1987 Champagne

Pure hedonism, this legendary cuveé created for Tsar Alexander II merits its iconic status. Only the finest Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes from Roederer's ten most celebrated Crus are used in this exceptional Champagne. Opulent and complex, it's a veritable cornucopia of sumptuous honey, hazelnut and apple flavours and creamy biscuit notes. A luminous and lyrical Cristal with great ageing potential. Indulge in the ultimate luxury and relish this exquisite Champagne with lobster and caviar or other decadent fare.

It is a rich, powerful and decadently hedonistic wine with soft aromas of cream, brioche and oak. All components herald a glorious palate and a lovely explosion of ripe peaches. This wine has a real weight and a wonderful roundness that shouts about this ripe vintage, and a sensationally long finish with real oomph that seduces and excites. Great now but will keep well until 2019.

Les Comtes is, of course, one of the greatest of all-Chardonnay Champagnes, its fruit sourced from the finest Grand Cru sites of the Côte des Blancs. Blue chip provenance includes the villages of Avize, le Mesnil-sur-Oger and Cramant; the best of the best in other words. Or, doubly appropriate, given its luxuriant gustatory profile; la crème de la crème. 5% of the wine is aged in wood before Spring bottling and the ensuing lengthy somnolence wherein the alchemical process of autolysis weaves its patient magic over a decade.

2000, for all the sound and fury equated with the millennium, is a relatively forward vintage, captured here by rich creamy flavors. Fresh almonds, vanillin and verbena are balanced by a generous biscuity, spicy brioche character and then a firm and discretely indulgent finish. Poise and power are powerfully poised….. this is clearly a very noble count, one which we are advised to try with tuna carpaccio with truffle, which sounds like a very sensible idea…
(Simon Field MW, BBR Buyer)

2000 was a miraculous vintage, enormous storms and hail in the early growing season did not bode well, but the year was saved by one of the hottest Summers in Champagne for fifty years.  As a result the Maison have named this vintage “Tempestuous Indulgence”!  They have compared it to absolute greats like ’47, ’76 and ’82 and believe it will be one of the longest lived vintages they have made.  It comprises of 45% Pinot Noir, 45% Chardonnay and 5% Pinot Meunier.

Initially quite restrained on the nose, the bouquet unfurls to reveal white flowers, stone and citrus fruit and a hint of brioche. He palate has a nervy tension and salinity that is the mark of this great cuvee. Give it a couple of years in the cellar to fill out its broad frame.