November 5, 2024
Dom Pérignon P2 2006: 98pts Vinous — Buy Before It Sells
Category: Champagne, Dom Pérignon
"The 2006 Dom Pérignon P2 is magnificent. Rich and soaring in its intensity, the P2 is absolutely stunning. What comes through most is the style of the year more than the style of the P2 series." — Antonio Galloni, Vinous, 98 Points
There are releases that arrive with expectation, and then there are releases that exceed it. The Dom Pérignon P2 2006 falls emphatically into the second category. Nearly two decades in the cellars at Épernay, this Second Plénitude release of one of Champagne's most celebrated modern vintages has emerged as a wine of extraordinary depth, vibrancy, and complexity — one that has drawn some of the highest scores ever awarded to a Dom Pérignon Plénitude. It is, simply, a must for serious Champagne collectors.
The 2006 Vintage
The 2006 growing season in Champagne was defined by alternating warmth and rain — a hot July giving way to a cooler, wet August before September brought back the sunshine needed to bring the harvest to full ripeness. The result was a vintage with a richness and generosity unusual even by Champagne standards, with grapes displaying exceptional sugar concentration alongside the acidity needed for balance and longevity. The blend for the 2006 Dom Pérignon is 55% Pinot Noir and 45% Chardonnay, sourced exclusively from Grand and Premier Cru vineyards.
At first release, the 2006 was already impressive — opulent and expressive, with a warmth and fruit weight that set it apart from more restrained vintages. What the additional years on the lees have done is amplify and refine those qualities: deepening the aromatic profile, adding texture and tension, and producing a wine that feels simultaneously more powerful and more precise than it did in its first Plénitude.
Critical Reception
The scores for the P2 2006 are among the most emphatic ever recorded for a Dom Pérignon release. Antonio Galloni at Vinous awarded 98 points, describing the wine as "magnificent" and "absolutely stunning," noting that the balance of exoticness and freshness is "mind-blowing." The nose delivers tangerine, apricot, mint, white pepper, and passionfruit with remarkable clarity and intensity. Jancis Robinson awarded 19/20, describing a wine with "mature bready nose and wonderful tension on the creamy palate" and calling it a genuine treat.
Decanter's 96 points noted the way the P2 format has transformed the vintage's character — the sheer fruitiness of the 2006 has evolved into "an integrated, honeyed and voluptuous whole," with ground coffee and baklava notes of age held in check by a citric snap and charry smokiness. The Wine Advocate's 95-point assessment highlighted the wine's harmony and tension, its chalky dry extracts, and its long mineral-driven finish.
For more on how the P2 format works and what sets it apart from the standard release, see our full guide to Dom Pérignon P2 and P3.
Tasting Notes
98 Points | Vinous, Antonio Galloni
Rich and soaring in intensity, with tangerine, apricot, mint, white pepper, and passionfruit racing from the glass. The ripeness of the vintage is evident throughout, but all the elements are masterfully balanced. The interplay between exoticism and freshness is the wine's defining quality — it is simultaneously rich and electric.
19/20 Points | Jancis Robinson
A mature, bready nose with wonderful tension on the creamy palate. Long, rich, and impeccably balanced. A wine that demonstrates just how differently the same vintage can express itself across two Plénitudes.
96 Points | Decanter
The fruitiness of orange confit, stone fruit, mango, and roasted citrus has evolved into an integrated, honeyed whole, marked by ground coffee and baklava notes of age, held in check by citric snap and charry smokiness. Joyous, complex, and expansive.
95 Points | Wine Advocate
A complex bouquet of smoke, ripe orchard fruits, mango, exotic fruits, and spice. Rich and expressive on the palate, with structure and tension compared to the initial 2006 release. Perfectly balanced with delicate gastronomic bitterness and chalky dry extracts on the long, mineral-driven finish.
Buy Dom Pérignon P2 2006
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Related Reading
Dom Pérignon P2 and P3 explained | Dom Pérignon vintage guide | Dom Pérignon food pairing | Browse all Champagne
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