97

Antonio Galloni

Vinous

The 2008 Vintage is an infant. Tightly wound and vibrant, the 2008 still needs time. Today, bright acids dominate. I wouldn't dream of touching this anytime soon, as the 2008 remains embryonic, although from time to time the barest hints of signature Krug notes peek out from the wine's structure. Vibrant saline notes and sculpted fruit are the signatures of a cold, late-ripening year that produced classically austere Champagnes. Disgorged: Autumn 2019. Krug ID: 419044. 03/2024

96

Richard Juhlin

Richard Juhlin

Oh, how many of us that have longed to taste this wine. The extremely slowly developing wine is internally called Classic Beauty at Krug. That will happen for sure, but not now. I meet an unusually clearly Pinot-driven composition but which in the name of honesty is far too young in the spring of 2021. I hope the six months that remain before it is released on a large scale help this mighty albatross to lift, for structure and freshness is really impressive already. The color is youthful light with deeper shades of copper and bronze with a beautiful flowing stream of lively small bubbles. Subdued faint dark and deep scent of leather from terroir in Aÿ, olives from Bouzy, grapefruit, blood orange, licorice and fennel from Ambonnay, mint, fudge, blackberries and blueberries from Meunier. The champagne is a full-bodied, dense, slightly smoky compact manifestation in the mouth. Aromatically, the champagne is reminiscent of Clos d'Ambonnay, which is extremely impressive. In its entirety, my thoughts are on the slightly slippery, slowly developing style of the vintage wine from 2002. The attack is hard and acidic, the mid palate is a compact unison combination of darkest Valrhona chocolate, sweet licorice and Ethiopian highland coffee. Undeveloped acidic long citrus-saturated and peppery aftertaste with hints of lingonberry, cranberry and ginger. Buy everything you see, but promise me not to open the bottle before 2030 as Krug probably has not released such a slow developing wine since they launched the 1961. Patience is one of the house's words of honor and it has seldom been more justified than here. 06/2024

94

William Kelley

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate

Since I reviewed the Krug 2008 Brut last year, I have drunk the wine on five or six occasions, but I still struggle to understand it. This bottle, tasted at the cellars in Reims, was among the best I've encountered to date; but between the chiseled muscularity of the Clos du Mesnil and the complexity and plenitude of the 164ème Édition of Grande Cuvée, the vintage itself simply seems less compelling and complete. Offering up aromas of citrus oil, freshly baked bread, orange zest, dried white flowers and a discreet hint of buttered toast, it's medium to full-bodied, racy and saline, with a pretty pinpoint mousse and a tightly wound core. Will it unfurl with time to reveal more mid-palate volume and authority, or will it remain a comparatively lean, understated vintage for Krug? As ever, time will tell, and given the house's track record I certainly wouldn't be surprised to see the 2008 take flight with more time on cork. 06/2022

93

Kristaps Karklins

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate

With its rather lean profile, Krug’s 2008 Brut is one of those wines that, to my palate, would be almost unrecognizable in a blind tasting—particularly given that it originates from a vintage evidently more favorable for Champenois viticulture than this release might suggest. Disgorged in 2021 with a dosage of 3.5 grams per liter, the wine opens in the glass with aromas evocative of lemon oil, freshly baked bread and quince mingled with golden apple, faint hints of honeysuckle and nuts. On the palate, it is medium-bodied and defined by a taut architecture and incisive acids that one might wish were more seamlessly cloaked within its core of fruit; yet the fruit informing the wine appears to have been harvested a little on the early side if one’s preferences incline toward the aromatic plenitude and texture that only full maturity can impart. As such, this vintage does not quite possess the textural properties and balance of Krug’s most compelling releases. 04/2026

100

James Suckling

James Suckling

This is very structured and framed with an almost red sensibility. Very phenolic. Full-bodied in a tightly wound ball with so much going on. Very pinot like. Mineral and stone. Shell and stone. Iodine. Vinous. The bubbles just fade into the finish of the wine, which goes on for minutes. Turns to toffee and salted caramel with time in the glass. One for the cellar. Great length. Blend of 53% pinot noir, 25% pinot meunier, 22% chardonnay. Disgorged in beginning of 2020. Drink or hold. 08/2022