How long can you keep champagne?

Champagne ageing is one of wine's most misunderstood topics. Many people think champagne should be drunk as soon as possible, while others treat it like fine Bordeaux and cellar it for decades. The truth is somewhere in between — and depends entirely on what type of champagne you have.

Non-vintage brut (NV) makes up about 80 % of all champagne production. These wines are blended from multiple years and designed to be enjoyed young — within 3–5 years of purchase. They're at their best when the fruit is fresh, the acidity is bright, and the toasty notes are subtle. Keep one too long and it loses its spark.

Vintage champagne — made only in exceptional years (roughly 3 out of 10) — is a different animal. It ages on its lees for at least 3 years before release (versus 15 months for NV), giving it more depth and complexity. These bottles can age beautifully for 7–15 years, developing honey, dried fruit, toasted hazelnut, and biscuit notes.

Prestige cuvées (Dom Pérignon, Cristal, Comtes de Champagne) are built for serious ageing. In optimal conditions, they can evolve for 20–30 years. Some legendary bottles from the 1980s and 1990s are still stunning today.

But here's the catch: champagne can't age forever. Unlike still wines, it contains dissolved CO₂ that very slowly escapes through the cork over time. Eventually, even the greatest champagne will go flat. There's a window where the increasing complexity perfectly balances the gradually decreasing fizz — and hitting that window is the art of champagne ageing.

Storage conditions are critical: 10–12 °C, total darkness, horizontal position. Champagne stored at room temperature ages 2–3 times faster and loses its bubbles much sooner.