Champagne was largely liberated by late August 1944, sparing vineyards the severe physical destruction seen in World War I
• Germany surrendered at Reims on 8 May 1945; the 1945 harvest followed just four months later

Given the extreme scarcity of fruit in 1945, only the most resourceful houses produced significant vintage bottlings. Bollinger 1945 is one of the most documented examples: the wine was sourced from 11 crus, principally Aÿ (22.2%), Bouzy (21%), Verzenay (14%), Cramant (12%), and Cuis (12%), and was disgorged in 1969 during the restoration of Madame Bollinger's personal wine cellar. Tasting notes from that disgorgement describe smoky, honeyed aromatics, remarkable freshness, and notes of orange marmalade and intense apricot. Krug 1945 is among the most sought-after Champagnes from this era, with Wine-Searcher estimates of £3,000 to £4,000 per bottle on the secondary market. Pol Roger, whose records show Winston Churchill later consumed the 1945 vintage, also produced wine in this year. The 1945 vintage is part of the celebrated post-war trio alongside 1947 and 1949, considered outstanding across Bordeaux, Burgundy, and Champagne.

• Bollinger 1945 blended 11 crus including Aÿ, Bouzy, Verzenay, Cramant, and Cuis; disgorged 1969 with a dosage of 11 g/l
• Krug 1945 is estimated at £3,000–£4,000 per bottle on the secondary market, reflecting its extreme rarity
• Winston Churchill was known to drink Pol Roger 1945, progressing through the house's vintages sequentially after exhausting earlier stocks
• 1945, 1947, and 1949 form the great post-war trio of vintages across all major French wine regions

Surviving bottles of 1945 Champagne are described as displaying a bright straw-gold hue with fine, persistent bubbles. The nose offers a refined bouquet of white truffle, humus, and linden infusion alongside dried fruits and gingerbread. On the palate, the wines show a texture that is fresh, generous, and harmonious, with a long finish highlighting dried fruit and honeyed complexity. The base wines were noted to be powerful and concentrated, with relatively high acidity that has underpinned their extraordinary longevity. The Bollinger 1945, tasted from the 1969 disgorgement, showed smoky and honeyed aromas with notes of orange marmalade and intense apricot, and still possessed remarkable freshness. The very low yield of 4,400 kg/ha, combined with the season's exceptional dryness, produced wines of rare extract and concentration.

• Appearance: bright straw-gold with fine, persistent perlage still evident in well-preserved examples
• Nose: white truffle, humus, linden infusion, dried fruit, and gingerbread, typical of great aged Champagne
• Palate: fresh, generous, and harmonious with notes of orange marmalade, apricot, and integrated toastiness
• Structure: relatively high acidity from the cool continental climate has been the key to exceptional longevity

The 1945 Champagne vintage was recognized as exceptional from the outset, with the wines described at the time as powerful and rich in extract, and already expected to be long-lived. Surviving bottles from top houses such as Krug and Bollinger are extremely rare and represent collector's pieces rather than everyday drinking wines. Provenance and storage history are paramount when evaluating any bottle: cork integrity, fill level, and capsule condition must all be assessed carefully. The Bollinger 1945, disgorged in 1969, demonstrated that these wines were still showing remarkable vitality decades after harvest. Any bottle encountered today should be approached with careful authentication, and the services of a reputable auction house or specialist wine merchant are advisable.

• Wines were described as exceptionally long-lived from the moment of release, owing to high extract and balanced acidity
• Bollinger 1945, disgorged in 1969, still showed remarkable freshness, orange marmalade, apricot, and honeyed complexity when tasted blind
• Krug 1945 commands £3,000–£4,000 per bottle on the secondary market; any purchase requires careful provenance verification
• Cork condition, fill level, and storage temperature history are critical authentication factors for any bottle of this age

The 1945 vintage holds a unique place in the history of Champagne. It was the first harvest conducted after the end of five years of German occupation, during which the region was stripped of some 86.3 million bottles of wine. The German surrender was signed in Reims on 8 May 1945, and harvest followed just four months later. The Champenois had demonstrated extraordinary resilience during the occupation, founding the CIVC in 1941 to coordinate collective resistance to Nazi requisitions, concealing their finest stocks behind false walls, and in some cases sheltering resistance members in their chalk cellars. Postwar, the region recovered with remarkable speed: production had stood at just 25 million bottles' worth of value in 1946 but would grow to over 300 million bottles in the modern era. The 1945 vintage, born from hardship and liberation alike, is remembered as both a symbol of victory and a genuinely exceptional Champagne year.

• Germany's surrender was signed in Reims on 8 May 1945; the 1945 harvest followed just four months later on 8 September
• The CIVC, founded 13 April 1941, coordinated Champagne's collective resistance to Nazi plunder and remains the region's governing body today
• Champagne production grew from 25 million bottles' worth in 1946 to over 300 million bottles in the modern era, a remarkable postwar recovery
• The 1945 vintage stands as both a symbol of liberation and one of the genuinely great Champagne years of the twentieth century