All photos by Denise Truscello

Continued from Part 1…

Shortly after my Salt Room adventure – in the Empathy Suite by Damien Hirst, at Palms Resort Casino – Nicole Ruvo Falcone officially introduced Chef de Cave Vincent Chaperon, who proceeded to explain the finer points of what exactly a Plénitude is, and how that applies to the Second Plénitude (or Plénitude Deuxième) of the Vintage 2002. 

Essentially, Dom Pérignon’s vintage-only Champagnes age in stages, as opposed to linearly; and each of these stages (when the Champagne can be disgorged and released with a different expression) is known as a Plénitude.  The first Plénitude (P1) occurs after a minimum of eight years of being aged on crown seal (it’s Nature, so each vintage is different), at which point it’s taken off its lees, and released.  The second Plénitude (P2) requires an additional eight years of aging (only this time, on cork), allowing it to mature on its lees while being closely monitored.  Upon disgorgement, the wine has achieved peak intensity, making one sip “an encounter with the ultimate Dom Pérignon.  There’s also a third Plénitude (P3) but that’ll keep for another day (especially since they aren’t released until 25-30 years after the harvest).  It should be noted that Dom Pérignon rebranded this late-release program, a few years back, so P2 and P3 are what used to be known as Oenothèque.

After Vincent’s tutorial, Nicole shared that her father, Larry Ruvo (Senior Managing Director, Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, Nevada) was celebrating his 50th year with Southern; at which point Vincent presented Larry with a special bottle of the 2002 P2 that had been engraved “Congratulations Larry Ruvo for 50 Vintage Years” followed by a lyric by Frank Sinatra (Ruvo’s favorite crooner), “The best is yet to come!”

Shortly thereafter, the elder Ruvo looked at me and said, “I don’t know how she does it: She always manages to surprise me;” after which he laughed and said, “But, this one I’m drinking.”

But wait: There’s more!  From the Empathy Suite, the group moved, en masse, to the Kingpin Suite, which had been converted into a Dom Pérignon Rosé Vintage 2006 lounge.  There, guests partook of a tasty buffet and lots of Rosé.  Of course, turnabout being fair play, Camille Ruvo, Larry Ruvo, and Michael Severino had secretly arranged for a birthday cake – in the shape of the Dom Pérignon shield, and in the style of Cipriani’s Vanilla Meringue Cake (Nicole’s favorite) – prepared by the bakery at Palms, to be presented to Nicole, in honor of her recent birthday (a few days, earlier).  Needless to say, she wasn’t expecting it; and was pretty taken aback, in the most wonderful way.

As the evening drew to a close, guests tried their hand bowling a few frames on the en suite bowling lanes (which was all the more amusing when they insisted on holding their DP Rosé in one hand and bowling with the other).

Yet the latest in an ongoing series of delightful Dom Pérignon presentations produced for the Las Vegas market; which leads me to believe that Las Vegas’ casinos, restaurants, and nightclubs (not to mention liquor stores) must sell an awful lot of Dom Pérignon (itself one of the world’s first luxury cuvées – Dom Pérignon Vintage 1921 was released in 1936 – and the tête de cuvée of Moët & Chandon).  Not that anyone I know is complaining.

Dom Pérignon Vintage 2002 Plénitude 2 | Dom Pérignon Rosé Vintage 2006
Palms Casino Resort
Click HERE for info

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