Louis Roederer Champagne Collection 242 [JS94][WA93][W&S93][D92][WS92]
Louis Roederer Champagne Collection 242 [JS94][WA93][W&S93][D92][WS92]
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Producer: Louis Roederer
Region: Champagne, France
Blend: 42% Chardonnay, 36% Pinot Noir, 22% Meunier
Year: Non-Vintage
James Suckling, 94 Points
"Aromas of cooked apple, bread dough and lemon tart follow through to a full body with round, delicious fruit and a rich, flavorful finish. Yet, it remains tight and fine with lovely, compressed bubbles. New energy and freshness. Medium-to full-bodied with layers of fruit and vivid intensity. 42% chardonnay, 36% pinot noir and 22% pinot meunier. 8 grams dosage. Four years on the less. A new-format non-vintage that designates the year of the 242nd harvest, 2017, plus reserve wine of 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016. Drink or hold."
Wine Advocate, 93 Points
"Roederer's Brut Premier was created in the 1980's to prove to consumers that we could deliver consistent quality with a blend that compensated for less than perfectly ripe vintages," explains Jean-Baptiste Lecaillon. "We were blending in pursuit of maturity, of ripeness. The concept behind the Brut Collection is the opposite: we're looking for freshness—and we are embracing singularity, something we're emphasizing by enumerating each year's blend." This project has been in the making since 2012, when Lecaillon set aside 21,000 liters of wine to constitute a perpetual reserve aged in large tanks without malolactic fermentation. Sourcing has evolved too: less must is coming from cooperatives, and only vineyards cultivated without the use of herbicides inform the blend. A dedicated team oversees all this, visiting every grower three times per year. And vinification is parcel by parcel to deliver a maximum of blending components."
Wine & Spirits, 93 Points
"This first release of Roederer’s new Collection is based on the 2017 harvest, the 242nd for the house. This wine replaces Brut Premier. Jean-Bap- tiste Lécaillon bases the Collection blend on a “perpetual reserve,” held in stainless steel since 2012, with wine added in each vintage: half pinot noir, half chardonnay, none of it having undergone malolactic conversion. For the 242 blend, he included some oak- aged reserve wines before selecting individual parcel wines from partner growers, focusng on chardonnay, along with some meunier and pinot noir from the Marne Valley. The final blend is 34 percent perpetual reserve, 10 percent oak-aged reserves, and 56 percent from the 2017 harvest. While Brut Premier was a more spherical wine in the mouth, Collection 242 is finer, with greater length of flavor and more energy. The scent is floral and seashell-mineral, the texture caressing, then tense."
Decanter, 92 Points
"Softly shimmering straw gold, green tints, with a delicate filigree dancing at will around the glass. The nose is gently authoritative; spring flowers garlanding stone fruit, a hint of hawthorn maybe, then lemongrass. The palate has encyclopaedic depth, the intricacies of the Perpetual Reserve weaving their early magic; almond, sloe, gingerbread and apples; the finish has a pleasing twist of bitterness, courtesy of the small percentage of oak-aged reserve wine. Maybe the dosage (8g/L) can come down even further, such is the engaging and subtle complexity harnessed elsewhere?"
Wine Spectator, 92 Points
"A bright, harmonious Champagne, layering well-cut acidity and a chalky underpinning with flavors of white cherry, crunchy pineapple, green almond and beeswax. The finely detailed mousse carries hints of saffron and spring blossom on the lingering finish."
Alcohol: 12%
*Price and availability in store may vary. Vintage date may differ from pictured.
