First taste of Bollinger PN TX20 reveals a poised, terroir-driven Blanc de Noirs from Tauxières, where Pinot Noir, reserve-wine depth and disciplined oak delivers precision, freshness and quiet confidence.
In 2020 Bollinger became a category 'disruptor' with its inaugural launch of the PN series.
Until this time, Blanc de Noirs occupied a respected but still niche position within the champagne landscape - regarded by sommeliers, collectors and insiders, yet far from mainstream commercial dominance. The style has historically been vinous and gastronomic, often positioned as a counterpoint to the finesse and linearity of Blanc de Blancs.
Finesse, which typically comes from Chardonnay’s inclusion, meant that most Blanc de Noirs offered depth over drinkability - the main reason I’ve personally struggled to find them charming.
Bollinger understood this well and decided to create a fresher style based on a terroir-driven series of Blanc de Noirs using a diversity of villages celebrated for Pinot Noir.
The champagne’s acronym ‘PN TX20’ is Bollinger’s shorthand for a wine focused solely on Pinot Noir (PN), anchored in the village of Tauxières (TX), with 2020 (20) as the base vintage, supported by a significant proportion of reserve wines.
With PN TX20, Bollinger continues to refine its house-led exploration of Pinot Noir that is both archival and forward-looking. Now in its sixth release, the PN series has quietly become a reference point for modern Blanc de Noirs which is fresher, more saline, and with convincing finesse.
Each PN iteration has shifted the spotlight across the Montagne de Reims - from Verzenay to Aÿ - building a cumulative portrait of Pinot Noir through Bollinger’s lens. With TX20, the focus returns to Tauxières, a village with slopes at slightly higher altitude and with chalk-rich soils delivers a taut, mineral expression of the grape.
The village contributes 38% of the blend, complemented by fruit from Aÿ and Avenay. Bollinger’s historic vineyard presence in Tauxières - around 18 hectares held in a largely contiguous block - gives the house an intimate understanding of this terroir. In warm, dry years, the terroir consistently delivers fresher styles of Pinot Noir pairing ripe fruit with a distinctly chalky line. The 2020 growing season was notably sunny and dry, producing grapes of clarity and concentration, but also demanding restraint in the cellar.
That restraint is exercised through Bollinger’s signature approach; reserve wines and oak. PN TX20 draws 52% from reserve wines spanning three standout vintages - 2019, 2012 and 2008 - each selected for structural balance rather than sheer power. 25% of these reserves were stored in magnum, under natural cork, for at least seven years, to retain freshness. Reserves also temper the solar nature of 2020, adding depth, texture and calm authority to the blend.
Fermentation in small, seasoned oak barrels remains central to the PN philosophy. It is structural - softening phenolics, shaping the wine’s vinous profile and reinforcing longevity without obscuring site expression.
The nose is precise and inviting; soft apple, ripe apricot and peach skin, layered with pastry notes, fruit confection and a gentle savoury undertone. On the palate, TX20 is supple yet focused. Oak brings polish to the phenolic frame of the year, while the mature reserve wines broaden the mid-palate. Compared to earlier PN editions, this is a more lifted and vibrant expression, less muscular, with a saline and fruit-driven finish lifted by an 8 g/L dosage.
PN TX20 reinforces Bollinger’s long-held authority in Blanc de Noirs, which started with its landmark release of Vieilles Vignes Françaises in 1969; a wine that reframed expectations, proving that Blanc de Noirs could be not only serious, but profoundly seductive.
The PN incarnation is proof that precision, not excess, defines the future of this style.
RRP is $230 AUD and is available in wine stores nationally, including David Jones.
