How cuvée is used in wine
In Champagne, pressing is strictly regulated. The cuvée is the first 2,050 litres of juice extracted from 4,000 kg of grapes — the finest, most delicate juice with the best acidity and fruit. The taille (second pressing) yields a further 500 litres of coarser, more pigmented juice. Prestige cuvées — tête de cuvée — are made exclusively from the cuvée fraction.
A producer's finest Champagne bottling, made from the best base wines, often from single vintages or Grand Cru villages, and aged on lees longer than non-vintage wines. Examples: Dom Pérignon (Moët & Chandon), Krug Grande Cuvée, Cristal (Louis Roederer), Comtes de Champagne (Taittinger).
Outside Champagne, "cuvée" on a label generally means a specific blend or selection — the winemaker has assembled a particular combination of varieties, plots or barrels to produce this wine. It signals intentional composition rather than a single-variety, single-vineyard bottling. Can apply to any country or style.
In Australia, the USA, Chile and elsewhere, "cuvée" is used loosely on labels to suggest quality or a special selection — it has no legal definition outside France. It may mean very little in terms of regulation, though it usually indicates the producer considers it a distinct product from their base range.
Cuvée in Champagne production
In Champagne, the word cuvée is closely regulated and technically specific. When pressing Champagne grapes, the first juice to emerge — the cuvée fraction — is the most delicate and aromatic. As pressing continues, the extracted juice becomes coarser, more coloured and less refined. The regulations strictly limit the amount of juice extracted per tonne of grapes to ensure quality. The finest Champagne houses use only the cuvée fraction for their prestige wines. The bouquet of a prestige cuvée — after years of lees ageing — develops extraordinary complexity: brioche, cream, hazelnut, toast, and floral notes alongside the persistent mousse.
Cuvée as a label term outside Champagne
Beyond Champagne's regulated usage, "cuvée" appears on wine labels worldwide as a signal of intentional selection, special quality or a named blend. A Rhône producer might label their top Grenache blend as "Vieilles Vignes Cuvée" (old vines blend); an Australian winery might call their flagship proprietary blend a "cuvée." In the absence of legal regulation, its meaning varies. As a consumer, treat it as a signal of differentiation — this wine is distinct from the producer's standard range — but assess the actual wine on its merits. See the how to taste wine guide for how to evaluate what is in the glass independently of the label.
Sources: Comité Champagne (pressing regulations), WSET (Champagne curriculum, Level 3), Jancis Robinson MW — Oxford Companion to Wine, Decanter (prestige cuvée guides). Corrections via the contact form.