Dom Pérignon
Damien Hirst x Limited Edition 2018
Pale yellow colour with golden hues. The nose is exuberant: tropical fruits, golden kiwi, mango, lifted by a herbaceous touch. The palate has breadth and substance, carried by the ripeness of a record-breaking summer, and finishes on apricot. Serve between 9 and 11 °C. James Suckling awards it…
THE CUVÉES OF MAISON DOM PÉRIGNONThe expert verdict
The structure of this champagne
TASTING NOTES
Pale yellow colour with golden hues. The nose is exuberant: tropical fruits, golden kiwi, mango, lifted by a herbaceous touch. The palate has breadth and substance, carried by the ripeness of a record-breaking summer, and finishes on apricot. Serve between 9 and 11 °C. James Suckling awards it 99/100, Vinous 98: a vintage to open right now or to forget for a long time in the cellar — Antonio Galloni sees it holding until around 2058.
The composition
Terroirs
2018 was a year of sunshine: a spring 25% sunnier than normal, a summer even hotter than 2003, and a harvest that opened on 20 August, unprecedented, with grapes in exceptional health. For his first vintage as cellar master, Vincent Chaperon blends 54% chardonnay and 46% pinot noir: chardonnay mainly from Chouilly, for minerality, pinot noir from Verzenay, north-facing, for freshness, and a touch of Aÿ for spice. In the bottle, it is the same wine as the classic Vintage 2018: only the packaging differs. 12.5% vol.
About this house
Since Karl Lagerfeld in 2005, Dom Pérignon has regularly entrusted its bottles to an artist: Jeff Koons, Lenny Kravitz, Lady Gaga, Jean-Michel Basquiat, then Takashi Murakami in 2025. For the 2026 limited edition, it is Damien Hirst. He revisits his Kaleidoscope series, begun in 2001 — butterfly wings assembled into symmetrical patterns — and repeats the house's crest in miniature within it. "Dom Pérignon's coat of arms is symmetrical: it struck me instantly, like a butterfly," he says.
For the Vintage 2018, Hirst chose a deep blue, the colour of infinity and spirituality, on both the bottle and the case; the black foil collar bears his signature. The first vintage from Vincent Chaperon, cellar master since 2019, in the autumn 2026 limited edition.
The perfect pairing
Aperitif
The house recommends shellfish: the mango and kiwi of the 2018 meet the sweet, grilled notes of prawns.
Starter
A fine fish or shellfish, as suggested by the house: the firm flesh of spiny lobster matches the wine's breadth.
Main course
White poultry with a lightly fruited sauce, a pairing suggested by the house: the apricot on the finish ties it together.
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