Louis Roederer Brut Collection 243 ( WHO )

“”Roederer’s Brut Premier was created in the 1980s to prove to consumers that we could deliver consistent quality with a blend that compensated for less than perfectly ripe vintages,” explains Jean-Baptiste Lecaillon. “We were blending in pursuit of maturity, of ripeness. The concept behind the Brut Collection is the opposite: we’re looking for freshness—and we are embracing singularity, something we’re emphasizing by enumerating each year’s blend.” This project has been in the making since 2012, when Lecaillon set aside 21,000 liters of wine to constitute a perpetual reserve aged in large tanks without malolactic fermentation. Sourcing has evolved too: less must is coming from cooperatives, and only vineyards cultivated without the use of herbicides inform the blend. A dedicated team oversees all this, visiting every grower three times per year. And vinification is parcel by parcel to deliver a maximum of blending components. ”

The new Collection designation has been created in response to the warming climate and reflecting Roederer’s innovative spirit and pursuit of excellence allowing more freedom after each vintage to make the best wine possible. Creation of a perpetual reserve to maintain and enhance freshness and salinity in the face of climate change and ever more mature grapes. Increased proportion of oak aged reserve wines. Lower dosage. Freedom of blending style, from cépage to proportion of reserve wines, to ensure the best quality possible. Each collection number will be unique, but the style will always be resolutely Roederer. The Collection number represents the number of blends since the inception of the house, to the base vintage.

Collection 243 is a pillowy, enveloping Champagne evocative of crisp stone fruits, honeycomb, white flowers and buttery pastry. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and generous, with an ample core of fruit, bright acids and a saline finish. – Tasted by William Kelley

Wonderfully complex aroma rises from the glass as soon as this is poured. So complex on the nose and uncompromisingly dry but well balanced on the palate. Lightly smoky but with no shortage of fine, ripe fruit in an interesting honeysuckle and lime spectrum. Clean and fresh and extremely long. This definitely deserves to be priced above regular non-vintage champagne. Not quite delicate. Not quite creamy. Just hits the right note for a superior blend. Drink 2022–2030. Jancis Robinson 17.5/20

Louis Roederer Collection 243 NV comes in lightweight antique-coloured bottles that filter out nearly 100 percent of light.

Technical Information:
Vineyards: 100% Grand & Premier Cru | 33% La Riviere | 33% La Montagne | 33% La Cote
Grape Varieties: 42% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir & 18% Meunier
Reserve Wines aged in oak: 10% from 2012, 13, 14, 15, 16 & 17
Perpetual reserve wines: 31% from 2012, 13, 14, 15, 16 & 17
Lees Ageing: 3 years
Current base vintage: 2018
Disgorged: March 2022
Dosage: 8 g/l
Malolactic Fermentation: 26%
Drink: Now for 8+ years