2009 Louis Roederer Cristal

The 2009 vintage of Cristal is composed of a blend of sixty percent pinot noir and forty percent chardonnay, with none of the vins clairs this year undergoing malolactic fermentation. Sixteen percent of the base wines were barrel-fermented this year and the wine was finished off with a dosage of eight grams per liter. The bouquet shows the generosity of fruit of this warm summer, but coupled with the classic Cristal sense of elegance, as it offers up scents of white peach, apple, patissière, beautifully complex, chalky minerality, a hint of almond and a topnote of spring flowers. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and vibrant, with excellent midpalate depth, utterly refined mousse, laser-like focus and excellent length and grip on the youthful and very complex finish. This is likely to reach its apogee earlier than many vintages of Cristal, given the Continental warmth of ’09, but the wine is impeccably balanced and it will also age long and very gracefully. Just lovely. Nov 2016, www.viewfromthecellar.com, Drink: 2021-2050+

A very rich and full-bodied Cristal that harks back to 2006 or 1989 in style. It's round and rich, which underlies the ripeness of the vintage. Lots of dried-apple and pineapple character with bread dough and flan flavors. The bubbles are so fine you almost don't notice them. Very vinous style. Drink now. Oct 2016, www.jamessuckling.com

The 2009 Cristal is a blend of Grands Crus from the Montagne de Reims, the Vallee de la Marne and the Cote des Blancs (a total of 33-34 parcels of which 40% were farmed biodynamically). Like the 2008 Cristal, the 2009 also blends 60% Pinot Noir with 40% Chardonnay, and 16% of the wine was vinified in oak casks. No malolactic fermentation was done. The 2009 was aged for six years in the cellars and was disgorged in March 2016 with a dosage of eight grams per liter. Released two years ago, the 2009 is just starting another, more "Burgundian" life. Tasted in May 2018, the bouquet was pretty reductive, with flinty and toasty/nutty notes and some potted ginger flavors. Full-bodied, round and rich on the palate, this is a stunningly pure, fresh and salty 2009 that is driven by its chalky terroir and the lingering salinity. Is it really 2009? It is ripe, yes, but driven by the strength of chalk. The finish is pure, clean, fresh, very complex and long yet delicate and endlessly salty. However, two years after disgorgement, the 2009 Cristal is closing down and in a pretty reductive stage right now. Tasted May 2018. Jun 2018, www.robertparker.com