For the 50th anniversary of Cristal Rosé, Julia Pasarón travelled to the Louis Roederer estate in Champagne to discover the story behind this unique wine and meet the people who have put their hearts and souls into creating this expression of the finest winemaking.
Cristal is undoubtedly one of the best wines in the world. Its origins date back to 1876 when Tsar Alexander II commissioned Louis Roederer to make the finest champagne he could for his exclusive use – it was the birth of the first-ever prestige cuvée. To distinguish Cristal from any other champagne – and to avoid the possibility of anyone hiding anything that could kill the tsar – a special flat-bottomed, transparent lead-crystal bottle was created.
In 1974, Jean-Claude Rouzaud – then in charge of the vineyards and cellars – created the very first Cristal Rosé after identifying and harvesting the best plots of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the estate. This first vintage was also the result of a pioneering method – gentle infusion – inspired by the great Japanese tea masters, which would become the hallmark of this champagne. This technique extracts the Pinot Noir aromas without any mechanical intervention, using only the osmotic pressure of the grape juice. The process also avoids the risk of extracting tannins that might come through too aggressively in contact with alcohol. The juices are then “bled” (removed from contact with the skins) and blended with the Chardonnay juices before the aromas are released during the alcoholic fermentation stage.
Only the best Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes are hand-picked from very few selected plots for Cristal Rosé.
Cristal Rosé 2008 is considered by many to be the best-ever vintage of this wine. Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, Cellar Master and Vineyard Manager at Louis Roederer describes how the vintage conditions are reflected in both the aroma and structure of the wines: the 2008 is elegant and zesty with an intense freshness, while the 2009 – a warmer vintage – shows dark berries and fruits of the forest with a velvety texture.
All the vineyards owned by Louis Roederer are either Grand Cru or Premier Cru. Aida Dudas, Visits and Reception Manager, explains that the very best plots are reserved for Cristal – often just a few square metres of the most perfect terroir one could possibly dream of to make champagne.
While you might think that perfectly crumbly soil is what gets wine growers most excited, it is in fact what lies beneath the ground that is the most important. The terroir in Champagne is mostly limestone, very rich in chalk. It is chalk that champagne vines adore. Being highly porous, this subsoil provides excellent drainage and the chalk acts as a store of water for the vine to drink from when needed. But chalk also draws in water, thus making sure the vine doesn’t take too much. The right amount of water, the adequate hours of sun and, in the case of Cristal, the carefully selected vines result in small grapes with extraordinarily intense juice.
“Time is the greatest winemaker.”
– Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon
The age of the vines matters too. Dudas tells me that the average for those destined to become Cristal is 53 to 54 years, while for other champagne wines from Louis Roederer, it would be around 32 or 33. As the vine gets older, it produces less fruit, but of higher quality. As she puts it, “Cristal is purity and precision”, and Cristal Rosé, an ode to lightness and finesse, is crafted like the most delicate of parfums, with different scents and a myriad of subtleties in its flavour. Basically, this is a very complex wine with a feather-light body and an elegant, powerful expression that reveals the individuality of its terroir.
The selection of plots for Cristal Rosé has been constantly evolving, hand in hand with Louis Roederer’s move towards biodynamic and organic viticulture since the end of the 1990s. One could say that nature showed its gratitude. With the introduction of sustainable practices such as regenerative organic growing, massive selection (the traditional way of propagating vineyards), gentle pruning and long following periods, the wines have become even better, displaying a kaleidoscope of aromas and flavours that, in the case of Cristal Rosé, culminated in the 2008 vintage.
How the vines are grown is fundamental to the quality of the wines but so is the process that happens after the grapes are harvested. Once the gentle infusion and blending are done, the wine is bottled with the addition of sugar and yeast (liqueur de tirage) and placed in the cool, dark, damp cellars of Louis Roederer. Here is where the secondary fermentation takes place.
Left, Cristal Rosé patiently ageing in the cellar. Right, Cristal Rosé 2008, is considered by many the best vintage of them all.
Dudas explains that the yeast slowly eats the sugar, generating carbon dioxide (CO2) as a byproduct, which creates the bubbles. As the yeast cells break down, they develop a wonderful flavour of brioche, in a process called autolysis. The longer the wine is in contact with these yeast cells (lees) the more this flavour is enhanced. Cristal Rosé spends six to eight years on the lees. Then the bottles are gently and slowly turned until they are on their heads and all the lees are collected in the necks. At this point they are disgorged – the process of removing the lees so the wine is perfectly clear – and a tiny amount of sweet wine (dosage) is added to balance the high acidity and create the feeling of a harmonious dry champagne. After a further eight months in the cellar to allow full integration, finally, the champagne is ready to see the light of day.
I understand now why Lécaillon said in our first meeting, “Time is the greatest winemaker.”
He joined Louis Roederer in 1989 and has since been perfecting the gentle infusion technique and pretty much reinventing the fermentation phase. “From the mid-1990s onwards, as a result of climate change, the maturities intensified and the grapes became more concentrated,” he explains. “Short infusions, lasting one or two days at high temperatures (25-30°C), were gradually giving way to lower-temperature infusions (18-26°C), as the grapes’ substance and colour were being extracted more easily. The goal was also to minimise oxidation of the juices to preserve as much aromatic finesse as possible. The juices were therefore protected by CO2 during the infusion phase, which was extended to three to four days. It was a balancing act enabled and supported by our technical resources and years of careful thought.”
Left, Cristal 2014 Rosé, distinctive for its intense aroma of Pinot Noir and concentrated palate. Right, the very first Cristal Rosé, created by Jean-Claude Rouzaud in 1974.
Following Lécaillon’s instinct, in 2008, a new experimental winery was built with state-of-the-art equipment to prepare the grapes for infusion with even greater precision. The grapes are harvested in small racks and then quickly cooled, slowing the oxidation process and preserving the intensity and purity of the original fruit. They are then carefully sorted to eliminate any that are under-ripe or weather-damaged; stalks, stems and leaves are all removed, and the grapes are “pinched” as they go into the vat to release the juice needed for the infusion. Protected from oxidation, the infusions become gentler and longer, lasting for up to six or seven days before being bled and blended.
While the infusion has become gentler, the fermentation itself has been reinvented to be more dynamic, tumultuous and expressionistic: the yeasts reveal the aromas with a clean, firm and precise stroke while developing a velvety, perfectly smooth texture and a saline finish. Champagne at its best!
Having devoted most of his professional life to Louis Roederer, Lécaillon now reflects on the future. “I am now working on wines that I will never get to drink,” he says with just the slightest tinge of sadness in his eyes. “But they will be my legacy and, hopefully, others will be inspired to continue the journey.”
Learn more about Cristal Rosé HERE and about Cristal 2014, HERE and about Cristal 2015, HERE.
Words: Julia Pasarón
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