Champagne Louis Roederer Collection

Champagne, France

Vintage:244 (Past)

242 (Past) | 243 (Past) | 245 (Current)

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Champagne Louis Roederer Collection 244
  • JS 94
  • VFTC 93+
  • V 93
  • WS 93
  • WE 93

Reviews

View From the Cellar 93+ Points October 1, 2024, John Gilman

The brand new Louis Roederer “Collection 244” non-vintage Brut is from the outstanding base year of 2019. This was a ripe year (as was also the case with both 2018 and 2020), but one that has produced truly exceptional wines thus far and looks likely to be eventually considered a great vintage year when those bottlings are released down the road. The cépages of the Collection 244 is forty-one percent chardonnay, thirty-three percent pinot noir and twenty-six percent pinot meunier. Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon notes that the slightly higher percentage of pinot meunier in the blend this year was from cooler Montagne de Reims sites to keep the alcohol a bit lower in this hot summer. Fifteen percent of the vins clairs were barrel-fermented, with only thirty-five percent of the still wines having gone through malolactic fermentation for the 244. The wine was disgorged in January of 2022 and finished with a dosage of seven grams per liter. It offers up a beautifully refined nose of apple, white peach, brioche, fresh almond, chalky soil tones, just a whisper of oak, gentle smokiness and a lovely, delicate topnote of meunier floral tones. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and still quite youthful, with a fine spine of acidity, excellent focus and cut, a lovely core of fruit, fine mineral drive and grip, refined mousse and impeccable balance on the long and nascently complex finish. Like all of the Collection Series releases from Louis Roederer, the 244 is built to age long and gracefully and this is still very early days for this excellent wine. I would opt to tuck it away in the cellar for five or six years and really let it come into its own. Fine, fine juice. 2024-2060.

Wine Enthusiast 93 Points December 2023, Roger Voss

“The latest iteration of Roederer’s nonvintage collection, this is tense with a fine aging character. It has richness and great fruit, a fine line of structure at the end. Drink now.”

Vinous Media 93 Points November 2023, Antonio Galloni

“The NV Collection 244 is gorgeous. Bright and focused, with a lovely cut, the 244 is immediately captivating. Dried pear, chamomile, herbs, mint and crushed rocks abound. Based on the 2019 vintage with 36% perpetual reserve wines from vintages 2012-2018, this vibrant, wonderfully crystalline Champagne impresses from beginning to end. Saline notes extend the finish effortlessly. Dosage is 7 grams per liter.”

Wine Spectator 93 Points August 2023, Alison Napjus

“An elegant Champagne, with bright acidity buoying a well-integrated range of ripe pear and white cherry, almond skin, fleur de sel and apple blossom. It's fine and seamless, with a lingering, spiced finish. Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier. Drink now through 2028.”

JamesSuckling.com 94 Points July 2023, Stuart Pigott

“The first impression is as invigorating as a sea breeze. I love the interplay of mirabelle, grapefruit and lychee fruit with minty freshness and waxiness from lees contact. And all this is welded to a beautifully proportioned palate with plenty of structure, the acidity bright and the mousse animating. Very salty finish that pulls you back for more. A cuvee of 41% chardonnay, 33% pinot noir and 26% pinot meunier. Of these, 15% fermented in oak and 85% in stainless steel. The final blend contained 36% reserve perpetual and 10% reserve wines of the 2012 - 2018 vintage from oak. The dosage is 7 g/l. Drink or hold.”

Overview

Driven by a new ambition and freedom, Champagne Louis Roederer is writing the next chapter of its story with the creation of Collection. As the House practices a sustainable viticulture that respects the living environment in order to fully express the qualities of the terroir, it also anticipates future seasons while adapting to the present. As such, an uninhibited and bold approach was the only way Champagne Louis Roederer could take its perpetual quest for excellence to the next level—and create a worthy successor to Brut Premier. 

Each Collection is a change of gear, a new chapter in the Louis Roederer uncompromising pursuit of taste. Always unique, yet decidedly familiar!

Winemaking

Collection is based on a selection of plots located in the heart of the Champagne region that are suited to its identity and where the emphasis is on sustainable growing practices. True to its roots and terroirs, Roederer's historical origins are reflected in the blend:

  • 1/3 "La Rivière" | Vallée de la Marne

  • 1/3 "La Montagne" | Montagne de Reims

  • 1/3 "La Côte" | Côte des Blancs

Collection 244 represents the Champagne House's 244th blend since its foundation. It is based on the finest wines from the 2019 harvest (54%) and complemented by 36% of the Perpetual Reserve (2012-2018) and 10% of oak-aged reserve wines sourced from young Cristal vines (2012-2018). 

35% of the wines undergo malolactic fermentation. 

Tasting Notes

Lovely golden yellow, very champagne-like, hue. Dense and steady flow of extremely fine bubbles. Deep, broad bouquet of ripe fruit (wild peaches, williams pears) combined with citrus (lemons, blood oranges). The iodised and smoky notes, associated with the autolysis and the aging in wood, add aromatic freshness. Then come notes of chalk and a hint of reduction, suggesting that the wine will be concentrated and powerful. The entry to the palate is delicious showing a rich and robust texture. We have a very juicy and concentrated sensation as if we were biting into a ripe fruit. The substance is caressingly soft, coating the palate but is then immediately lightened by the delicate bubbles. The length is created by a lovely backbone of chalky freshness. The wine is both delectably rich, with a slightly roasted character, and super fresh thanks to a salivating finish. The smoky notes then take over to underpin a very flavorsome finish.

Collection 244 marks the return of the texture of the Meunier from the Marne and the Montagne, which adds a lovely richness to the well-structured and saline Pinot noir and Chardonnay grapes!

Harvest Notes

The dry, continental year of 2019 broke all previous temperature records in a succession of scorching heatwaves! Moderate yields and magnificent maturity resulted in wines that were dense and fresh. The harvest took place from September 10th to the 21st. 

Technical Information

Varietals: 41% Chardonnay, 33% Pinot Noir, 26% Meunier

Dosage: 7 g/L