Louis Roederer Brut Vintage 2008
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Product Details
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
The palate is characteristic of Louis Roederer's vintages: the attack is ample and dense; a rich and winey fullness is refined by the sweetness, acidity and tight blend of the Pinot Noir grapes of Verzenay. The ensemble is perfectly integrated into a subtle texture. Tasting reveals sparkling suggestions of candied fruits, almond paste, toast, white chocolate, and caramel.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
A deliciously ripe wine, full of fruit as well as a great mineral texture. It completely expresses the exceptional 2008 with all its structure. Still young, it's all fruit and freshness that promise serious bottle aging. Drink this complex, serious wine from 2017.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
Is there power in Pinot Noir? Or is this a concept foreign to wine lovers? Most wine industry experts consider Pinot Noir to be elegant and supple in comparison to other red grapes. But this is Champagne and Pinot Noir here must be compared to Chardonnay, the other main variety in the region. In this context, there is no question that Pinot Noir makes richer and bigger wines. Champagne Louis Roederer has decided to base their Bruts on the "structure and power of Reims Mountain Pinot Noir." The 2008 Brut is generous and substantive, with a mouthfilling layer of richness on the palate and a long persistent finish. Beginning to drink well now. (Tasted: June 22, 2016, San Francisco, CA)
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James Suckling
Roederer's 2008 vintage is all class and refinement with layered aromas from the get-go. Grilled nuts, lemon zest and pith plus subtle spiced, fresh bready notes - very youthful and fresh. The palate rolls out powerful and smooth lemon citrus flavors with some red berries building through the second phase. Contained, dry, succulent and a wonderful journey of texture here. Drink now or for more than five years. A great vintage for Roederer.
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Wine Spectator
Elegant and harmonious, with bright acidity enlivening the refined and creamy mousse and flavors of pastry, creamed pear, crushed blackberry, spun honey and slivered almond. A streak of chalky mineral resonates through the wine and lingers on the finish.
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Wine & Spirits
A quiet and firm 2008, this is closed for now, hidden behind a wash of pale limestone and seashell-like minerality. Hints of flowers come on in the scent, while richness builds in the finish. Youthfully lean, this should open up with bottle age.
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Uncompromising Quality
Champagne Louis Roederer was founded in 1776 in Reims, France and is one of the rare family owned companies, which is still managed by the Roederer family. In 1833, Louis Roederer inherited the company from his uncle and renamed the company under his namesake. Under his leadership, the company rapidly grew while remaining true to their philosophy of uncompromising quality. Today, the company is under the helm of Jean-Claude Rouzaud and his son Frédéric who continue to place quality before quantity.
First-Rate Vineyards
Champagne Louis Roederer is one of the only French champagne producers to own nearly 75 percent of the grapes in the most desirable vineyards in the Champagne. The property is located on 450 acres in the finest villages of Montagne de Reims, Côtes des Blancs, and Valleé de la Marne. Each region is selected to produce Chardonnay and Pinot Noir with the elegance needed for perfectly balanced champagne. The Louis Roederer vineyards rate an average 98 percent based on France’s statutory 100-point classification scale.
The reserve wine is then tasted and graded by a team of Roederer specialists. They choose as many as 40 different wines from several lots for the blend. For the final touch, the wine is then added in order to enhance the cuvee and guarantee consistency while retaining the champagne's characteristics.
Representing the topmost expression of a Champagne house, a vintage Champagne is one made from the produce of a single, superior harvest year. Vintage Champagnes account for a mere 5% of total Champagne production and are produced about three times in a decade. Champagne is typically made as a blend of multiple years in order to preserve the house style; these will have non-vintage, or simply, NV on the label. The term, "vintage," as it applies to all wine, simply means a single harvest year.
Associated with luxury, celebration, and romance, the region, Champagne, is home to the world’s most prized sparkling wine. In order to bear the label, ‘Champagne’, a sparkling wine must originate from this northeastern region of France—called Champagne—and adhere to strict quality standards. Made up of the three towns Reims, Épernay, and Aÿ, it was here that the traditional method of sparkling wine production was both invented and perfected, birthing a winemaking technique as well as a flavor profile that is now emulated worldwide.
Well-drained, limestone and chalky soil defines much of the region, which lend a mineral component to its wines. Champagne’s cold, continental climate promotes ample acidity in its grapes but weather differences from year to year can create significant variation between vintages. While vintage Champagnes are produced in exceptional years, non-vintage cuvées are produced annually from a blend of several years in order to produce Champagnes that maintain a consistent house style.
With nearly negligible exceptions, . These can be blended together or bottled as individual varietal Champagnes, depending on the final style of wine desired. Chardonnay, the only white variety, contributes freshness, elegance, lively acidity and notes of citrus, orchard fruit and white flowers. Pinot Noir and its relative Pinot Meunier, provide the backbone to many blends, adding structure, body and supple red fruit flavors. Wines with a large proportion of Pinot Meunier will be ready to drink earlier, while Pinot Noir contributes to longevity. Whether it is white or rosé, most Champagne is made from a blend of red and white grapes—and uniquely, rosé is often produce by blending together red and white wine. A Champagne made exclusively from Chardonnay will be labeled as ‘blanc de blancs,’ while ones comprised of only red grapes are called ‘blanc de noirs.’