Cristal
About Cristal
Cristal is the flagship cuvée of Maison Louis Roederer and has a history of its own that is more fascinating than that of many entire rival houses. Originally produced in 1876, Cristal was released following two decades of the increasing popularity of Champagne in Russia. Louis Roederer in particular was a favourite amongst the Russian aristocracy, with around a third of their wine being shipped directly to the grand houses and imperial palaces of Moscow and Saint Petersburg.
The period of Alexander II's reign saw sustained political instability, and the Tsar became increasingly fearful of assassination. Determining that the most likely method of his demise would be an explosive hidden behind the dark green glass of his favourite Champagne bottles, preparations were made for the finest wines Louis Roederer could offer to be presented in clear glass bottles.
Over 150 years later and Cristal is still one of, if not the, greatest expression of Champagne to be made. Modern winemaking techniques and a very talented, industrious team at Louis Roederer mean that the recent iterations of this vinous legend are amongst the very greatest ever made. Consistently challenging the title of wine of the vintage each year, Cristal is rightfully the pinnacle of Champagne.
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Vinous (97+)
Long-time Chef de Caves Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon has produced yet another in a string of superb Champagnes with the 2007 Cristal. Rich, powerful and enveloping, the 2007 takes hold of all the senses and never lets up. The aromatics alone are captivating, but then the wine opens on the palate, revealing layer after layer of flavor to match a multi-dimensional, kaleidoscopic personality that will leave Champagne lovers weak at the knees. The 2007 is 58% Chardonnay and 42% Pinot Noir, which is to say a bit more Chardonnay-leaning than is the norm. The 2007 is striking today, but it should also age effortlessly for several decades. It is also without question one of the very finest new releases of the year.Inc. VAT£1,156.01 -
Vinous (97+)
Long-time Chef de Caves Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon has produced yet another in a string of superb Champagnes with the 2007 Cristal. Rich, powerful and enveloping, the 2007 takes hold of all the senses and never lets up. The aromatics alone are captivating, but then the wine opens on the palate, revealing layer after layer of flavor to match a multi-dimensional, kaleidoscopic personality that will leave Champagne lovers weak at the knees. The 2007 is 58% Chardonnay and 42% Pinot Noir, which is to say a bit more Chardonnay-leaning than is the norm. The 2007 is striking today, but it should also age effortlessly for several decades. It is also without question one of the very finest new releases of the year.Inc. VAT£1,167.62 -
Vinous (97+)
Long-time Chef de Caves Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon has produced yet another in a string of superb Champagnes with the 2007 Cristal. Rich, powerful and enveloping, the 2007 takes hold of all the senses and never lets up. The aromatics alone are captivating, but then the wine opens on the palate, revealing layer after layer of flavor to match a multi-dimensional, kaleidoscopic personality that will leave Champagne lovers weak at the knees. The 2007 is 58% Chardonnay and 42% Pinot Noir, which is to say a bit more Chardonnay-leaning than is the norm. The 2007 is striking today, but it should also age effortlessly for several decades. It is also without question one of the very finest new releases of the year.Inc. VAT£1,518.04 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.Inc. VAT£767.21 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.Inc. VAT£8,971.66 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.Inc. VAT£485.60 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.Inc. VAT£1,106.42 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.Inc. VAT£3,616.06 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.Inc. VAT£1,759.24 -
Vinous (97)
The 2007 Cristal Rosé opens with the most captivating, extraordinary bouquet imaginable. Sweet, exquisite and beautifully layered in the glass, the 2007 is intense yet weightless, with extraordinary overall balance and remarkable finesse. Today, the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a wine of pure seduction. There is little doubt the 2007 is a great Cristal Rosé in the making. This is the first vintage in which all of the fruit was farmed according to biodynamic principles. According to winemaker Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, biodynamic farming has brought increased aromatic presence in the fruit and also given the Pinot a bit more intensity than normal, so much so that in 2007 the blend is 55% Pinot Noir and 45% Chardonnay as opposed to the 60/40 split that has been more typical over the years. In 2007, the fruit was picked in August, which is also unusual, but bud break got off to an early start, so the growing season turned out to be longer than the classic 100-day period that is typical from bud-break to harvest. All of that means the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a much more classic-feeling wine that one might have expected.Inc. VAT£1,241.21 -
