Krug and Max Richter create music inspired by Champagne
Champagne house Krug has teamed up with award-winning composer Max Richter to pair three of its 2008 cuvées with original pieces of music.
A meeting of craftsmanship and creativity
Krug has unveiled its latest artistic collaboration, Every Note Counts, a project that brings together the worlds of Champagne and music. The initiative sees Krug Cellar Master Julie Cavil work alongside British composer, pianist and producer Max Richter, best known for his work blending classical and electronic soundscapes.
The partnership continues Krug’s long-running exploration of how music can express the personality of Champagne. This latest chapter focuses on the 2008 harvest – a year widely regarded within the house as one of exceptional promise.
Inspired by the 2008 harvest
According to Krug, the 2008 vintage offered ideal growing conditions and produced wines of remarkable balance and structure. Inspired by this, Cavil crafted three distinct expressions that each capture a different aspect of Krug’s style and philosophy.
These wines are presented as Krug from Soloist to Orchestra in 2008 (Act 2) — a trio of cuvées designed to show the journey from individual expression to full harmony:
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- Krug Clos d’Ambonnay 2008, a rare single-vineyard Champagne made from one plot, one grape and one year.
- Krug 2008, a vintage blend reflecting the exceptional nature of that harvest.
- Krug Grande Cuvée 164ème Édition, composed from 127 wines across 11 different years, representing Krug’s most generous expression of Champagne.
Three Champagnes, three compositions
Each of these cuvées has been matched with an original composition by Richter, who was inspired by the sensations and emotions that the wines evoked. Rather than simply writing music to accompany the Champagnes, Richter sought to create pieces that “reflect their individual characters”.
His three works – Clarity, Ensemble, and Sinfonia – mirror the journey of the wines: from the purity of a soloist in Clarity to the balance of Ensemble and the orchestral generosity of Sinfonia.
Richter described the collaboration as “a dialogue between two crafts built on the same principles — attention to detail, balance and emotion”.
Revealed in 2026
The project will culminate in the release of Richter’s three compositions alongside a documentary film exploring the creative process behind Every Note Counts. Both the music and the film will be unveiled in February 2026.
Krug describes the collaboration as “an exploration of shared vision”, uniting the cellars of Reims with Richter’s studio in Oxfordshire to show that “craft is in the detail”.
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