2008 Louis Roederer Cristal

Origin
Champagne, Champagne/sparkling wine FRANCE
Colour
white
Wine Style
dry
Dominant Grape
Pinot Noir
Closure Style
cork
Maturity
drink or keep
Bottle Size
75cl
Case Quantity
6
Alcohol
12%
Wine Score
98+ points, Antonio Galloni, vinous.com, July 2018
19 points, Jancis Robinson, jancisrobinson.com, July 2019 97+ points, Stephan Reinhardt, robertparker.com, June 2018

This product is delisted and unavailable for sale.

Media Reviews

Antonio Galloni

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

Jancis Robinson

Much cooler year than 2012. From 45 different parcels. Deep golden straw. Surprisingly reticent nose but massive spread on the palate. Masses of acidity. Not as obviously appealing as the 2012 but it grows towards the peacock’s tail end. Then it really opened out in the glass, promising a long life and even greater complexity. 19 points

Stephan Reinhardt

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. So, here is how it tastes as a "young" cuvée: The 2008 Cristal opens bright, super clear, fresh and pure on the exciting, absolutely fascinating nose with its fine, complex and elegant bouquet of gorgeously ripe and matured fruits, brioche and chalk expressions. This is the finest you can get from Champagne. The palate is pure, lean, fresh and filigreed but concentrated, highly complex, full of tension and enormously vibrant. This is a great vin de terroir, a dense and elegant Super-Cristal that goes straight and precise as a laser beam over the palate but also has texture in the form of sensually fleshy fruit. The dosage, however, is the lowest ever: just 7.5 grams. The endless and highly tensioned finish is complex, citrusy fresh, full of chalk and crystalline finesse. The 2008 Cristal is a vitalizing drug, "the Chevalier Montrachet of Champagne," as Jean-Baptise Lécaillon puts it. It is the most exciting 2008 Champagne I have tasted thus far (May 2018). 97+ points