In Good Spirits: Krug x Max Richter

The Rake published an article in the libation column some time ago about the 2008 vintage in Champagne. One of the drinking experts I asked for an opinion, Michele Munro, said, “Let me start by noting that I’ve never met an ’08 I didn’t like. From the straight up Charles Heidsieck vintage to the exalted Cristal and Krug, the ’08s I’ve tasted, or rather drunk, all possess a complex and moreish harmony.” As it turns out, “moreish harmony” was exactly the phrase for it; a description that feels even more apt now that Krug has chosen to interpret the vintage rather literally in bringing that harmony to life through the vision of Cellar Master Julie Cavil, and the musical imagination of composer Max Richter.

Earlier this year at the Roundhouse in London, Krug unveiled "Every Note Counts": a collaboration between Cavil and Richter that explored the character of the 2008 cuvées – not just through taste, but through sound. Richter himself described it as “a beautiful and strange project”; a refreshingly honest and accurate take. Champagne is not the most obvious starting point for orchestral composition, yet the parallels reveal themselves quickly enough once one begins paying attention.

The Roundhouse, with its great circular belly and sense of theatrical anticipation, proved a rather fitting stage for such an experiment. Guests gathered beneath its vast iron ribs while a full orchestra prepared to perform three compositions inspired by the champagnes themselves. Each piece would accompany one of the wines drawn from the remarkable 2008 harvest. Cavil spoke about the process in terms that would feel entirely at home in a concert hall.

“My role in champagne is very much like that of a conductor,” she explained. “Organising plots like that of musicians. We try to understand individual voices and singularities. Could they play in a solo, an ensemble or an orchestra? What is their potential story to tell?”

It is a rather lovely way of describing what Krug does. Each vineyard plot has its own temperament and rhythm; the entire meaning of terroir. It sometimes surprises me that people have trouble grasping the meaning of terroir when you only need to walk across a field to experience the irregularities. There is the odd wet patch, a patch that is stony, a patch by a hedge that avoids the frost… All of this will produce different results that are very much dependent on the weather – a bit similar to my mood, really.

2008, as Cavil noted, was a year that seemed determined to cooperate: “Everything aligned perfectly for us to give birth to that expression of the year.” A vintage that many in Champagne already speak about with a certain reverence.

For Richter, the task was to translate those ideas into his own language. Three compositions emerged from the collaboration, Clarity, Ensemble and Sinfonia. The structure mirrored the wines themselves, moving from singular voice to full orchestral expression. Clos d’Ambonnay appeared as the soloist and Krug 2008 as the ensemble, with Grande Cuvée swelling into the symphony. Despite the entire orchestra getting involved for the Grand Cuvée, Richter was very careful to keep things reined in with precision, only allowing the soloists true expression. It was very much a perfect metaphor for the art of blending these magnificent champagnes. Hearing the result performed live proved unexpectedly emotional for Cavil herself.

“I must confess I was a little bit moved after this, especially after the long journey we had together,” she said. “When we start this journey, we start with sensations. We pay attention to what we feel first.”

It is an appealing thought. Champagne so often lives in a slightly intimidating corner of the wine world, discussed in hushed tones and dissected with the sort of seriousness that can make opening a bottle feel faintly academic. Krug does not sit at the everyday end of the wine rack either, which makes evenings like this feel all the more extraordinary. Yet the spirit of the evening was refreshingly uncomplicated, broken down into three core tenets: taste, listen, enjoy. Cavil perhaps put it best herself: “Max translated this into his own language, music. I hope tonight you experience champagne beyond the glass. Every note counts, in music, in taste and in life.”

In truth, perhaps we do not always need tasting notes after all. Sometimes it is enough to let the music do the talking.

The three compositions by Max Richter inspired by the trio of Krug 2008 champagnes, named "Krug from Soloist to Orchestra in 2008 – Act 2", are available via Krug.com/MaxRichter and musical platforms.