Wine Advisor
Pol Roger, Brut Rose 2006
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Stephan Reinhardt
The salmon color of the 2006 Rosé Brut with its pink and orange reflections is already magic and most probably unique. And then comes the nose: less subtle and discreet, but fine and elegant, deep, ripe and fleshy, with raw meat, nougat and licorice flavors intermingled with pure red berry (currant) and cherry aromas. Can you imagine this Rosé is based on the Réserve Brut (60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay)? It is, but before the bottling and second fermentation, approximately 15% of still red wine (Pinot Noir) from the crus of the Montagne de Reims is added. This extraordinary Rosé Champagne is produced only in limited quantities and has been aged seven years before its release. Medium to full-bodied, smooth and fruit intense on the palate, this is another highly elegant and perfectly balanced Pol Roger fizz with a beautiful Pinot perfume in the finish. This is very sensual though complex Champagne that covers your tongue with pink silk. If you don't mind, I'd prefer to call this an excitingly erotic Champagne that I would love to drink on its own, but in any case not alone.
About the Producer
Located in the town of Epernay in the Champagne region, Pol Roger Champagne was founded in 1849 by Pol Roger, a Champagne man from Aix-en-Provence. Over the next 50 years, Pol Roger built the estate into one of the most respected in Champagne and established it as a solid trading cornerstone in the UK. After his death, the estate passed into the hands of his sons Maurice and Georges. The two brothers had their own specialities, Maurice being very open to the public and Georges preferring to stay in the blending room and tasting room, and it was in their hands that the Champagne de la Vignoble continued to flourish. The Champagnes are now made from 55 hectares of vineyards, mostly in or around Epernay. Made from grapes grown in 18 vineyards in the Epernay region, it is a rich, deep, full-bodied wine with the vibrancy and finesse that characterise the best Champagnes. Its Reserve Champagnes can last 30 years or more, longer than the best French red wines. Another of the estate's outstanding Champagnes is the Chardonnay Blanc de Blancs, which is also one of the world's finest white in white Champagnes, made from only Chardonnay from the best vineyards in the Cramant, Le Mesnil, Oger and Avize regions. The Chardonnay Blanc de Blancs is perhaps the estate's sexiest and most glamorous, ready to drink at a young age and with less ageing capacity than the Reserve and the famous Sir Winston Churchill Memorial Champagne. Today, after a century and a half of development, traditional and modern elements can be found in all aspects of the vinification process at Château Paulus. The most direct manifestation of this modernity is in the fermentation plant, with its neat and shiny stainless steel fermenting tanks, hinting at a departure from the days of first fermentation and storage in wooden barrels. It was around the 1930s that the estate decided to move away from barrel fermentation and started using concrete tanks for fermentation and later stainless steel fermenters. This modern equipment allowed for better temperature control during fermentation and clarification, resulting in a cleaner, more consistent and better quality fermented wine. Château Paulot was one of the first champagne houses to make this change.