Vinous (97)
The 2007 Cristal Rosé opens with the most captivating, extraordinary bouquet imaginable. Sweet, exquisite and beautifully layered in the glass, the 2007 is intense yet weightless, with extraordinary overall balance and remarkable finesse. Today, the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a wine of pure seduction. There is little doubt the 2007 is a great Cristal Rosé in the making. This is the first vintage in which all of the fruit was farmed according to biodynamic principles. According to winemaker Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, biodynamic farming has brought increased aromatic presence in the fruit and also given the Pinot a bit more intensity than normal, so much so that in 2007 the blend is 55% Pinot Noir and 45% Chardonnay as opposed to the 60/40 split that has been more typical over the years. In 2007, the fruit was picked in August, which is also unusual, but bud break got off to an early start, so the growing season turned out to be longer than the classic 100-day period that is typical from bud-break to harvest. All of that means the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a much more classic-feeling wine that one might have expected.Inc. VAT£4,440.83 -
Wine Advocate (100)
The finest rendition of this cuvée that Lécaillon has produced to date—and, indeed, one of the finest wines produced by any of Champagne's important houses in the last two or three decades—is the 2008 Cristal Rosé, a brilliant wine that derives from a mere four of the 45 plots that are candidates for inclusion in Cristal: two blocks of Pinot Noir from Aÿ, one of Chardonnay from Mesnil and another from Avize, and I suspect that its origin in the crème de la crème of Roederer's Cristal-worthy holdings has even more to do with the extra dimension it possesses above and beyond its white counterpart than the delicate infusion of Pinot Noir phenolics that give it its delicate pink hue. Unfurling in the glass with aromas of wild strawberries, tangerine, warm pastry and crisp green orchard fruit, the 2008 is medium to full-bodied, deep and concentrated, with a racy but beautifully integrated spine of acidity, a multidimensional core and a searingly chalky and laser-focused finish. Impeccably balanced and harmonious, this superb wine represents one of the qualitative peaks of this great vintage. It will be seven or eight years until it truly starts to blossom, but its benchmark quality is already glaringly apparent.Inc. VAT£31,134.46 -
Wine Advocate (100)
The finest rendition of this cuvée that Lécaillon has produced to date—and, indeed, one of the finest wines produced by any of Champagne's important houses in the last two or three decades—is the 2008 Cristal Rosé, a brilliant wine that derives from a mere four of the 45 plots that are candidates for inclusion in Cristal: two blocks of Pinot Noir from Aÿ, one of Chardonnay from Mesnil and another from Avize, and I suspect that its origin in the crème de la crème of Roederer's Cristal-worthy holdings has even more to do with the extra dimension it possesses above and beyond its white counterpart than the delicate infusion of Pinot Noir phenolics that give it its delicate pink hue. Unfurling in the glass with aromas of wild strawberries, tangerine, warm pastry and crisp green orchard fruit, the 2008 is medium to full-bodied, deep and concentrated, with a racy but beautifully integrated spine of acidity, a multidimensional core and a searingly chalky and laser-focused finish. Impeccably balanced and harmonious, this superb wine represents one of the qualitative peaks of this great vintage. It will be seven or eight years until it truly starts to blossom, but its benchmark quality is already glaringly apparent.Inc. VAT£2,790.02 -
Vinous (97)
The 2007 Cristal Rosé opens with the most captivating, extraordinary bouquet imaginable. Sweet, exquisite and beautifully layered in the glass, the 2007 is intense yet weightless, with extraordinary overall balance and remarkable finesse. Today, the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a wine of pure seduction. There is little doubt the 2007 is a great Cristal Rosé in the making. This is the first vintage in which all of the fruit was farmed according to biodynamic principles. According to winemaker Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, biodynamic farming has brought increased aromatic presence in the fruit and also given the Pinot a bit more intensity than normal, so much so that in 2007 the blend is 55% Pinot Noir and 45% Chardonnay as opposed to the 60/40 split that has been more typical over the years. In 2007, the fruit was picked in August, which is also unusual, but bud break got off to an early start, so the growing season turned out to be longer than the classic 100-day period that is typical from bud-break to harvest. All of that means the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a much more classic-feeling wine that one might have expected.Inc. VAT£1,720.82
