Wine Advisor
Louis Roederer, Cristal Rose Brut 2009
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2009 Cristal Rose is simply fabulous. It is shaping up to be an explosive, kaleidoscopic Champagne loaded with sumptuous fruit. The balance and pedigree here are simply mind-bending. In 2009 Cristal Rose is 60% Pinot Noir from Ay and 40% Chardonnay from Mesnil and Avize. Not a bad combination! Approximately 12% of the wine was aged in oak. This will be a fascinating Champagne to follow in the coming years and decades.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2009 Cristal literally shimmers on the palate, showing great depth and purity in its sumptuous layers of fruit. It is a magnificent wine endowed with superb length and exceptional overall balance. The 2009 Cristal is 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay. The percentage of wine aged in oak is 15%, which is down slightly from previous vintages. Note: as indicated by the score in parentheses, this was a pre-release tasting just before the wine was bottled.
Reviewed by: Stephan Reinhardt
The 2009 Cristal is a blend of Grands Crus from the Montagne de Reims, the Vallée de la Marne and the Côte des Blancs (a total of 33-34 parcels of which 40% were farmed biodynamically). Like the 2008 Cristal, the 2009 also blends 60% Pinot Noir with 40% Chardonnay, and 16% of the wine was vinified in oak casks. No malolactic fermentation was done. The 2009 was aged for six years in the cellars and was disgorged in March 2016 with a dosage of eight grams per liter. Released two years ago, the 2009 is just starting another, more "Burgundian" life. Tasted in May 2018, the bouquet was pretty reductive, with flinty and toasty/nutty notes and some potted ginger flavors. Full-bodied, round and rich on the palate, this is a stunningly pure, fresh and salty 2009 that is driven by its chalky terroir and the lingering salinity. Is it really 2009? It is ripe, yes, but driven by the strength of chalk. The finish is pure, clean, fresh, very complex and long yet delicate and endlessly salty. However, two years after disgorgement, the 2009 Cristal is closing down and in a pretty reductive stage right now. Tasted May 2018.
Reviewed by: Stephan Reinhardt
The 2009 Cristal Rosé is a rich and intense expression of Roederer's Cristal. Due to roughly 55% of old-vines Pinot Noir from Aÿ's calcareous clay soils and the sunny vintage, it has super luscious fruit with a velvety, caressing and powdery-chalky texture and great depth that gives it very good potential to age. There is also remarkable purity, finesse and tension in the energetic 2009, which cellar master Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon compares with the 2012 and the enchanting style of Vosne-Romannée. The 2009 Cristal Rosé is like a laser beam on the palate, very straight, sharp and precise yet elegant, intensely fruity and chalky. Very fine wild red fruit flavors feature on the nose, with crystalline freshness on the chalky palate. This is a gorgeous Cristal and another great 2009. In contrast to the 2009 white Cristal, the Rosé is perfect to drink now, perhaps only for a few months before it shuts down to start its real life in a couple of years. Tasted at the domaine in May 2018.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
A wine of sublime delicacy and finesse, the 2009 Cristal Rosé is simply magnificent. The 2009 is surprisingly refined, silky and nuanced for a wine from a warm vintage. The red and floral-infused overtones are quite attractive, but it is the wine's exceptional balance that places it among the best new releases of the year. Over the years, I have had the chance to taste many vintages of Cristal Rosé, a Champagne that needs bottle age to be at its very best. I suspect that will be the case here as well. Don't miss it.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2009 Cristal Rosé is simply fabulous. It is shaping up to be an explosive, kaleidoscopic Champagne loaded with sumptuous fruit. The balance and pedigree here are simply mind-bending. In 2009 Cristal Rosé is 60% Pinot Noir from Aÿ and 40% Chardonnay from Mesnil and Avize. Not a bad combination! Approximately 12% of the wine was aged in oak. This will be a fascinating Champagne to follow in the coming years and decades.
About the Producer
When he inherited the Champagne House in 1833, the aesthete and entrepreneur Louis Roederer took a visionary approach to enriching his vines, aiming to master every stage of the wine’s creation. He forged the wine’s unique style, character, and taste. In the mid-nineteenth century, Louis Roederer acquired some of Champagne’s grand cru vineyards—an approach that contrasted sharply with contemporary practices.. While other Houses bought their grapes, Louis Roederer nurtured his vineyards, familiarized himself with the specific characteristics of each parcel, and methodically acquired the finest land. Louis Roederer’s guiding principle was that all great wine depends on the quality of the soil, a passion for tradition, and an astute vision of the future; the fame and reputation of the House of Louis Roederer was firmly established. His heir, Louis Roederer II was equally enlightened and adopted his father’s conscientious approach to the production of champagne, patrimonial estate management, and instinctive audacity.
