2008 Louis Roederer Cristal (6 x Bottle)
Complex and intense bouquet showing candied citrus, yellow fruit, Williams pear, pollen and toasted almond. The palate is powerful yet tightly wound with rich acidity and massive length.
2008 Louis Roederer Cristal (6 x Bottle)
Complex and intense bouquet showing candied citrus, yellow fruit, Williams pear, pollen and toasted almond. The palate is powerful yet tightly wound with rich acidity and massive length.
Producer | Louis Roederer |
---|---|
Region | Champagne |
Country | France |
Grape Variety | Champagne Blend |
Vintage | 2008 |
Colour | White |
ABV | 12.00% |
Style | Full , Brut |
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Robert Parker Wine Advocate
Let’s start describing the 2008 Cristal technically first. It is a 60/40 blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from 36 plots in seven grands crus: Verzy, Verzenay, Beaumont and Aÿ for the Pinot Noir and Mesnil, Avize and Cramant for the Chardonnay. Twenty-five percent of the wine was fermented in oak, and 16% underwent malolactic fermentation to moderate the fresh acidity of the 2008 vintage. The assemblage was bottled in May 2009. After 8.5 years on the second lees (longer than any Cristal before), the first release was disgorged in September 2017 with a relatively low dosage of 7.5 grams per liter.
97+ Points / Drinking 2023 - 2050
By Stephan Reinhardt / June 2018
Robert Parker Wine Advocate
Disgorged in September 2017 with 7.5 grams per liter dosage, the 2008 Cristal was produced from 37 of the 45 parcels that are candidates for inclusion in this cuvée—some 40% of which were farmed organically back in 2008—and it’s a blend of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay. The finest young Cristal in decades, the wine wafts from the glass with a pure and vibrant bouquet of crisp orchard fruit, clear honey, warm brioche, citrus zest and white flowers. On the palate, it’s full-bodied, intense and incisive, with superb concentration, racy acids and a long, searingly chalky finish. Pristinely balanced, there are some 500,000 bottles of this legend-in-the-making.
98 Points / Drinking 2022 - 2050
By William Kelley / March 2020
Vinous
The 2008 Cristal is a real head-turner. Powerful, ample and explosive in all of its dimensions, the 2008 takes hold of the sense and never lets up. There is a crystalline purity to the flavors that is simply remarkable. Although still a baby, the 2008 looks like it will soon take its place alongside the greatest Cristals. Today, it is breathtaking.
98+ Points / Drinking 2020 - 2058
By Antonio Galloni / July 2017
Vinous
The 2008 Cristal is a wine that takes over all the senses and never lets up. The brilliance and cut of the Chardonnay finds an extra kick of resonance from the Pinot Noir to carry the mid palate and finish in this stunningly beautiful, chiseled Champagne. Lemon oil, almond, flowers, dried herbs and Mirabelle plum are some of the many aromas and flavors that develop as the 2008 shows off its pedigree. The 2008 is a regal, towering Champagne from Roederer. That’s all there is to it.
98+ Points / Drinking 2023 - 2058
By Antonio Galloni / July 2018
Vinous
The 2008 Cristal is one of the most complete, most dazzling Champagnes I have ever tasted. A stunning wine from any and all perspectives, the 2008 simply has it all. Spherical in construction, with superb persistence. The 2008 takes hold of all the senses and never gives up. One of the many things that makes the 2008 special is a combination of ripe fruit and bright, piercing acidity. Marzipan, lemon confit, dried flowers and orchard fruit all build into the explosive, resonant finish. “We learned from the mistakes of 1996, when we picked more on acid than ripeness, as was the norm in Champagne back then” Chef de Caves Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon told me recently. “In 1996, the best fruit turned out to be the last picks, where the fruit was physiologically ripe. Today, we aim to pick all our fruit with that criteria.”
99 Points / Drinking 2020 - 2050
By Antonio Galloni / December 2019
Vinous
The 2008 Cristal is just starting to open and into its first plateau of what is likely to be a very long drinking window. Bright and intensely saline, with terrific depth, Cristal shows everything that makes this vintage so appealing, namely a captivating mix of fruit intensity and bright, piercing acids. As alluring as the 2008 is today, it also needs time to be at its very best. Roederer launched the more open 2009 ahead of the 2008, which means the 2008 saw ten years on the lees, quite a bit longer than most vintages, all of which it needed. The 2008 seems to presage a new era at Roederer in which the wines have been consistently brilliant. Dosage is 8 grams per liter. Disgorged: 2018
99 Points / Drinking 2023 - 2050
By Antonio Galloni / December 2023
Vinous
The 2008 Cristal Rosé is unquestionably one of the greatest wines longtime Chef de Cave Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon has made at Roederer. Bright saline and chalky notes run through a core of vibrant, red-toned fruit. The 2008 is tightly wound and nervous, yet it also has more than enough depth to keep it from being overly austere. Today, it is once again magnificent. Unforgettable.
100 Points / Drinking 2024 - 2058
By Antonio Galloni / November 2024