-
Vinous (97+)
Long-time Chef de Caves Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon has produced yet another in a string of superb Champagnes with the 2007 Cristal. Rich, powerful and enveloping, the 2007 takes hold of all the senses and never lets up. The aromatics alone are captivating, but then the wine opens on the palate, revealing layer after layer of flavor to match a multi-dimensional, kaleidoscopic personality that will leave Champagne lovers weak at the knees. The 2007 is 58% Chardonnay and 42% Pinot Noir, which is to say a bit more Chardonnay-leaning than is the norm. The 2007 is striking today, but it should also age effortlessly for several decades. It is also without question one of the very finest new releases of the year.In Bond£958.00 -
Vinous (97+)
Long-time Chef de Caves Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon has produced yet another in a string of superb Champagnes with the 2007 Cristal. Rich, powerful and enveloping, the 2007 takes hold of all the senses and never lets up. The aromatics alone are captivating, but then the wine opens on the palate, revealing layer after layer of flavor to match a multi-dimensional, kaleidoscopic personality that will leave Champagne lovers weak at the knees. The 2007 is 58% Chardonnay and 42% Pinot Noir, which is to say a bit more Chardonnay-leaning than is the norm. The 2007 is striking today, but it should also age effortlessly for several decades. It is also without question one of the very finest new releases of the year.In Bond£965.00 -
Vinous (97+)
Long-time Chef de Caves Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon has produced yet another in a string of superb Champagnes with the 2007 Cristal. Rich, powerful and enveloping, the 2007 takes hold of all the senses and never lets up. The aromatics alone are captivating, but then the wine opens on the palate, revealing layer after layer of flavor to match a multi-dimensional, kaleidoscopic personality that will leave Champagne lovers weak at the knees. The 2007 is 58% Chardonnay and 42% Pinot Noir, which is to say a bit more Chardonnay-leaning than is the norm. The 2007 is striking today, but it should also age effortlessly for several decades. It is also without question one of the very finest new releases of the year.In Bond£1,249.00 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.In Bond£634.00 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.In Bond£7,455.00 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.In Bond£402.00 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.In Bond£914.00 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.In Bond£2,992.00 -
Jeb Dunnuck (100)
The 2008 Cristal is a perfect wine, and Champagne simple does not get any better. This incredible wine offers a beautiful perfume of clean, crisp fruits, layers of complexity in its toasted spice and white flowers, and an utterly seamless, yet powerful style on the palate. This is a rich, decadent expression of Cristal yet it’s still crystalline and elegant, with no sensation of weight, and it just glides over the palate. Haut Couture at its finest and this majestic, profound, legendary Cristal can be drunk anytime over the coming 2-3 decades.In Bond£1,450.00 -
Vinous (97)
The 2007 Cristal Rosé opens with the most captivating, extraordinary bouquet imaginable. Sweet, exquisite and beautifully layered in the glass, the 2007 is intense yet weightless, with extraordinary overall balance and remarkable finesse. Today, the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a wine of pure seduction. There is little doubt the 2007 is a great Cristal Rosé in the making. This is the first vintage in which all of the fruit was farmed according to biodynamic principles. According to winemaker Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, biodynamic farming has brought increased aromatic presence in the fruit and also given the Pinot a bit more intensity than normal, so much so that in 2007 the blend is 55% Pinot Noir and 45% Chardonnay as opposed to the 60/40 split that has been more typical over the years. In 2007, the fruit was picked in August, which is also unusual, but bud break got off to an early start, so the growing season turned out to be longer than the classic 100-day period that is typical from bud-break to harvest. All of that means the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a much more classic-feeling wine that one might have expected.In Bond£1,029.00 -
Vinous (97)
