Louis Roederer Cristal

750 ml | Alcohol/Vol: 12%

In 1876, Tsar Alexander II – already a great lover of Louis Roederer wines – asked Louis Roederer to ‘take the exercise still further’ and create a cuvée for his personal use which was unique, in terms of both its style and the bottle. So Louis Roederer offered him an exceptional crystal bottle, holding the fruit of vines selected from the seven great crus on his estate. This cuvée would be offered only in the truly ‘great’ years in which the ripeness of the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes could provide the subtle, precise balance that has now become synonymous with the leading prestige cuvée of Champagne.
2012 was a very warm year, characterised by contrasting rainfall patterns. Following on from an unusually cold and rainy August, a warm, dry September hastened up the ripening process producing distinctive, rich, complex grapes.
This concentrated, dense, ripe, fresh and long Cristal 2006 is unhesitatingly made using full-bodied, smooth Pinots and fresh, elegant mineral Chardonnays. The ripeness of 2006 harvests makes it possible to achieve a distinctive culmination of matter and purity, richness and softness.