Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
-
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
The 2009 L'Ermitage by Roederer Estate Brut Sparkling Wine is amazing. From the first sniff to the final aftertaste, this wine delivers unbelievable aromas and flavors, such as brioche and stone fruits. Incredibly persistent on the palate, the wine lasts and lasts. Easily one of the world's best sparkling wines at this price, which makes it the finest deal in the marketplace. One could spend two to three times the price and not even come close to matching the quality found here. Drinks well now.
-
Wine Spectator
A luxurious sparkler, with toasty brioche, mineral and lemon brûlée aromas and rich, complex flavors of crisp apple and raspberry, showing accents of fresh ginger and spice.
-
Wine & Spirits
The 2009 vintage grew lush pinot noir and chardonnay on the northern California coast, and that vintage character defines Roederer Estate’s tête de cuvée: It’s broad and rich, its ripe apple flavor threaded with the toastiness of barrel-aged reserve lots, while a bright line of acidity gives it a healthy persistence.
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.
Surrounded by redwood forests and often blanketed in chilly, ocean fog, the Anderson Valley is one of California’s most picturesque appellations. During the growing season, moist, cool, late afternoon air flows in from the Pacific Ocean along the Navarro River and over the valley's golden, oak-studded hills. High and low temperatures can vary as much as 40 or 50 degrees within a single day, allowing for slow and gentle ripening of grapes, which will in turn create elegantly balanced wines.
The Anderson Valley is best known for Pinot Noir made in a range of styles from delicate and floral to powerful and concentrated. Chardonnay also shines here, and both varieties are often utilized for the production of some of California’s best traditional method sparkling wines. The region also draws inspiration from Alsace and produces excellent Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris.