Récemment Dégorgé (RD) — Late-Disgorged Champagne

The RD concept was born from the habits of Madame Lily Bollinger, who ran the house from 1941 until her death in 1971. She enjoyed inviting guests to the Aÿ cellars after dinner and disgorging old bottles on the spot, sharing them without dosage. Struck by the combination of freshness and complexity these wines displayed, she resolved to make the style available commercially. The decision to begin was made with the 1947 vintage, with a tiny release reaching the American market in 1963. In 1967, Bollinger released three vintages publicly: the 1952 in England, the 1953 in Switzerland and France, and the 1955 in the United States and Italy. The term RD, standing for récemment dégorgé, was trademarked by Bollinger and the house remains its defining practitioner.

• Bollinger's first public RD release came in 1967, at a time when average Champagne dosage in the region was around 20 g/L, making the style's low dosage and extended aging radically innovative
• The RD bottling is always a selected vintage of Bollinger's Grande Année, held back in the cellar for approximately 12–14 years before disgorgement
• Bruno Paillard became the first Champagne house to print disgorgement dates on every back label, beginning in 1983, a transparency initiative initially met with resistance from other producers
• Krug introduced its Collection series in the 1980s, offering late-disgorged older vintages normally around 25 years after harvest, extending the late-disgorgement concept beyond Bollinger

RD Champagnes originate exclusively within the Champagne AOC of northeastern France. The chalk geology of the region is central to both viticulture and production: the ancient crayères beneath Reims, former chalk quarries converted into cellars from the 18th century onward, provide stable temperatures of 10 to 12 degrees Celsius and high humidity year-round. In 2015, the Champagne Hillsides, Houses and Cellars were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site; six houses sit on the Saint-Nicaise Hill in Reims, including Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin, Ruinart, and Taittinger. Bollinger's cellars are in Aÿ on the Montagne de Reims, where the house has maintained its walled Pinot Noir plots for ungrafted vine cultivation. Krug's cellars, historically in Reims, house the wines for extended lees aging required for Clos d'Ambonnay and Krug Vintage.

• The crayères under Saint-Nicaise Hill in Reims form a 57-kilometre network of subterranean galleries maintaining a constant 10 to 12 degrees Celsius, ideal for decades-long lees aging
• Bollinger's Aÿ cellars house wines aged exclusively under natural cork rather than crown cap, a key technical distinction that shapes the oxidative development of R.D.
• Krug purchased the 0.68-hectare Clos d'Ambonnay plot in Ambonnay in 1994 after a seven-year search for a suitable walled Pinot Noir site on the Montagne de Reims
• The Côte des Blancs, southeast of Épernay, provides the chalk-driven Chardonnay sites behind Blanc de Blancs late-disgorged expressions, including Krug Clos du Mesnil from a 1.84-hectare plot in Mesnil-sur-Oger

Late-disgorged Champagnes are made from all three principal varieties: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier. Bollinger R.D. is a Pinot Noir-dominant blend mirroring the Grande Année assemblage, fermented entirely in old oak barrels and aged under cork. Krug Clos d'Ambonnay is a pure Pinot Noir Blanc de Noirs from a single 0.68-hectare walled plot. Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Françaises is a Blanc de Noirs from ungrafted Grand Cru Pinot Noir in Aÿ. Krug Clos du Mesnil represents the Blanc de Blancs extreme, produced from 100% Chardonnay grown in a 1.84-hectare walled vineyard. Dosage in RD-style releases is deliberately low: Bollinger R.D. carries 2–4 g/L, preserving freshness accumulated during extended lees contact.

