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  • Country ranking ?

    1 117
  • Producer ranking ?

    86
  • Decanting time

    15min
  • When to drink

    now to 2035
  • Food Pairing

    Verrine of sea-bream and tomato reduction

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Wine Enthusiast - Roger Voss - December 31, 2012

97 Points Cellar Selection "The iconic Roederer Champagne, Cristal’s latest release, brings a perfect balance of richness and age worthiness. It is full of apple flavor, and the mousse is very fine and almost imperceptible. As so often with a beautifully blended wine like this, a few minutes breathing brings out extra complex flavors. It certainly should age over five years and more."

 

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The Story

In 1876 when Tsar Alexander II requested that a special cuvée be created for his court Roederer duly obliged, creating what many regard to be the first prestige cuvée. 

As the political situation in Russia was somewhat unstable, Tsar Alexander feared assassination. He ordered that Champagne bottles be made of clear glass, so that he could see the bubbles and to prevent anyone from hiding a bomb within, as could easily happen with a typical ...

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Wine Information

Champagne Vintage Report by Cristal / The 2005 vintage was a year of marked contrasts between seasons and regions. Following a fairly harsh winter, 2005 had a mild spring with relatively warm temperatures all year long. There was above average sunshine and a slight water deficit, as had been the case throughout the dry cycle of 2005/2004 and 2003. The heat and humidity in July produced larger grapes and bunches, rather unusually for the Champa...

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Vintage 2005

 The 2005 vintage was a year of marked contrasts between seasons and regions. Following a fairly harsh winter, 2005 had a mild spring with relatively warm temperatures all year long. There was above average sunshine and a slight water deficit, as had been the case throughout the dry cycle of 2005/2004 and 2003. The heat and humidity in July produced larger grapes and bunches, rather unusually for the Champagne region, while the cooler weather ...

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Latest Pro-tasting notes

18 tasting notes

Tasting note

color

Light, Straw and Bright

ending

Long, Lingering and Gentle

flavors

Mineral, Steely, Citrus and White fruits

nose

Youthful and Refined

taste

High in Acidity, Concentrated, Well-structured, Youthful, Medium-bodied, Focused, Vivid, Refined and Dry

Verdict

Well made and Sophisticated

Written Notes

CRISTAL 2006 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.  55% Pinot noir – 45% Chardonnay – 20% wines matured in wood (oak barrels) with weekly batonnage – no malolactic fermentation. Cristal is a blend of grand crus from the Reims mountain, the Marne Valley and Côte des Blancs. Matured for 5 years in cellars – 8 months’ resting after disgorging.

An vibrant, flourishing and stylishly creamy bouquet with white flowers, bread and candied fried fruits. The taste begins to open up and it is rich, powerful and has lots of volume. The mousse is very fine and almost imperceptible. A feather light powerhouse, with elegant and harmonious taste with piercing acidity and fine floral notes, clean and long. The wine is becoming enjoyable, but there is no real rush to uncork it.

  • 94p

A beautiful Cristal that is both precise and focused and at the same time, generous on the palate. The fine mousse combined with the layered, nuanced profile makes this one of the best young Cristal vintages I have tasted.

  • 95p
A warm vintage with more rain than 2006. A high chardonnay. "For me it is spice and ginger, that are very much shown in this wine." Lot of rot during the summer yielded aromatic fungus which caused a very selective picking.
  • 90p
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Information

Origin

Reims, Champagne

Vintage Quality

Above Average

Value For Money

Good

Investment potential

Below Average

Fake factory

None

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