From 1830 onwards, the House of Louis Roederer acquired extensive knowledge of the Champagne terroirs, began experimenting with plot-by-plot vinification, and mastered the art of delicate effervescence. It is in the heart of the famous Côte des Blancs, specifically in the Grand Cru estate vineyards of "La Côte" in Avize, where Louis Roederer sources its Chardonnay grapes. These grapes attain optimal maturity on the calcareous soils, enabling the House to produce taut, highly aromatic wines with ethereal finesse.

The Blanc de Blancs 2017 cuvée was drawn off at low pressure in order to create a rounder and smoother effervescence. 28% of the wine was vinified in oak casks. Bottle-aged for 5 years and then left to rest for a further 8 months after disgorging to attain the perfect maturity.

Zero malolactic fermentation. The dosage is 7 g/L.

Intense yellow hue with bright, luminous tints. An even flow of creamy, ultra-fine bubbles. Bouquet of harvest (almonds), spring flowers (honeysuckle) and citrus (lemon). The aromas are harmonious and deep, with delicate notes of roasted almonds and roasting. Upon aeration, powdery and chalky nuances emerge, creating a refined reductive nose typical of exceptional Chardonnays. Precise, juicy and deep on entry to the palate, this wine exudes a magnificent concentration of ripe fruit and floral aromas interwoven with a mineral freshness. The mouthfeel is creamy and chalky, almost powdery and drying, imparting a trim, finely honed quality to the palate. Juicy and rounded, the wine is drawn out into a fresh, powdery finish. The palate crescendos like a torrent of white mountain water, with a lingering sweetness from the wood ageing complementing the saline length and structure imparted by the white chalk of Avize.

2017 was a year of living dangerously! An exceptionally warm and dry winter and spring, but the latter brought severe frosts from 17 to 29 April, setting the sorry record for 12 nights of frost. These were followed by a dull, wet and not particularly hot summer, which ended in an almost tropical (hot and humid) spell at the end of August. This sudden change led to a significant increase in grey rot on the ripening Pinot noir and Meunier grapes. The harvest was fast-paced and completed very quickly, demanding very precise and methodical selection work of an unprecedented level even for Roederer.