Invest In 2002 Krug Clos d'Ambonnay: One Of The Best Single Field Vineyard Champagnes Ever

At RareWine Invest, we are strong advocates of investing in Champagne, which is also reflected in our recommended portfolio composition, where Champagne, as the second largest category, represents as much as 30%.

This is certainly not without reason, and we have high expectations for the future of this category, generally speaking. Champagne has also performed well in the first quarter, where the very great Champagnes from great vintages, doing particularly well, with 1996 Dom Pérignon as the high performer with a price increase of as much as 20%. 

If you believe in the great potential of the Champagne category, and if you also believe that the best investments are to be found among the greatest and finest wines, here is a rare opportunity to invest in one of Champagne's most exclusive gems. Furthermore, this is one of the two best single vineyard Champagnes^* ever: the 2002 Krug Clos d'Ambonnay - and for some reason, the price of these has not moved with the others - yet...

*This only includes Krug Clos d'Ambonnay, Krug Clos du Mesnil and Bollinger VVF, as being the greatest, best, most exclusive, and most precious single vineyard Champagnes

Rare Gem From Possibly The World's Best Champagne House

When it comes to Champagne, there are a few wines that are at the top of their respective categories, but only one producer is at the top across the entire product portfolio - and that is Krug. Krug's non-vintage Champagne, Grande Cuvée, is considered by many to be the world's best non-vintage Champagne. Krug's vintage Champagne, Krug Vintage Brut, is of such high quality that it surpasses both Cristal and Dom Pérignon and is really only in competition with Salon.

Read more about the potential of Krug Vintage Brut here: 2002 Krug Vintage: Exploit great untapped potential

If that was not enough, Krug is also behind two of the greatest, best, and most legendary single vineyard Champagnes in the world, Krug Clos du Mesnil and Krug Clos d'Ambonnay. Here, in the best Burgundian style, sublime wines have been perfected in extremely limited production from two of the finest vineyards in Champagne, namely Clos du Mesnil and Clos d'Ambonnay.

Both Champagnes are produced exclusively in the very best vintages, which in combination with an extremely limited production means that these Champagnes are extremely rare - already at the release. In addition, these are monopole vineyards, which means in all simplicity that only Krug is allowed to produce from them.

With an average score of 98.5 points, the 2002 Clos d'Ambonnay is not only the best Ambonnay to this day but is also one of the two best single vineyard Champagnes ever - only surpassed by the 1996 Clos du Mesnil with an average score of 99.3 points. In other words, Richard Juhlin manifests 2002 Clos d'Ambonnay’s status as an icon and one of the two greatest single vineyard Champagnes ever.

*October 2020

2002 Clos d'Ambonnay: Last Chance - Or Is It?

With more than five years since its release, 2002 Clos d'Ambonnay is becoming an old trotter, and we have previously proclaimed that the last chance for investment is approaching. And nothing could be more accurate. The further we get from release, the smaller the supply becomes and with a total production of just 5,000 bottles, the supply of 2002 Clos d'Ambonnay today is extremely scarce.

This also means that the opportunities for investment in this Champagne are also decreasing, while the older versions are now very difficult to obtain. Under normal Champagne circumstances, there is always a release of a new vintage right in the wake of the previous one, which also means that the previous vintage is sold out. With Clos d'Ambonnay, it remains uncertain both what the next vintage will be and when it will arrive. There are indications that both the 2003, 2004 and 2005 vintages have been skipped, so 2006 could be the next obvious Ambonnay vintage. From here, however, the guess is that Krug is saving its energy and waiting to release a new Clos d'Ambonnay until the 2008 vintage is fully ready and can be released in a true celebration.

At the same time, a long horizon for new releases could lead to an extensive Ambonnay drought, which could make existing bottles even more attractive. Finally, the next release of Clos d'Ambonnay will most likely be released at a record high price, which may contribute to increase the prices of the other vintages.

Nevertheless, one thing is certain: the 2002 Clos d'Ambonnay is coming to an end, and future chances for investment are only getting fewer. Despite this, we are constantly on the search for these bottles, but every time we manage to pick up a bottle that can be sold at an attractive investment price, it is a little Champagne miracle - one that will suddenly stop.

RareWine Invest's Opinion

We have on previous occasions referred to Krugs Clos d'Ambonnay as the Romance-Conti of Champagne -and with good reason. This is simply one of the most exclusive and rare Champagne in the world - it simply does not get more exclusive in Champagne.

This is your opportunity to acquire Clos d'Ambonnay from the 2002 vintage, which is both the best Ambonnay to this day, and also one of the two best single vineyard Champagnes ever.

Moreover, the possibility of continued Ambonnay drought makes investing in this Champagne even more interesting, while a future greater potential upside in a record expensive new release of Clos d'Ambonnay should not be ignored either.

Champagne is also a category with enormous potential, on which we have a strong focus. In addition, it should be remembered that Krug is owned by the LVMH Group, the world's largest luxury company, which undoubtedly has an interest in making Champagne both more expensive, more widely available, and even more desirable in the future.

If you believe in price increases among the best, most exclusive and most rare Champagnes, as we have seen it with Burgundy wines, then the great single vineyard Champagnes are interesting for you, and here, Krugs Clos d'Ambonnay is at the forefront.

US Label

In the old days, French winemakers labeled the wines that were to be sold in the United States with American labels. For wine connoisseurs and collectors, these labels were a sign that the wine had been subjected to an extremely long journey under poor conditions - conditions a good wine does not benefit from, to say the least. If you therefore met a wine with American labels in Europe, then you knew that this had in all probability been twice across the Atlantic - something that is not desirable when you have to pay a lot of money for a sublime wine experience.

Today, the handling and transport of wine is handled in a completely different way where temperature, humidity, light and even vibrations are met to ensure the wine as best as possible. However, the tradition and "fear" today has become so ingrained that wines with American labels or Japanese labels, are still traded for less - more or less for no reason.

Compared to "regular" bottles, this means in practice that investors will be able to buy bottles with a US label a little cheaper and resell again a little cheaper.

In this case, the price difference between an "ordinary" 2002 Clos d'Ambonnay and one with US label is estimated to € 200

When it comes to wines of this caliber where the supply limits on non-existent, it is in fact about what can be obtained.