At Dom Pérignon’s Révélations 2023 in Kyoto this June, chef de cave Vincent Chaperon offers a peek into the champagne-making cycle with a preview of the Assemblage 2022 and a first taste of the Dom Pérignon Rosé Vintage 2009
I am standing on the observation deck of the Shogunzuka Seiryuden Temple perched atop Mount Higashiyama, the exact point where Emperor Kanmu founded the ancient city of Kyoto in the 8th century. As I listen to soothing piano music through earphones while looking at the majestic view of the former capital of Japan in front of me, I slowly take a sip of Dom Pérignon’s Assemblage 2022.
A blend of chardonnay and pinot noir, it is light and delicate with just a hint of fruitiness. “It’s a still wine at the moment,” says chef de cave Vincent Chaperon, as it needs to undergo a second fermentation and mature in the cellar for at least eight years.
This is the second of three acts of a special exhibition, From Matter to Light, one of the highlights of Révélations, the French maison’s annual rendezvous, that discloses Chaperon’s creative process. The event offers the 100 invited guests from all over the world, including Tatler Singapore, a glimpse into the 15‑month creative cycle of Dom Pérignon’s creations, from matter (nature’s raw materials in the making of the champagne) to light (depicting the harmony that takes place with the final blend).
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The first act consists of an art exhibition at the temple, a showcase of drawings and collages of grapes, plots of vineyards and winemakers as well as Chaperon’s own notes and drawings that, in his own words, are all about “the writing, concepts and everything related to the matter which we have been using to create the 2022”.
And, just as we are able to taste the future with the Assemblage 2022, which will be released as a vintage once it reaches its full potential, we also have the opportunity to savour the past with the soon‑to‑launch Dom Pérignon Rosé Vintage 2009. “It’s the embodiment of fruitiness that started 13 years ago in the vineyards of Dom Pérignon,” says Chaperon, elaborating on how the beauty of vintages is that it paints a picture of the weather in the time it was produced.
“Every year, nature gives us a different emotion,” says Chaperon, who vividly recalls the weather in 2009 to be warm, dry and sunny, giving the winemakers “very ripe grapes”. This resulted in a full‑bodied expression with a bouquet dominated by red fruits such as raspberry and cherry, which then expands on the palate with its round, creamy notes.
The making of vintage is closely linked to nature, and for the third act, Chaperon chooses to have a “dialogue between France and Japan” through an eight‑course menu crafted by Yoshihiro Narisawa paired with the Dom Pérignon Rosé Vintage 2009. The celebrated chef with an eponymous two‑Michelin‑starred restaurant in Tokyo showcases his satoyama cuisine—a sustainable approach to gastronomy that highlights indigenous ingredients and hyper seasonality—which takes us from the mountains to the forests, to rivers and lakes.
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