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Champagne Brut Cristal 2006 150cl

AOC | Champagne | France
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Critics scores
95 Wine Spectator
This elegant version shows beautiful texture and a sense of finesse despite the underlying power of vibrant acidity and smoky minerality. The palate offers a finely layered mesh of blackberry, poached pear, almond pastry, lemon zest and pickled ginger flavors. Drink now through 2028. 20,000 cases imported
93 Robert Parker
Roederer’s 2006 Brut Cristal is striking in its sense of lift and delicacy, serving as one of many instances where those bringing preconceptions of this vintage’s warmth and ripeness of fruit to their experience may be pleasantly surprised. A nose of fresh apple, fennel and cucumber sets up associations with a slaw or salad that are crisply, lusciously and refreshingly redeemed on the palate. A garland of honeysuckle and heliotrope complements subtle suggestions of raw almond and vanilla, while alkaline and iodine notes as well as cooling but pungent green herbal notes add to the soothing yet stimulating finish. This exceptionally poised, refined, and buoyant performance is apt to gain depth with a few years’ bottle age. Owners of vast vineyards (totally some 500 acres) that supply the majority of their fruit, Roederer also presides – by design as well as due to that vastness – over a mind-bending number of micro-vinifications, divided entirely between tanks and foudres, supplemented by a concomitantly deep and diverse range of reserve wines. But for all of the variety that these phenomena entail, scarcely any lots undergo malo-lactic transformation.
Producer
Louis Roederer
Louis Roederer, one of the last great independent Champagne houses, was founded in 1776 and has, unusually for the region, remained in the founding-family for over two centuries. The Reims property owns over 240-hectares of Grand Cru vineyards, planted to the traditional three Champagne grape varieties: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier. The estate uses a plot-by-plot cultivation, this technique guarantees that the specific characteristics of each cru are preserved until the blending process, ensuring traceability. The famous Cristal brand was originally created in 1876 at the request of Alexander II, today, it is a worldwide status symbol that is consistently the most deeply flavored Champagnes available. In addition to the world’s most prestigious cuvée, the house crafts a multi-vintage Brut Premier that ranks far superior when compared to other vintage Champagnes (Louis Roederer Vintage, Vintage Rosé, Blanc de Blancs and Brut Nature). Recently, the family, in partnership with Philippe Starck, has released a Brut Nature in 2006. This special cuvée consists of personalized viticulture and biodynamic cultivation methods that come together to create their signature most free spirited Champagne.