Two Hours in Louis Roederer Heaven!
On Friday, the 23rd of June, we had the extreme pleasure of hosting a wine tasting with the Champagnes of Louis Roederer in all three of our K&L locations. I am reporting on the San Francisco tasting, which was hosted by Roederer representative Andrea Miranda.
We will start with what everyone was the most excited about, the 2015 Louis Roederer "Cristal" Brut Champagne $369.99. It was an exciting wine, with smoke, lemon, stone fruits, and wet stone aromas. The palate rewarded us with medium-bodied texture and bracing acidity. After letting it sit in the glass for a bit, it opened more and the stone and citrus fruit flavors came forward to be joined by candied-orange and puff-pastry flavors. It also became richer with the airing. It will be one of the better selections of Cristal to age for quite a while. I hope that it goes the route of the 2002, all marshmallow pie goodness!
For a huge contrast, the 2015 Louis Roederer et Philippe Starck Brut Nature Champagne $94.99 smelled of green fruits, fresh ginger, minerals, and toasted coconut. In the mouth, the wine showed super clean acidity with flavors of lemon peel, sea salt, peach, and pear fruit.
Customer favorite Louis Roederer "Collection 243" Brut Champagne $59.99 was showing extremely well on this night. I think that I may even prefer it over the Louis Roederer "Collection 242" Brut Champagne $54.99, which I was crazy about. It has a tropical nose that includes aromas of apricot, green apple, and pear. On the palate, you’ll taste ripe pear, baked caramel, and a fine dose of smokiness and fluffy pastry. The finish is long, clean, and generous with the minerals. Nice small bead.
Lastly, the magnificent 2016 Louis Roederer Brut Rosé Champagne $94.99 is complex and heady. A very pretty nose of rose hips, ripe peach, and blood orange. On the palate, it is initially a little plush, with flavors of raspberry, orange, citrus, and nutmeg spice. Clean, yet there is a richness to it. Like the 243, it has a lingering clean finish.
The wines received a lot of compliments from the customers who attended, and they were very nice and thanked us (and Louis Roederer!) for having this tasting. So, it's not exactly a hard way to spend a Friday evening and start the weekend right! As my Champagne tasting group meets on Sunday, I just may have to have a week without Champagne to remind me that, yes, there are other types of wine out there!
Cheers to you and to Louis Roederer!