2014 Louis Roederer Cristal Brut Champagne
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S$48897
Vintage: 2014
Region: Champagne
Country: France
Winemaker Notes
Concentrated and candied citrus fruit mingle delicately with notes of grain and lightly roasted almonds. Fruity palate with a silky texture, complemented by soft bubbles that are perfectly integrated and deliciously elegant. The purity and perfection of the ripe yellow fruit melt into the intense chalky freshness, typical of Cristal, that is both powdery and saline. Dense, juicy, concentrated and long on the mid-palate, thanks to the spicy and sappy structure resulting from partial ageing in large oak vats. The finish builds to a crescendo, revealing a rich grainy and velvety texture that is wrapped in a long, saline and superbly elegant finish.
About Winery
Cristal was first created by Louis Roederer for Alexander II in 1876.
It’s a family affair.
Cristal remains in the Roederer family to this day. The estate is currently overseen by Frédéric Rouzaud, the seventh generation of the family. This makes Louis Roeder the largest independent and family-owned Champagne house in the world.
Quality over quantity. It’s always vintage.
Cristal is cellar-aged for six years, and then held for another eight months after its dégorgement (the process of removing sediment from the Champagne). The vines used to grow Cristal’s grapes are also old — they must be a minimum of 25 years of age, but some are as old as 60. The older a vine is, the less fruitful it is, which contributes to the rarity of Cristal.
Cristal likes to keep it old school.
In an effort to return to tradition and make the Champagne-making operation as organic as possible, Louis Roederer began farming biodynamically in 2000. Not only did the company halt the usage of pesticides in their vineyards, but it began tilling the land with horses.
Cristal’s commonalities with crystals go beyond its sparkling appearance. Cristal’s bottles used to be made with leaded crystal. “Crystal” in French is “cristal.”
Winemaker Notes
Concentrated and candied citrus fruit mingle delicately with notes of grain and lightly roasted almonds. Fruity palate with a silky texture, complemented by soft bubbles that are perfectly integrated and deliciously elegant. The purity and perfection of the ripe yellow fruit melt into the intense chalky freshness, typical of Cristal, that is both powdery and saline. Dense, juicy, concentrated and long on the mid-palate, thanks to the spicy and sappy structure resulting from partial ageing in large oak vats. The finish builds to a crescendo, revealing a rich grainy and velvety texture that is wrapped in a long, saline and superbly elegant finish.
About Winery
Cristal was first created by Louis Roederer for Alexander II in 1876.
It’s a family affair.
Cristal remains in the Roederer family to this day. The estate is currently overseen by Frédéric Rouzaud, the seventh generation of the family. This makes Louis Roeder the largest independent and family-owned Champagne house in the world.
Quality over quantity. It’s always vintage.
Cristal is cellar-aged for six years, and then held for another eight months after its dégorgement (the process of removing sediment from the Champagne). The vines used to grow Cristal’s grapes are also old — they must be a minimum of 25 years of age, but some are as old as 60. The older a vine is, the less fruitful it is, which contributes to the rarity of Cristal.
Cristal likes to keep it old school.
In an effort to return to tradition and make the Champagne-making operation as organic as possible, Louis Roederer began farming biodynamically in 2000. Not only did the company halt the usage of pesticides in their vineyards, but it began tilling the land with horses.
Cristal’s commonalities with crystals go beyond its sparkling appearance. Cristal’s bottles used to be made with leaded crystal. “Crystal” in French is “cristal.”
Vinious | 98
The 2014 Cristal is another in a long line of gorgeous wines from Roederer and long-time Chef de Caves Jean-Baptiste Lecaillon. A dazzling, vibrant Champagne, the 2014 impresses with a stunning combination of fruit density and linear energy that bring to mind a hypothetic blend of 2012 and 2008. At times, the bubbles feel totally wrapped up in waves of creamy, resonant fruit to the point the mousse is barely perceptible, especially with aeration. The flavors are bright and finely sculpted, leaning very much into the citrus, floral and mineral end of the spectrum. The blend is a classic: 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay taken from 39 of the 45 parcels that comprise the Cristal estate. In most vintages, the Pinot components are roughly equally split between Verzy/Verzenay and Ay, but in 2014, Lecaillon favored Verzy and Verzenay, two north facing villages in the Montagne de Reims (where rain was less problematic) known for conferring saline energy and vibrancy. Rain was much more of an issue in the Vallée de la Marne. Consequently, some of the Pinots in Ay were diluted and did not make it into the blend. Chardonnays were sourced from historic plots in Avize, Mesnil and Cramant.
Wine Advocate | 96
The 2014 Cristal is a terrific effort that transcends the vintage. Bursting from the glass with expressive aromas of ripe citrus fruit, nectarine, white flowers, freshly baked bread and subtle hints of honeycomb, it’s medium to full-bodied, vinous and fleshy, with an exuberant core of fruit that’s girdled by racy acids, resulting in a wine that’s simultaneously chiseled and demonstrative, meaning that early appeal doesn’t come at the expense of the requisite tension for long-term cellaring. Concluding with a long, aromatic and intensely chalky finish, it is a brilliant Champagne that will offer a broad drinking window. This bottle was disgorged in June 2021 with seven grams per liter dosage.
