Portfolio by Wine

Tasting Notes

Cristal 2007 has a golden hue with slightly orange colors and warm highlights. It has impeccable, fine, regular, and dynamic bubbles. Its classic bouquet is both elegant and discreet. The attack of juicy ripe fruits (Williams pear) and slightly acid red fruits (redcurrants) combined with nuances of hot pastries and Tarte Tatin that have just been taken out of the oven. The wine is ready to reveal its many qualities and, after a few minutes in the glass, reveals notes of white chocolate and hazelnuts produced by the fermentation in wood of some of the wines from the 2007 harvest. This juxtaposition of aromas of ripe, acid, and sweet fruits with the more roasted notes resulting from ageing becomes more pronounced over time and produces a real impression of depth. The attack in the mouth is concentrated and continues with mature fruits. The wine is prolonged by smoky flavors, once again creating the impression of natural depth. The textures are silky, velvety, and almost luscious; they provide perfect overtones to the wine’s freshness in a luscious and sensual ensemble. Powdery and salty nuances stimulate the edges of the tongue, adding a precise and energetic quality. The final phase of the tasting is predominantly an impression of refinement and lightness.

Tasting Notes

Amber hue with green and orange tints. Fine, even and lively sparkle.

The wine is powerful, full yet tight, on entry to the palate. The 2008 is undeniably well-structured in a particular way: the wine’s almost saline concentration has not been created by the sun, but is derived from the dryness of the chalk soil in a particularly cool summer. The result is a smooth, almost liquorous, mouthfeel that coats the palate with a powerful yet soft texture. This gives way to an incredible finish, underpinned by freshness and an impression of absolute purity with a taut and very saline character. Complex and intense bouquet disclosing candied citrus, yellow fruit, Williams pear, pollen and toasted almond. The delicately seductive bouquet shows intensity and well-honed precision.

The Cristal 2008 is deep, intense and masterful. It offers the quintessential reflection of its chalk soils which lend it is velvety texture and delicate tension.

Champagne Louis Roederer Cristal 2009

France Champagne

97 Points, #78 of Top 100 Wines JamesSuckling.com

Tasting Notes

A yellow-gold color with mat and amber tints. Persistent, brilliant, fine and lively bubbles. A subtle bouquet, simultaneously discreet and concentrated. It releases notes of citrus compote and candied apricots and evokes the sweetness of honeysuckle. 

When aerated, notes of vanilla-edged cocoa bean emerge, with toasted hazelnut, hints of liquorice and even a touch of cinnamon. The palate is structured, energetic and sculpted. An initial dense, ripe and silky sensation is amplified by the discovery of a chalky, cherry freshness, a powdered, almost mentholated brightness. The feeling is delicate and ethereal, a succession of delicious and colourful textures perfectly integrated within the lightness and finesse of the wine... an invitation on a journey of discovery. The bright personality of Cristal then appears, simultaneously pure and sharp, in a finish focused once again on chalk, energy and grain.

In this Cristal 2009, there is a genuine force of life, an invitation to pleasure, and at the same time great depth and crystalline purity.

Champagne Louis Roederer Cristal 2012

France Champagne

98 Points, Cellar Selection Wine Enthusiast

Tasting Notes

Golden yellow in color with glistening gold tints. Incredibly dynamic effervescence, so lively you can almost hear it! Rich and complex aromas with notes of zesty and candied fruit (lemon) mingled with pollen (white flowers), roasted hazelnut and Madagascar vanilla. After aeration, the bouquet develops rich notes of fresh pastries and smoky notes from bottle aging. A delicious, concentrated and chalky palate. It shows incredible tension and perfectly honed aromatic precision. The attack is powerful, distinctive and concentrated and reveals a silky, mouth-coating texture, characteristic of the ripe Pinot noirs from the 2012 vintage. The finish is long and remarkably concentrated.

A deep and vinous wine, bright and noble, a true Cristal. It is balanced by a chalky freshness that cuts through and stretches the wine giving it with a slender fuselage and great finesse.

Tasting Notes

A golden hue with soft, glowing highlights. Fine, steady, gentle bubbles. Powerful and complex on the palate, revealing a mixture of yellow fruit (mirabelle plum), juicy, ripe fruits (nectarine), citrus peel (candied orange) and finely-roasted nuts (hazelnut). The nose is simultaneously powdery and sweet, with elegant, chalky notes. Gentle, tactile and full-bodied on the palate. The bubbles create a gentle, vibrating sensation, then the wine becomes soft, dense and juicy. But it is the chalky freshness that quickly sets the tone: the sweetness becomes energetic and intense, giving the wine an elegant yet powerful texture. Fine, textured tannins reveal a poised and vinous dimension to the wine. The finish is savory and saline.

Cristal 2013 is a great classic in which maturity and freshness are harmoniously interwoven ensuring potential for long aging.

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