Champagne Louis Roederer have released their latest vintage, the 2018, with scores of 98+ points and at £972 per six in bond.  The 2018 Cristal marks 150 years since its creation, and a new direction for this illustrious champagne. 

Cristal’s origins are famously dramatic:  In 1876, Tsar Alexander II of Russia, living under constant threat of assassination, asked Louis Roederer to create a Champagne unlike any other. His requests were very specific: a clear bottle, allegedly so he could see if the wine within contained poison, and a flat-bottomed design to eliminate any chance of an explosive being concealed beneath the punt of a traditional bottle.

Roederer turned to a Flemish glassmaker to produce the now-iconic transparent “Cristal” glass bottle, giving the wine its name and its unmistakable identity. What began as a solution to imperial paranoia has since become one of Champagne’s most recognizable symbols of luxury, widely regarded as the first prestige cuvée.  Roederer have stayed true to their roots, keeping production relatively limited, at around a tenth of that of Dom Perignon, and with an intense focus on quality.

The 2018 vintage redefines the components of Cristal, as Chef de Cave Jean-Baptiste Lecaillon introduces thoughtful new approaches in the cellar, designed to preserve freshness and enhance the wine’s innate tension.  A greater proportion of carefully selected Chardonnay parcels has been incorporated, ensuring a vibrant backbone of acidity.  Some of this fruit as come at the expense of Roederer's Blanc de Blanc Vintage cuvée...a great shame, as this was an under-the-radar gem and great value, but we knew it was only a matter of time before this superb fruit was included in their top wine.  At the same time, reduced time in oak and earlier bottling help to maintain the wine’s tightly wound energy, one of the hallmarks of the Cristal style.

Please let us know as soon as possible if you would like to place an order.

Offered in bond, available for delivery in autumn 2026.