The 2007 Cristal Rosé opens with the most captivating, extraordinary bouquet imaginable. Sweet, exquisite and beautifully layered in the glass, the 2007 is intense yet weightless, with extraordinary overall balance and remarkable finesse. Today, the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a wine of pure seduction. There is little doubt the 2007 is a great Cristal Rosé in the making. This is the first vintage in which all of the fruit was farmed according to biodynamic principles. According to winemaker Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, biodynamic farming has brought increased aromatic presence in the fruit and also given the Pinot a bit more intensity than normal, so much so that in 2007 the blend is 55% Pinot Noir and 45% Chardonnay as opposed to the 60/40 split that has been more typical over the years. In 2007, the fruit was picked in August, which is also unusual, but bud break got off to an early start, so the growing season turned out to be longer than the classic 100-day period that is typical from bud-break to harvest. All of that means the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a much more classic-feeling wine that one might have expected.In Bond£3,690.00 -
Wine Advocate (100)
The finest rendition of this cuvée that Lécaillon has produced to date—and, indeed, one of the finest wines produced by any of Champagne's important houses in the last two or three decades—is the 2008 Cristal Rosé, a brilliant wine that derives from a mere four of the 45 plots that are candidates for inclusion in Cristal: two blocks of Pinot Noir from Aÿ, one of Chardonnay from Mesnil and another from Avize, and I suspect that its origin in the crème de la crème of Roederer's Cristal-worthy holdings has even more to do with the extra dimension it possesses above and beyond its white counterpart than the delicate infusion of Pinot Noir phenolics that give it its delicate pink hue. Unfurling in the glass with aromas of wild strawberries, tangerine, warm pastry and crisp green orchard fruit, the 2008 is medium to full-bodied, deep and concentrated, with a racy but beautifully integrated spine of acidity, a multidimensional core and a searingly chalky and laser-focused finish. Impeccably balanced and harmonious, this superb wine represents one of the qualitative peaks of this great vintage. It will be seven or eight years until it truly starts to blossom, but its benchmark quality is already glaringly apparent.In Bond£25,924.00 -
Wine Advocate (100)
The finest rendition of this cuvée that Lécaillon has produced to date—and, indeed, one of the finest wines produced by any of Champagne's important houses in the last two or three decades—is the 2008 Cristal Rosé, a brilliant wine that derives from a mere four of the 45 plots that are candidates for inclusion in Cristal: two blocks of Pinot Noir from Aÿ, one of Chardonnay from Mesnil and another from Avize, and I suspect that its origin in the crème de la crème of Roederer's Cristal-worthy holdings has even more to do with the extra dimension it possesses above and beyond its white counterpart than the delicate infusion of Pinot Noir phenolics that give it its delicate pink hue. Unfurling in the glass with aromas of wild strawberries, tangerine, warm pastry and crisp green orchard fruit, the 2008 is medium to full-bodied, deep and concentrated, with a racy but beautifully integrated spine of acidity, a multidimensional core and a searingly chalky and laser-focused finish. Impeccably balanced and harmonious, this superb wine represents one of the qualitative peaks of this great vintage. It will be seven or eight years until it truly starts to blossom, but its benchmark quality is already glaringly apparent.In Bond£2,317.00 -
Vinous (97)
The 2007 Cristal Rosé opens with the most captivating, extraordinary bouquet imaginable. Sweet, exquisite and beautifully layered in the glass, the 2007 is intense yet weightless, with extraordinary overall balance and remarkable finesse. Today, the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a wine of pure seduction. There is little doubt the 2007 is a great Cristal Rosé in the making. This is the first vintage in which all of the fruit was farmed according to biodynamic principles. According to winemaker Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, biodynamic farming has brought increased aromatic presence in the fruit and also given the Pinot a bit more intensity than normal, so much so that in 2007 the blend is 55% Pinot Noir and 45% Chardonnay as opposed to the 60/40 split that has been more typical over the years. In 2007, the fruit was picked in August, which is also unusual, but bud break got off to an early start, so the growing season turned out to be longer than the classic 100-day period that is typical from bud-break to harvest. All of that means the 2007 Cristal Rosé is a much more classic-feeling wine that one might have expected.In Bond£1,426.00