During its online launch with Aussie wine journalists earlier this month, Louis Roederer’s irrepressible chef de caves, Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, said that it marks a ‘permanent improvement’ in what he calls, ‘the pursuit of taste’. Cristal 2014 is the next chapter.
It signals a shift from a time when Cristal would beg for extra comfort from post-disgorgement aging following a relatively early release, for a prestige champagne. More than two decades of viticultural improvements have brought greater phenolic ripeness, but also freshness, to Cristal domaines, aligning with Lécaillon’s vision for wines of ‘better character, intensity, depth and dry extract.’
2014 is the third fully biodynamic release of Cristal, the first being 2012. An organic or biodynamic path has supported soil freshness, which is ‘more than just acidity,’ and a low pH.
"...Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon said that it marks a 'permanent improvement' in what he calls 'the pursuit of taste'. Cristal 2014 is the next chapter.
“Cristal is a wine of soil and not climate,” emphasises Lécaillon. “The choice of chalk is key to Cristal with slow and concentrated ripeness. There is always enough water because the chalk acts like a sponge. If there’s too much rain, it makes perfect drainage because the roots do not sit in the water. At the same time, chalk brings back some water into the vines. It explains effortless concentration that is unique – and the DNA of the cuvée!”
Lécaillon sources Cristal from grand cru terroir; strategically positioned mid-slope with minimal topsoil, covering a deep bedrock of chalk.
In 2014, chalk underscored the performance of the vintage which Lécaillon says was impacted by an extreme weather pattern. The year was largely sunny and dry, with a heatwave in June. But summer was cool, marked by autumnal conditions, and rainy. September brought warm winds and dry conditions. An oceanic year, by these standards. Nonetheless, some contradictory conditions in the Montagne de Reims and Côte des Blancs saw a classic summer in the former, duelling with twice as much rain, than average, in the latter.
“Chalk was a perfect buffer to drain and restrain development of vines and avoid excessive vigour, yields and dilution,” says Lécaillon. “The secret to 2014 was the chalk and warm air of August and September. I decided to wait and delay harvest as much as I could, even though sugar was accumulating. Phenolic ripeness was behind, but I pushed Cristal for ripeness as long as possible.”
Of the 45 traditional plots used for Cristal, only 39 made the cut. Three from Aӱ and another three from Avize were eliminated. Picking occurred at more than 11 percent potential alcohol and pH was super-low at just 3.0.
What to expect from Cristal 2014
The extreme weather of 2014 has resulted in an equally extreme Cristal, says Lécaillon, that is more intense, more radiant, and much more energetic.
"I can see this contrast of dry extract, phenolics and freshness, as well as low pH which is key to the construction of Cristal. It may even be more impressive than 2013 and 2012,” he says.
With so much exuberance and fruitiness, Lécaillon decided to use jetting for the first time (on a Cristal) to 'shut down' its expressiveness, which he likens to having a noisy child.
"Usually I try to do what I can to let Cristal be more expressive, but not this vintage," he says. "2014 is 53 percent sunshine and 53 percent soil – it doesn’t make 100%. But everything is amplified, like a musician. It’s the next level of music and it’s vibrating more."
