The Taittinger Collection Series was conceived in the late 1970s by Claude Taittinger. Long a patron of the arts, with a passionate interest in the modern schools of painting and sculpture, he perceived a natural alliance between the creation of the artist and the art of the great winemaker. Thus, in 1983, Champagne Taittinger introduced the first of its revolutionary Collection Series, uniting art and Champagne in the design of a special bottle with a laser-sealed sheath that visually expresses the artist’s concept of the magic of Champagne. Featuring the work of artists such as the French surrealist André Masson, American pop artist Robert Rauschenberg, and more recently the renowned Senegalese painter Amadou Sow, these exquisite bottles are commissioned well into the 21st century, and will perpetuate Champagne Taittinger’s affiliation with the greatest artists of our time.

The Taittinger Collection Series bottles are released only in great vintages, from a selection of the year's finest cuvées. The wines are made from Chardonnay mainly from the Grands Crus of the Côte des Blancs, and Pinot Noir from Montagne de Reims and Vallée de la Marne vineyards. The fruit is pressed in the vineyards and the first pressing is transported to the winery for fermentation, followed by a second fermentation in the bottle. Aged for five or more years on the lees, the wine acquires complexity and the fine, pinpoint bubbles characteristic of its sparkle.

The first bottle design in the Taittinger Collection Series, for the 1978 vintage, was commissioned from Victor Vasarely (1906–1997), the Hungarian French Op Art (or Optical Art) master whose visual experiments informed the aesthetics of our digital age. Op art was a movement beginning in 1964 that involved mathematically precise optical illusions that often seem to be moving.

Technical Data
GRAPES: 40% Chardonnay, 60% Pinot Noir
APPELLATION: Champagne
ABV: 12.5 %
AGING: 6 years on the lees
Unique Selling Points
  • A classic vintage Champagne produced from both black and white grapes
  • Produced only in exceptional vintage years

About the Grape

Chardonnay
Though it has a distinctive profile, Chardonnay reflects other factors such as soil composition and vinification technique. Chardonnay is a reliable, hardy and prolific vine whose only real vulnerabilities are frost and uneven development of fruit.
Pinot Noir
In France, makes a silky, deceptively powerful wine of elegant, complex aromas and subtle, red fruit flavors, with earthy, floral, mushroom and mineral notes. In California, shows ripe, sweet characters.
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