Louis Roederer

In 1845 he went against the thinking of the time and purchased 15 hectares of Grand Cru vineyards in Verzenay, when at the time the price of grapes had collapsed. This was the start of a shrewd buying strategy which continues to this day, of purchasing carefully chosen parcels that produced characterful and distinctive wines. The house passed over to his son, Louis Roederer II, who started exporting in the 1870s to the USA and Russia, and notably Tsar Alexander II of Russia. In 1876 he created the now infamous Cristal cuvée, as a prestige cuvée for Tsar Alexander II. From Louis Roederer II it passed on through successive generations of the family and is now run by seventh generation Frédéric Rouzaud. They have 240 hectares of vineyards growing all three Champagne grapes, spread over 410 parcels in Grands and Premiers Crus of the Montagne de Reims, the Côte des Blancs, and the Vallée de la Marne. Every grape that goes into their Champagnes comes from a Louis Roederer vineyard. Each of these parcels is individually tended to maximise its terroir and the maturity of its grapes. These parcels are then vinified separately to preserve their individual characters and allowed to mature individually right up until the final blending process. They annually export 3,000,000 bottles around the world. The Louis Roederer style is of patience and precision to produce fresh, delicate yet full, sensuous champagnes.