Champagne Louis Roederer was established in 1776 and remains under the ownership of the Rouzaud family to this day. The current CEO is Frédéric Rouzaud, 7th generation of the Roederer family, while Chef de Cave Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon was appointed in 1999 following a decade working in the cellar under Frédéric’s father, Jean-Claude Rouzaud. With over 240 hectares of vineyards located exclusively in Grands and Premiers Crus villages, Champagne Louis Roederer is self-sufficient for approximately 70% of their non-vintage production and 100% of their vintage champagnes, a rare situation in Champagne.
Since 2000, the house has been conducting trials with organic and biodynamic viticulture. Today all the vineyards are farmed according to organic principles, with 50% of them certified organic and 50% of the them farmed biodynamically. The remainder of the vineyards will complete their organic certification over the next two years. This makes Roederer the largest farmers of organics and biodynamics in the Champagne region. The beating heart of Roederer is respect for nature, and thus sustainability, organic and biodynamic farming combined with the recognition of, research into and adaptation to climate change unequivocally improves the quality of the grapes and thus the champagne. In the words of Frédéric Rouzaud ‘We are not artists. At Maison Louis Roederer, the great artist is Nature and each year we are the interpreters of what she wants to give us. Our job is to take part in this choreography between Man and Nature in order to reveal the great Champagne terrorist’.
A selection of wines from each vintage are set aside to be matured in large oak casks in Champagne Louis Roederer’s unique reserve cellar. This wine is aged over a number of years and is highly prized for contributing the mature complexity and consistent character which defines the Champagne Louis Roederer style.
The house makes a range of champagnes starting with the classic non-vintage Brut Premier blended from six different vintages from over 40 individual plots in a cuvée composed of 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay and 20% Meunier. The champagne is made in a style that is elegant and refreshing yet with an impressive depth of flavour.
Carte Blanche Demi-Sec NV is the same blend as the Brut Premier with a slightly higher dosage, making it the ideal accompaniment to afternoon tea or dessert.
It is only in the best years that Champagne Louis Roederer makes its vintage expressions. The Brut Vintage is a blend of 70% Pinot Noir (from the Grand Cru villages of Verzenay and Verzy) and 30% Chardonnay from Chouilly, which is then aged for a minimum of four years. Thanks to the predominance of grapes grown in Verzenay, a Grand Cru village on the Montagne de Reims, the wine is considered to be an expression of the terroir on that dark and dramatic mountain in the middle of the otherwise flat plaine champenoise.
Champagne Louis Roederer also makes a Rosé Vintage using the saignée method. The Pinot Noir undergoes a cold maceration that can last five to eight days extracting all the flavour but no tannin and only a little colour. It is then co-fermented with the Chardonnay must. The Rosé Vintage is a beautiful expression of the Vallée de la Marne where the Pinot Noir from an amphitheatre like vineyard in Cumières benefits from the additional warmth of the light reflected off the Marne river, giving the wine fuller, fruitier flavours. This is blended with 40% Chardonnay from our coolest vineyards in Chouilly.
From the best Grand Cru vineyards in Avize in the Côte des Blancs Champagne Louis Roederer makes a Blanc de Blancs from Chardonnay, which is bottled at a lower pressure (four atmospheres rather than the usual six) which produces smaller bubbles and gives a delicious creamy richness to the champagne which perfectly balances its chalky minerality and vibrant acidity.
The ultimate Cuvée de Prestige, Champagne Louis Roederer’s Cristal was first created at the request of Tsar Alexander II of Russia in 1876, a renowned lover of exquisite craftsmanship, he approached Louis Roederer to make him an exclusive cuvee from their very finest grapes. The iconic bottle design with a flat base and made from clear crystal was designed at his behest to allay his fears of bombs and poison. The distinctive wrapper is there to protect the wine from ultraviolet light and should not be removed until consumption. Cristal is produced in the very finest vintages as a true expression of champagnes unique chalky soils. The blend is usually 55% Pinot Noir and 45% Chardonnay from only the best rated Grand Cru sites of Champagne Louis Roederer’s vineyards. Cristal is released after a minimum six years ageing in the Reims cellars and is the benchmark for luxury champagnes with its intensity, purity and complexity as well as its fantastic ability to develop in the bottle. From the 2012 vintage Cristal has joined Cristal Rosé in its certification as biodynamically farmed.
In 2014, the House launched the first new product in 40 years – since the launch of Cristal Rosé in 1975; the Brut Nature 2006 in partnership with celebrated designer Philippe Starck. The wine is a vintage zero dosage champagne, using grapes from a single biodynamic Premier Cru village grown as a traditional field blend of the three noble varieties in Cumières in the Vallée de la Marne, giving the wine a unique sense of terroir. The wines are co-harvested and co-fermented. In 2019, the Brut Nature Rosé 2012 was launched along side its white counterpart. It is also from the same biodynamic vineyard with some Pinot Noir harvested separately for the cold maceration of the saignée method rosé.
Louis Roederer are delighted to share their champagnes with fellow wine lovers.
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Download PDF PrintAOC Champagne
40% Pinot Noir
40% Chardonnay
20% Pinot Meunier
“From the outset, the texture is full and generous and, in a fairly unexpected way, integrates characteristics of maturity associated with fruitier and more refreshing notes. The wine has a fresh festive finesse, and in the mouth, the wine has structure, richness and length. It is a full, complex wine that is both modern and powerful, whilst remaining a great classic.” – Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon
AOC Champagne
60% Pinot Noir
40% Chardonnay
Golden yellow in colour with glistening gold tints. Incredibly dynamic effervescence, so lively you can almost hear it!
