No matter how many times you do it… flying fancy is always a special occasion. The indulgence of having your own bedroom or shower on a plane is a novelty that most people typically only dream about in movies. To elevate (pun intended) this experience, some airlines serve the most ridiculous champagnes money can buy in the sky.
(bottle market avg USD prices from Wine-Searcher & Vivino)
#5: Alexandra Rosé Laurent-Perrier 2004 – $349/bottle
This champagne bottle is served on Lufthansa First Class. For a rosé, I remember this champagne surprisingly had a lot of brioche nutty notes to it.
Sipping this on the upper deck of the jumbo A380 felt like a great way to cheers to a memorable Europe trip! This German airline is notoriously hard to book for First Class. Champagne celebrations is a must.
#4: Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame Brut Rosé 2006 – $352/bottle
Business Class is usually not known to serve too much fancy bubbles. EVA Airways is an exception. This airline is known to serve one of the nicest champagnes like the Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame Brut on their long-haul flights.
Not known to many, but a fun fact about EVA Airways is that if you’re lucky enough to board their special Hello Kitty plane, the bubbles get upgraded to the Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame Brut Rosé, which retails even more than Lufthansa First Class champagnes.
Yes… EVA Airways Business beats Lufthansa First in the champagne game.
#3: Dom Pérignon Vintage 2008 – $369/bottle
Praised as one of the best vintages Dom Pérignon has ever produced, the 2008 vintage year is a highly sought out year for Doms. The retail bottle price of the bottle keeps on going up since it’s becoming quite rare to find. Nevertheless if you fly Singapore Airlines Suite, you can sip on it all day all night long!
You can even sip alongside with Krug Grande Cuvée, one of the personal all-time favorites in champagnes for special occasions. In fact, we did a blind-tasting test for fun and my palate actually preferred the Krug over the Dom.
The glitzy Emirates First Class now exclusively serves Dom Pérignon. The airline is known to have its famous sky bar on the jumbo A380. First Class passengers can bring the bottle to the bar and pour themselves limitless Dom.
If you’re lucky, you might even get served the Dom Pérignon Plentitude P2, which retails even more at $600/bottle.
#2: Krug Vintage 2004 – $600/bottle
If you’re flying the brand new ANA “The Suite” First Class, you’re in for a mouthwatering bubbles treat. You not only get one Krug… but two Krugs to sip from. The notable one is their vintage offering, which retails for over half a thousand dollars per bottle. This 2004 vintage year surprised me and it’s the first champagne I like over my favorite Krug Grande Cuvée!
It’s a fantastic champagne to pair with unlimited Japanese delicacies. I sipped on this champagne non-stop ’til landing.
#1: Salon Cuvee ‘S’ Le Mesnil Blanc de Blancs Brut Vintage 2007
After a certain price it just gets stratospherically ridiculous. You can only find this bottle served on the highly esteemed Japan Airlines First Class. This is by far the most expensive champagne we have ever tasted by miles. Guess the price…
The “Blanc de Blanc” taste is not my preferred style of bubbles, but I didn’t mind and drank it anyways since this pretty much tastes like liquid gold. Almost $1500/bottle… this makes Cristal look like mouthwash!
Japan Airlines is known to have the best culinary experiences for First Class passengers in the world. Imagine pairing the $1500 champagne with this Japanese omakase.
Overall, the popping of a fine champagne on a fancy flight is an awesome tradition to experience. For someone that loves wine, this is much appreciated when airlines go all out for their First (and Business) Class passengers. Even with miles, it’s best to maximize the sips on the flights. Just don’t get too excited and go overboard with the bubbles 😉 Cheers
Chai Bear World 