A Discussion of Rose Champagne: Benchmark Vintage and N/V's?

I’ve been really enjoying Rose Champagne for a while, so much so that I think they are becoming my preferred champagnes…


No doubt Dom Rose is up there with the best of vintage, great youngish and ages superbly, and Cristal is pretty good also, but what other vintage Rose Champagnes are benchmarks???

Some are pretty rare and you don’t hear much about them, at all…


N/V - Lots of different styles also, from the just pinks to the ones with a substantial quantity of added still wine, but I have enjoyed both extremes, and most everything in between…

Bruno Paillard, subtle and fine, really lovely, and a fresh strawberry explosion with Jeremy and Kent of the Andre Clouet, along with the more substantial Vilmarts and the Ruinart N/V.


So, what else is there worth trying, and what do you feel are the benchmarks in each category’s not mentioned???


(Any general ranting also allowed…).

Selosse Rose is a benchmark, albeit NV, although a wine to be had with food. A bottle last week was fantastic and, although anathema to some, this wine could stand decanting. We had it out of Burgundy glasses and yet it kept growing in the glass.

I think that Krug Rose is overpriced for what it is. Agree that Ruinart is very good value for what you get in the glass. On the NV value point, I also like Laurent Perrier Rose.

Also, a bottle of 2000 Drappier Grande Sendree Rose last week was very good, pale strawberry hue in color with great complexity - but the only time I have had this.

Also, this thread got me thinking that while I drink a lot of vintage non-rose champagne, including blanc de noirs, my experience with vintage rose champagne is quite limited and that has Not been a conscious decision…not sure if it is the same for others or they are just a very small proportion of the broader production…

For my palate -admittedly still somewhat limited in this area- Cédric Bouchard’s “Creux d’Enfer” is the most amazing rosé I’ve ever come across.

The 1996 Pol Roger Rose is exceptional.

Paul,

For non vintage I really like Gosset Grand Rose. For vintage I love the Billecart Salmon Cuvee Elizabeth, the 1998 and the 2000 are addicting…

Leah

+1 on the Billecart Salmon , my fave!

Amongst growers, Paul Bara, a big Pinot based rose.

Billiot is quite nice and won’t break the bank.

Vilmart, Boulard and Tarlant very good.

John,

I had the 2002 a couple of weeks ago and thought it was really very good. First time I’ve had a Pol Roger rosé.

For NV I like Aubry, and I just got a bottle of Billiot to try.

The best rosé Champagne I’ve had, either vintage or NV, was a Krug NV, or, I guess, MV as they prefer to say; they don’t make a vintage rosé as far as I can tell.

Under 5% of my Champagne is pink, thats says quite a lot, of that Vilmart Grand Rubis, Bollinger and Comtes are most populous.

I like a good bottle of Selosse Rose, but they are very variable.

These, including the NV Billecart.

I also like the NV Duval-Leroy.

Frank, I don’t think I have ever had vintage Krug Rose or seen it for that matter. I have only had the NV. What vintage Krug rose did you try? Thanks, Gautam

I’ve enjoyed a few good bottles of Veuve Clicquot vintage rose. The 1985 Rare was very complex. I also enjoyed the 2000.

'96 Dom rose that I had recently was just flat out unbelievable but is painfully young (at least out of magnum).

For a cheap bottle of rose bubbles, I always enjoy Gloria-Ferrer BnN which is more like a rose than BdN. About $17.

Agree on the Vilmart, both the vintage and NV Rubis is a fantastic rose. Easily my go to for rose bubbles

Spanish tapas with Saves Rose sublime. Creamy mineral and fresh. Not cerebral like Krug but crowd pleaser. Mike

Gautam,

This was at a Clicquot USA tasting back in early 2005, I think; I have the Clicquot booklet from the event but I have no idea where my written notes are. The booklet doesn’t even mention the rosé they poured at Krug’s station (they were given their own room), so no help there. I’m not at all broadly experienced with Krug, so if it’s your understanding that they only make NV rosé, I’ll defer to you on this, and I’ll see if I can correct my note above.

It was a wonderful wine, in any case, with the depth of flavor of a good red Burgundy, but with bubbles.

So far nominations for Vintage Rose include…

Dom
Cristal
Billecart cuvee Elszabeth
Pol Roger
Veuve
Bollinger
Taittinger
Vilmart

So, what else are we missing…

A few other vintage roses come to mind:

Bara Special Club
Gosset Cuvee Celebris
Philipponnat bottles several cuvees, including Clos des Goisses

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