Roederer “Collection 242” Replaces Brut Premier
In the next few months, Champagne Louis Roederer will be replacing their Brut Premier, which has been pleasing palates since 1986, with the Collection 242, a numbered multi-vintage blend. This new cuvée is one of the most revolutionary moves—if not the most revolutionary move that I have seen from a grand marque producer in my 21-year career as Champagne Buyer here at K&L, and the wine is a big upgrade from the already excellent Brut Premier. This week I tasted a preview bottle, and I can’t wait for all my Champagne-loving customers and friends to try it when it arrives.
The Louis Roederer Brut Collection 242 is numbered as a series, just like Krug Grande Cuvée and Laurent Perrier Grand Siècle. By adding the collection number to the founding date of the house, 1776, you get the year that it was bottled. If you subtract one from that number, you get the base vintage; for this first release it is 2017. The wine is composed of 56% of 2017, with 34% coming from a solera-like perpetual reserve that is even parts of the five previous vintages: 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016. The balance, 10%, comes from large oak barrel reserves going back to 2009. The perpetual reserve is always kept at 50/50 Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and the final blend is 42% Chardonnay, 36% Pinot Noir, and 22% Meunier. The result is a wine that is both more complex and expressive than the Brut Premier that it replaces, but surprisingly also much fresher. The dosage has been dropped to around 8g/l and the balance is perfect.
We compared this wine directly to the final batch of Brut Premier, which is 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay,and 20% Meunier, and based on the 2016 harvest. This toasty, top-quality brut sans année was wonderfully brioche-filled and impossible to tire of, but lacked the depth and sheen of the new Collection. This Brut was made the traditional way, with a large collection of individual reserves blended into a wine that is meant to be consistent every year—and it succeeded, and always has succeeded at that. The Collection is not just a stronger offering, but allows cellar master Jean-Baptiste Lecaillon the chance to adapt and give us the best blend he can each year, instead of being bound to a target taste. The house style will still be there, but the Collection wines will be allowed to have more individuality.
After tasting at work, I returned home to have the Collection with Cinnamon’s homemade spicy tuna and shrimp hand rolls—a match made in heaven. This wine has a lovely fresh-baked brioche nose framed by deep Meyer lemon fruit with subtle hints of honey. In the mouth it has a precise bead and great texture—not just from the tiny bubbles- but also from the concentration of the wine underneath. It manages to have white fruit, citrus, and bready complexity without becoming vinous or heavy. On the contrary, it is a fresh, finessed Champagne with a finish that had me coming back for more and more. With the food it was spectacular; the citrus elements of the wine turned to yuzu with the tuna and shrimp, making for real synergy. What a treat.
If you are interested in trying the Collection 242, I strongly recommend getting on the waiting list now. I think that this could very well end up becoming an allocated item, and lots of collectors are going to want the first edition in their cellars. I want to make sure that the Champagne lovers get a chance to have some too—I know that it was made for us!
A toast to you!