96 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

" The 2002 Dom Perignon is at first intensely floral, with perfumed jasmine that dominates the bouquet. With time in the glass the wine gains richness as the flavors turn decidedly riper and almost tropical. Ripe apricots, passion fruit and peaches emerge from this flashy, opulent Dom Perignon. The wine's volume makes it approachable today, but readers in search of more complexity will want to cellar this for at least a few years to allow for some of the baby fat to drop off. Geoffroy describes the vintage as very ripe and adds that some of the Chardonnay showed the ill-effects of the hot growing season in it the somewhat burned, dehydrated fruit that came in that year. This bottle was disgorged in July, 2009. To be released summer 2010. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2032. " (3/ 2010)

96 points Wine & Spirits

" Think of standing above a well at the edge of an apple orchard, the cool feel of the earth deepening the bosky scent of the ripening fruit. This wine may take you there, then leave you to contemplate its complexity: full-on limestone-derived power, juicy nectarine and apricot scents, candied lemon and lasting spice, all of it rounded into a supple shape and a subtle mist of a finish. A great vintage of DP, this will age with grace. " (12/ 2011)

95 points Wine Spectator

" A rich and smoky Champagne in a graceful package, with a beautiful, fine-grained texture to it and layers of flavor-biscuit, candied lemon peel, coffee liqueur, chamomile, pine crystallized honey and wood smoke. This is the haute couture of the Champagne world-all about elegance, texture and attention to detail. Drink now thorugh 2027. " (12/ 2010)

History:

Dom Pérignon (1638-1715) was a monk and cellar master at the Benedictine abbey in Hautvillers. He was the first to blend grapes in such a way as to improve the quality of wines and deal with a number of their imperfections, in 1670. He also introduced corks, which were fastened to bottles with hemp string soaked in oil in order to keep the wines fresh and sparkling, and used thicker glass in order to strengthen the bottles (which were prone to explode at that time). The development of sparkling wines as the main style of production in Champagne occurred progressively in the 19th century, over one century after Dom Pérignon's death.
Dom Pérignon was the first prestige cuvée Champagne introduced, an idea proposed by Englishman Laurence Venn. The first vintage of Dom Pérignon was 1921 and was only released for sale in 1936. The first buyers of Dom Pérignon 1921 were 150 customers of Simon Bros & Co, the company that imported Moët in the United Kingdom, which ordered the first 300 bottles. The wine got immediate attention in the marketplace and 100 boxes were shipped to the United States shortly thereafter. James Buchanan Duke, the billionaire who had founded the American Tobacco Company, ordered 100 bottles for himself. The 17 bottles sold at an auction in Christie's in New York City in June 2004 were part of that order (Doris Duke, the billionaire¿s daughter, had kept them in her cellar). According to Dom Pérignon cellar master Richard Geoffroy, the 1921 vintage had a "distinctive bouquet comprising sandalwood, vanilla and praline".
Until the 1943 vintage, Dom Pérignon was produced from regular vintage Moët & Chandon Champagne that was transferred to the special 18th Century-style bottles after extended cellaring. It was thus effectively an "oenothèque" release of Moët & Chandon Vintage Champagne in a different bottle. From the 1947 vintage, Dom Pérignon has been produced separately from the start.