x
  • Country ranking ?

    698
  • Producer ranking ?

    44
  • Decanting time

    No
  • When to drink

    2020-2035
  • Food Pairing

    Seafood, Salads & Consommes

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The Story

Cristal Rosé was first born a hundred years after the original Cristal, in 1974. It is an intriguing and particular prestige cuvée rosé, as it has the palest colour, yet a contrastingly fleshy, fruity, well-built palate of amazing freshness. Its secret is in the 60 per cent Pinot Noir from two hectares of Roederer’s own old-vine vineyards in Aÿ, Bonotte-Pierre-Robert and La Côte du Moulin, which are now cultivated according to biodynamic principles. It is these ripe, concentrated grapes that give the wine its delicate hue via the saignée, or bleeding method. Then 30 per cent of Côte des Blancs Grand Cru Chardonnay from Le Mesnil sur Oger and Avize is added to give spine and elegance.

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Wine Information

In 1876, a Roederer champagne made for Russia’s Tsar Alexander II became the world’s first luxury cuvée. But with the sudden collapse of the Russian market, the champagne house endured a long struggle on the verge of bankruptcy. Eventually, the family’s shrewd patriarchs managed to turn things around, and today, Roederer is the most solvent of Champagne’s houses; indeed, its future looks Cristal clear.
Roederer is one of the few top champagne houses to remain family-owned. Although the house’s history actually begins in 1776, the company was not called Roederer until 1833, when Louis Roederer inherited the business from his uncle. It was Louis Roederer himself who increased the house’s production volume to its present level, 2.5 million bottles a year. He laid the foundation for exports and, particularly in Russia, enjoyed great success.
Louis Roederer II, his son, receives the credit for developing Cristal. The Russian Tsar was absolutely taken with Roederer champagne: in 1873, some 666,386 bottles, which amounted to approximately 27% of its entire production, were delivered to the court of Alexander II. In order to formalise Roederer’s status as official purveyor to the Imperial Court of Russia, Alexander II commissioned Louis Roederer to produce a very sweet, prestige blend packaged in a real crystal glass bottle. Roederer’s Martine Charlotte Lorson told us:
”The first luxury cuvée was born. From the very beginning, the bottle was clear and flat-bottomed. We later patented the bottle’s design. We have tried to change from the flat-bottomed bottle, but we can’t. Because of and thanks to the patent, Cristal’s label and appearance have stayed the same since 1928!”
And how fortunate that is, because, at least in our opinion, it is quite possibly the most beautiful wine bottle in the world, especially when wrapped in its trademark amber cellophane. Chef de Cave Jean-Baptiste Lecaillon explained the practicalities:
”We started using cellophane in the late 1970s, and there were still bottles with and without cellophane available in the early 1980s. Champagne is a light-sensitive product, so even though the cellophane is beautiful, it also plays a key role in protecting the Cristal from ultraviolet radiation. The amber cellophane also makes the bottle instantly recognisable, thus serving as a brand-building tool.”
The story of Cristal’s genuine crystal bottle is well-known. This is why we were surprised to discover that there is not one true crystal bottle in existence or even a photograph of one.
”Unfortunately, that’s true”, says Lorson, and continues: ”We’ve been searching high and low without any luck. But then again, Cristal was only packaged in crystal bottles for one or two years. The bottle was too weak to withstand the pressure and, because the Tsar’s champagne was so sweet, there was some post-fermentation, and the resulting losses were too much even for the extravagant Tsar.”

The 1970s were a turning point of sorts for Roederer and Cristal. Camille Olry-Roederer’s grandson Jean-Claude Rouzaud joined the house and gradually took the helm. It was a rough start, as TCA, a chemical compound that causes cork taint, infested the Roederer cellars. The young man faced an enormous undertaking. A huge volume of wine had to be taken off the market and disposed of, and the entire production facility had to be sterilised and rebuilt.
This is also the period of Cristal’s emerging popularity, when Roederer worked with an American importer to make Cristal the world’s most in-demand champagne. A key detail of this plan was to double the price. When Rouzaud was named Decanter Man of the Year in 2001, he said in an interview that one of the most significant things he had done at Roederer was to decrease the production of Cristal from one third to under a fifth of Roederer’s overall production. High price and low availability - alongside uncompromised quality - have made Cristal the most coveted champagne in the world.

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Vintage 1990

Three excellent vintages in Champagne were 1988, 1989 and 1990. Initially, many considered 1990 the finest of the trio, but that mantle has since passed to 1988. Some of the 1990 champagnes have evolved more quickly than anticipated, and there can be variation among bottles and producers. Winter and early spring saw warm weather that resulted in an early bud-break, making vines susceptible to the spring frost which duly arrived in April. This led to some uneven ripening and differing levels of maturity owing to the second generation of grapes that appeared after the frost damage and thus ripened later. The summer was generally dry and warm, which produced big, powerful, concentrated and full-flavoured wines.

 

 

 

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Tasting note

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Written Notes

Cristal Rosé '90 can't be anything but wonderful. This is a very young and as-yet discreet Champagne with a peerless balance and finesse. The'89 will be preferable a few years hence, but the time will come when the '90 might pass it by. More apple tones and smoky power recently, but still youthful acidity.

  • 94p
The nose was forceful and bready, stony, long and yeasty as well. It was indubitably outstanding. The palate was huge. One could see the rose qualities more on the palate, which was meaty, long and very rich. This champagne was incredibly tasty, long and rich and showed unbelievably this night
  • 97p
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Information

Origin

Reims, Champagne

Other wines from this producer

Blanc de Blancs

Brut Nature Rosé

Brut Nature Starck

Brut Premier

Carte Blanche Demi-Sec

Carte Blanche Sec

Collection 241

Collection 242

Collection 243

Collection 244

Coteaux Champenois Le Mesnil-sur-Oger Hommage à Camille

Cristal

Cristal Rosé Vinothèque

Cristal Vinothèque

Rosé Brut

Vintage

Vintage Blanc de Blancs

Vintage Rosé

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