Now this half bottle is handy if you wish to toast yourself. Pol Roger is one of the world's power house champagne houses. Famously quoted by the likes of Winston Churchill and the champagne of choice for Her Majesty the Queen. An equal blend of chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier, with addition of 20% reserve wines. It is impressively fresh and vivacious with more depth than most aperitif styles.

At just 29 years of age, Charles-Camille Heidsieck decided to create his eponymous House in 1851. Despite being an heir – the Heidsiecks were one of the most respected families in the champagne world – he decided to forge his own path and establish his own dynasty, eager to embark on his own entrepreneurial journey. It is with the Brut Réserve that the House expresses the quintessence of its style. Particularly recognizable by its generosity, precision and depth, this multi-vintage wine offers a complex and greedy nose and an unctuous palate, a guarantee of quality that experts and wine critics from all over the world distinguish with their eyes closed. Of the sixty Champagne crus chosen to produce this emblematic cuvée, three are pillars of the Brut Réserve style. Oger - Grand Cru Chardonnay from the Côte des Blancs, gives it its fleshy and generous notes. Ambonnay - Grand Cru Pinot Noir from the Montagne de Reims, is synonymous with power, structure and fruity notes. Verneuil - Meunier from the Vallée de la Marne, ensures its balance and smooth texture. This champagned is a blend of 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay and 20% Meunier.

Its superb maturity tantalizes all the senses with a deep pink robe highlighted with glints of copper, an extremely delicate persistent effervescence, a nose of crushed strawberries, lime and liquorice underlined by a hint of roast coffee and cacao. The palate is entranced by a variation of gourmet sensations. The fresh, precise and taut attack gives way to reveal a supple, molten and heady structure. The finish imparts fruity notes underscored by a saline freshness. With the purity of its precise, gourmet aromatic structure, the Comtes de Champagne Rosé is perfectly in line with its predecessors and promises to offer excellent ageing potential.

Beautiful pale yellow colourwith glints of gold and green, a vibrant, luminousrobe. Active effervescence with a fine, persistent release of bubbles. At first very intense on the nose, giving way to fresh fruit notes, particularly ripe citrus and exotic fruits (pineapple). A highly refined floralsecond nose with notes of linden and white fruits (white peach). A supple, harmonious attack on the palate, firm but rounded. A voluptuoustexture and vinosity that is not excessive, supported by excellent freshness. A very refreshing mineral finish.

2014 base, disgorged in October 2017. Within the cold, west-facing Biaunes lieu-dit there is a small parcel of Chardonnay (the Côte des Bar is overwhelmingly planted to Pinot Noir) that Gautherot planted wild, without preparing the soils, amongst the native vegetation. Established in 2000, with massale cuttings from Anselme Selosse's vines in Avize and Vincent Dauvissat's Valmur Grand Cru vineyard, this portion of the vineyard is now the origin of what Antonio Galloni calls "one of the most beautiful and distinctive wines in Champagne." The vines here yield only 15-20 hl/ha each year--a key to the quality and intensity on offer. Fermentation is wild and has traditionally taken place in a mix of Burgundian pièce and 400-litre fût, purchased from vigneron friends in Burgundy. The new vintages now include a portion of fruit fermented and raised in Georgian amphora. As with the Fidèle, this wine spent roughly 15 months in bottle, sur lattes, before being disgorged by hand with zero dosage.

Immerse yourself in aromas of fresh dark berries and a delicate floral lift, underpinned by intriguing hints of forest floor and a subtle smokiness. The taste is expansive, revealing layers of dark fruit, a fine chalky minerality, and a precise acidity that carries through to a persistent, beautifully structured finish, showcasing the strength of Pinot Noir.

Cristal is a remarkably balanced and refined champagne whose length is inimitable. It has a silky texture and fruity aromas, complemented by a powerful mineral quality with white fruit and citrus notes. Cristal is a wine that keeps well: it can be conserved for over twenty years without losing its freshness and character. Produced uniquely during the best years, when the Chardonnay (around 40%) and Pinot noir (around 60%) grapes have attained perfect maturity, Cristal is aged for 6 years in Louis Roederers cellars and left for a further 8 months after dégorgement. Today Louis Roederer remains one of the very few remaining family owned Houses in Champagne with 7th generation Frederic Rouzaud at the helm. From the 100 hectares acquired in 1850 by Louis Roederer, the Domaine today extends over 240 hectares averaging 98% on the official Echelle classification. All vineyard acquisitions follow Louis Roedererâs strict 70% policy â that is ownership of at least 70% of the total production. All Louis Roederer Cuvees are Estate grown with the exception of Brut Premier which is 60% estate fruit and 40% fruit sourced from long-term contracted growers. Louis Roederer farm 65 Ha of their Domaine vineyards under a biodynamic and organic regime as part of what Chef de Cave Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon says is a work in progress. In 2012 Louis Roederer became the largest biodynamic producer in Champagne.