As the largest independent family-managed Champagne producer, Louis Roederer rank amongst the region's absolute finest. Established in 1776, the House today is managed by seventh generation family member Frederic Rouzaud alongside long-time Chef de Cave and Champagne legend Jean-Baptiste Lecaillon. They own an astounding 242 hectares of vineyards many in chalk rich Grand Cru villages covering two-thirds of their grape requirements. Roederer have become pioneers in biodynamic farming & by 2012 all 78 hectares the “Cristal Estates” are farmed using biodynamic methods. By 2021 Roederer have 115 hectares certified organic. All the grapes in Cristal & other vintage cuvee’s come from their own vineyards. The estate is made up of 410 plots which are fermented separately in one of the 450 stainless steel tanks in their Reims cellars. In 2020 Roederer replaced Brut Premier with “Collection” allowing each years non-vintage blend to be identified and “re-engineering” the non-vintage cuvee to maintain freshness in the light of global warming on the Champagne region. Today Cristal is, widely recognised as the world's most awarded prestige cuvee champagne.\n\nIn 1876, Russia's Tsar Alexander II, a long-time lover of Louis Roederer wines, asked the producer to create a special cuvee for his personal use which was unique in both its style and bottle design. Dissatisfied with standard champagne bottles that concealed the beautiful colour and effervescence from the eye, he requested that his personal cuvee be served in transparent crystal glass bottles, easier to spot poison and with a flat bottom to foil the insertion of explosives by would-be assassins. Thus, Louis Roederer selected the best vines from seven Grand Crus on his estate and Cristal, the first prestige cuvee, was born. Today some 45 plots make up the "Cristal Estates" and each vintage can sometimes be made up of all plots or as is normal often a few plots don't make the final blend.
