Here this follows to the letter the wishes of director Jean Baptiste Lecaillon, a NV that is not as vinous as, say, Bollinger, but not too light either. So this blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir (40% each) plus Pinot Meunier - based on the 2009 harvest plus other vintages including 2008, 2007, 2005 and 2002 - has a fine freshness. Lecaillon explained no need for malolactic fermentation, as 2009 was already "rich enough". Fine brioche notes, coming from the Chardonnay, and the Pinot Noir lends structure. There is admirable tension and the bubbles are fine, leading to a lifting finish. Disgorged after some three years in bottle (it had been bottled in 2010). Dosage if I recall correctly about 9 grams, but very well integrated. Delicious!

Jean Baptiste Lecaillon, director here, considers himself a wine grower above all else and talks up the concentration and fruitiness of the Cumieres Pinot Noir, in the Marne Valley, part of the UNESCO world heritage site area, as named last year. Indeed, the rich strawberry notes are endearing, and I love the acidity, briskness, perhaps coming from the 2010 vintage, fresher than the 2009 for example, that was largely making up the NV Brut I tried just before. The blend is 70-30 Pinot Noir/Chardonnay. Great stuff!

This is such good news for anyone wondering (still?) about 2008 in Champagne. Low yields at 45 hectoliters per hectare, 25% malolactic fermentation given the high acidity of the vintage, with 9 grams of residual sugar, all balancing things nicely. The result is a bright wine, with complex aromatics and flavors including white flower, ripe pear, toasted brioche, rainfall on a stone, seashell like freshness. Of course there is citrus verve, coming from the acidity of the vintage. The bubbles are very fine and there is a mid palate richness that keeps you coming back for more.

This was tasty and rich, there were fine bubbles but I just was missing a bit the verve from the 2008 vintage tasted just before.

Well, everyone knows the origin of this cuvee, dating back to Tsar Alexander II who asked Louis Roederer back in the later 19th century to make him an "exclusive" wine. The best parcels were selected back then to do so, the best are used today as well: mainly from old vines from grand cru vineyards owned by Roederer and often cultivated according to biodynamic principles and vinified parcel by parcel. 2007 was a "fresh" vintage, no malolactic fermentation however, with 9.5 grams of residual sugar. Aged for six years in bottle before disgorging. An amazing balance of power and precision, this blend of around 58-42 Pinot Noir-Chardonnay, because the flavors and aromatics are so much more vivid than the other cuvees I tried on my visit to Roederer. White stone fruits, vibrant lemon aspects, meadow field freshness, mid palate concentration, ultra fine tickling bubbles, a long finished marked by subtle almond notes. Yes, this is expensive, but I see that it is superior to the others. If you have the cash, go for it.