• Bollinger ferments all its vintage Champagnes in old oak barrels and ages them under natural cork rather than crown cap, contributing to the distinctive oxidative richness of R.D.
• Chardonnay in late-disgorged expressions develops notes of toasted hazelnut, brioche, and mineral salinity after a decade or more on lees
• Pinot Noir-led late-disgorged wines gain savory depth including roasted notes, dried stone fruit, and umami complexity during extended autolysis
• Extended time on lees reduces bottle pressure from the typical 6 atmospheres to approximately 4.5 to 5 atmospheres by the time of disgorgement

Bollinger remains the defining house for the RD style, with the 2007 vintage representing the 26th release of R.D. and aged for 14 years on lees before disgorgement in 2020, carrying a dosage of 3 g/L. Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Françaises, produced from the Clos Saint-Jacques and Clos des Chaudes-Terres plots in Aÿ, yields approximately 2,000 to 3,000 numbered bottles per vintage. Krug Clos d'Ambonnay, from a 0.68-hectare walled Pinot Noir plot in Ambonnay, is aged over 12 years in Krug's cellars and produced only in the finest vintages; releases to date include 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2006, and 2008. Krug also produces a Collection series of late-disgorged older vintages released approximately 25 years after harvest. Jacques Selosse, Billecart-Salmon, and Charles Heidsieck are among the houses that produce notable extended-aged or late-disgorged cuvées.

• Bollinger R.D. 2007, disgorged on 10 July 2020 after 14 years on lees, carries a 3 g/L dosage and was the 26th release of the cuvée
• Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Françaises 2008, produced from ungrafted Grand Cru Pinot Noir in Aÿ, yielded 3,180 numbered bottles
• Krug Clos d'Ambonnay 1995, the inaugural vintage released in 2007, was produced from 11 small oak casks and approximately 250 cases
• Krug Collection releases late-disgorged older vintages normally offered around 25 years after the harvest, including the 1981, 1982, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, and 1995 vintages

All RD Champagnes must comply with Champagne AOC regulations administered by the INAO. The legal minimum aging is 15 months for non-vintage and 36 months for vintage, measured from tirage to disgorgement. RD-style producers extend this by many years: Bollinger R.D. requires at least 8 years, and Krug's single-vineyard cuvées age over 12 years. The term RD itself is a registered Bollinger trademark and cannot be used by other producers. Disgorgement date labeling remains voluntary under French law; Bruno Paillard pioneered the practice in 1983, and an increasing number of houses now include it, though no INAO mandate requires it. Dosage is legally permitted post-disgorgement; RD-style conventions favor minimal additions of 0–6 g/L.

• Champagne AOC requires a minimum of 15 months aging for non-vintage and 36 months for vintage; in practice, top producers hold bottles on lees for 6 to 8 years or more
• The term RD is a registered trademark of Bollinger and cannot legally be used by other Champagne houses to describe their late-disgorged wines
• Disgorgement date labeling is voluntary; Bruno Paillard has printed the date on every bottle since 1983, pioneering transparency that is now spreading across the appellation
• Bollinger bottles all its vintage wines under natural cork rather than crown cap throughout the entire lees-aging period, a technically demanding approach that distinguishes its cellar practice

Late-disgorged Champagnes occupy a unique sensory space between the fresh vibrancy of young Champagne and the evolved complexity of mature wine. Because the yeast protects the wine from oxygen throughout the extended lees period, the autolytic development is profound while acidity remains vivid. After disgorgement, a relatively rapid oxidative evolution begins, making the post-disgorgement timeline as important as the vintage itself. For WSET Diploma and MW candidates, RD-style wines illustrate the principles of autolysis, the distinction between pre- and post-disgorgement evolution, and the interplay between lees contact, dosage, and aging potential. Collectors prize these wines for their longevity and the philosophical commitment they represent: releasing only when the wine, not the market, is ready.

• The two distinct lives of a Champagne, pre-disgorgement lees aging and post-disgorgement oxidative development, are most dramatically illustrated by late-disgorged cuvées
• Serve late-disgorged Champagnes at 9 to 10 degrees Celsius; allow time in the glass to reveal the full range of tertiary autolytic notes including brioche, hazelnut, and savory complexity
• Bollinger R.D. production averages around 30,000 bottles per vintage, representing less than 1 percent of Bollinger's total output and only 10 to 15 percent of Grande Année production
• The Champagne Hillsides, Houses and Cellars, including the crayères essential to extended aging, were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2015