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The recently released Salon Le Mesnil 2013 is the second-best vintage ever (Galloni).
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Only 2008 and 1996 are comparable to the fabulous 2013.
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Salon Le Mesnil 2013 is looks very well priced versus 2008 and 1996.
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Salon Le Mesnil 1996 demonstrates the performance potential, up over +1,150% in 17 years.
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Very little Salon Le Mesnil is produced (maximum production of 60,000 bottles).
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Salon Le Mesnil still sits at the apex of Champagne for long-term collection.
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It is quite rare to be able to buy Salon Le Mesnil at primary market price. This chance probably won’t last.
2013 is the second-best Salon Le Mesnil vintage ever
Champagne Salon was founded by Eugène-Aimé Salon in 1920. Since then only 44 vintages have been produced.
According to leading Champagne critic Antonio Galloni, Salon Le Mesnil 2013 is the second best ever vintage (with 1996), with a score of 99 points.
Galloni could hardly have been more effusive in his praise when giving his review in May 2023:
“The 2013 is the most powerful, dense young Salon I have ever tasted.” (99 pts. Antonio Galloni, May 2023)
Salon Le Mesnil 2013 pricing looks attractive versus 2008 and 1996
Salon Le Mesnil 2013 is one of only three Salon vintages scored 99 points or better by Antonio Galloni. In price terms, it is clearly the most attractive:
Salon Le Mesnil is a proven long-term performer, a function of the huge imbalance between demand and supply for Champagne icon.
The similarly scoring Salon Le Mesnil 1996 (99 points Galloni) was released in June 2006 (according to Liv-ex) at £575 per 6x75cl IB. Today its market price has risen to £7,250 (6x75cl equiv.), a return of +1,160% (a remarkable CAGR of +16.1% for 17 straight years).
Salon Le Mesnil 2013 has excellent long-term potential
Looking at the overall Salon vintage / price curve, Salon 2013 is positioned well in ‘undervalued’ territory:
The combination of a great score (99 points Galloni) and significant undervaluation versus old vintages – coupled with a drinking window stretching out another 20 years at least – offers the prospects of excellent long-term performance for the patient acquiror of Salon Le Mesnil 2013 at its release price (HK$ 26,950 per 3x75cl IB).
Salon Le Mesnil will always be super exclusive
Champagne Salon does not usually reveal its exact vintage production. 2008 was an exception, of course, with its now famous 8,000 (only) magnums initially boxed with several other vintages. But we know that Salon Le Mesnil production is totally inadequate in the face of global demand.
Salon Le Mesnil Cuvée 'S' (to give it its full title) is made from 100% Chardonnay grapes (Blanc de Blancs) from a 1 ha plot at the back of the maison, called “The Salon Garden”, plus 19 other selected plots on the deep chalk soils of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. Annual production cannot exceed 60,000 bottles.
When set against the over 5 million bottles of a typical Dom Pérignon vintage production, the inadequacy of the supply of Salon Le Mesnil is apparent.
Salon Le Mesnil still sits at the apex of the Champagne pyramid
In our view, Champagne Salon remains the pre-eminent ‘collection’ Champagne.
But Salon is not without competition these days. Jacques Selosse has gained dramatically in popularity over the past few years (although some collectors are put off by its oxidative style).
‘Cult’ producers like Boërl & Kroff, Egly-Ouriet, and Uylsse Collin are increasingly sought by collectors who, in the past, might have only considered Salon Le Mesnil. Special cuvées like Bollinger’s Vieilles Vignes Françaises have caught the fine wine zeitgeist for specificity of origin.
But, perhaps helped by the fact that it produces only cuvée, Salon is the name which surfaces again and again at the apex of the region.
Buying Salon Le Mesnil at release price is rare privilege
The Salon Le Mesnil 2008 was literally impossible to buy (on its own). 2008 was bottled in magnum (only) and collectors had to buy a whole case which included other vintages too. The 2012 release was not quite so inaccessible, but even then, primary market allocations were hard to come by.
Perhaps because the overall Champagne market has softened over the past 12 months, Salon Le Mesnil 2013 is still available in limited quantities at release price in Asia.
We strongly urge collectors who are able to see past short-term noise to seize the opportunity to add a case or two of this remarkable wine to their collections, while it is still available at this price.