Rich and complex aromas with notes of zesty and candied fruit (lemon) mingled with pollen (white flowers), roasted hazelnut and Madagascar vanilla. After aeration, the bouquet develops rich notes of fresh pastries and smoky notes from bottle ageing.
A delicious, concentrated and chalky palate. It shows incredible tension and perfectly honed aromatic precision. The attack is powerful, distinctive and concentrated and reveals a silky, mouth-coating texture, characteristic of the ripe Pinot noirs from the 2012 vintage.
AOC Champagne
Pinot Noir: 56%
Chardonnay: 44%
Salmon pink hue with golden tints. Consistent and incredibly delicate effervescence.
The bouquet is poised and remarkably elegant. Its subtle, fleeting aromas are so delicately scented, intertwined and complex that they are difficult to describe. They invite you to take your time and lose yourself in this wine, which reveals itself at its own pace, like the master of time it is! The nose exudes delicate, zesty, fresh and precise notes of citrus peel, yuzu, forest fruit, mandarin, raspberry and wild strawberry which evolve towards roasted notes and almonds before giving way to fresh, herbal aromas of verbena and bergamot.
It reveals a lively palate invigorated by an incredibly elegant effervescence and beautifully light bubbles that soften the fruity structure and texture. The overwhelming sensation is one of serenity, the elegance of fresh fruit and the power of the zesty, chalky freshness. The finish is wonderfully long and enticing.
Champagne
55% Pinot Noir
25% Pinot Meunier
20% Chardonnay
Golden yellow hue flecked with green.
Delicate, compact, gentle bubbles.
Intense aromas of juicy, ripe fruit such as vineyard peach and candied lemon combined with toasty notes and hazelnut. The ripeness of the fruit is revealed through the aromas of baked apples, tarte tatin, caramelized spices and a hint of fresh wood and benzoin. The attack is juicy and textural. The gentle, velvety smooth effervescence coats the palate before giving way to an intense, saline freshness. This delicious combination gives the wine a lovely intensity further enhanced by excellent freshness and a pleasant hint of bitterness. This intensity overrides the juicy, rounded body and gives way to a clean, direct and remarkably pure finish.
55% Pinot Noir
25% Pinot Meunier
20% Chardonnay
Orange hue with salmon pink tints.
Patient, even effervescence.
Spicy aromas of Sichuan pepper combined with sappy and floral notes of violet and gentian. Toast and mocha on the nose resulting in an elegant and concentrated bouquet. After aeration, intense fruity notes start to emerge along with concentrated notes of wild raspberries. The palate is fruity. The Pinot noir offers an intense fruitiness and a tight and juicy structure complemented by ripe, almost sweet tannins. The fruit and texture display remarkable depth and are starting to show a typical “Pinot” character.
Champagne, France
63% Pinot Noir
37% Chardonnay
Pink hue with attractive golden tints.
Beautiful beads of soft, even bubbles.
Intense, fresh and fruity bouquet, reminiscent of a tangy red fruit tart (wild strawberry, blueberry), slightly sweet yet underpinned by more concentrated, jammy and citrus notes. The aromatic complexity comes through after a few swirls in the glass giving us a medley of spice, warm cinnamon and peppers.
Fleshy attack dominated by ripe, crunchy, plump red fruit that brings depth and creaminess. The fruity structure is gradually elongated by a chalky, mineral
freshness that creates a lingering sensation of lightness and harmony on the finish.
AOC Champagne
40% Pinot Noir
40% Chardonnay
20% Pinot Meunier
Carte Blanche offers intense floral tones (honey) and notes of ripe sweet fruits (caramelised apple), and warm sugar almonds (frangipane). Dosage adds a rich, creamy texture with great length but without being heavy. The freshness of the wine supports this length bringing a well-balanced and highly persistent wine.
AOC Champagne
70% Pinot Noir
30% Chardonnay
Golden yellow hue with clear, bright tints.
Elegant, dynamic and softly integrated effervescence. The nose is initially subtle and quite restrained. It gradually opens up to reveal a bouquet of orchard fruits such as apples and pears, and evolves towards slightly sweet floral and honeyed notes, before giving way to concentrated citrus aromas and zesty redcurrant fruit.
The attack is rich, concentrated, broad, deep and fruity. It reveals the strength and maturity of the Pinot noir from Verzy through its concentrated body, fresh herbal notes and hint of spice and ginger. The unique Verzy terroir, in which the Pinot noirs are grown, is combined with traditional ageing methods with a high proportion of French oak barrels to create a myriad of smoky, spicy and mineral notes. The palate is structured by a herbal freshness that makes it well suited to gastronomy and results in a sensation bordering on umami.
AOC Champagne
100% Chardonnay
Bright, intense yellow flecked with green.
Soft, even effervescence with long-lingering threads
of bubbles.
Enticing bouquet of pollen, delicately scented spring
flowers, honeysuckle, lily of the valley, lemon tree and
more concentrated, candied lemon. The nose evolves
towards toasty notes, sugared almonds, wheat and
cereals, characteristic of the finest Avize Chardonnays.
The round and fruity attack gives way to a mineral
freshness that is chalky yet also powdery and velvety.
There is a hint of cold, humid chalk and a slightly
drying sensation which enhances the delicate and
well-integrated minerality