Bollinger Champagne La Grande Annee Rose 2002 bottle - Vins Rare

94 WS

Notes:

Brad Baker's Champagne Warrior
A Stunning Ros from Bollinger 93-95 points
I find this to be a beautiful wine of supreme elegance and concentration. Subtle notes of biscuit and vanilla intertwine withruby red grapefruit, concentrated raspberry, and soft strawberry cream. This wine begins with a rich, powerful thrill, butdeftly transforms into an elegant, red berry-filled dream. It manages to knock you out with its body and then reel you inwith its brains; it is the complete package. I didn't think Bollinger would top their 1999 Grande Annee Rose for quite awhile, but it appears they have done it already. This is the best Grande Annee Rose released to date and a candidate forwine of the vintage. Go get some!

(38% Chardonnay, 62% Pinot Noir with 7% Red Wine from La Cte Aux Enfants vineyard in Ay; Fermented in small oakbarrels; Disgorged November 2009; $150-225 US)

Wine Spectator, Nov 2010
($230) This rose Champagne shows precision, balance and seamless integration, boasting juicy fruit flavors of ripe black cherry, pomegranate and cassis that mix with violet, spice, almond and candied citrus peel notes. Fresh and vibrant, with a long, lightly spiced finish. Drink now through 2022. 94 points and Collectibles Designation.

Description:La Grande Anne Ros is a derivation from the blend of La Grande Anne and is only produced when exceptional quality vintages occur. The grapes come exclusively from Grands and Premiers Crus. For this 2002 vintage, wine from 16 villages has been included, 77% from Grand Crus and 23% from Premier Crus. Bollinger use only the 'cuve' juice in the making of La Grande Anne Ros.The first fermentation is always carried out 100% in old oak barrels, which has become quite unique in Champagne. The Cru's are fermented in small oak barrels which enables a rigorous selection. Bollinger uses only old barrels (5 years and more) in order to generate neither an oaky taste nor tannins. This method re-inforces the aromatic complexity and the ageing potential of the wines. At this stage the red wine from 'La Cote Aux Enfants' is blended with the Grande Anne base wine in a proportion of 7 to 8%, which gives birth to La Grande Anne Ros.Once the wine is bottled the second fermentation and cellar ageing are conducted under natural cork. This method, nowadays very seldom used in Champagne, is a guarantee of freshness. It allows the aromas to preserve all their bouquet. La Grande Anne Ros then ages in the cellars for at least 5 years. After Manual riddling and disgorging, La Grande Anne Ros rests for a minimum of 3 months prior to shipment.

Producer: Bollinger - www.champagne-bollinger.frABV: 13%Country of Origin: FranceRegion: Champagne, FranceVintage: 2002

A deep colour, perfectly balanced aromas and a lovely quality. La Grande Annee Rose is an extension of the Grande Annee by the addition, at blending, of a red wine from one of the Houses emblematic vineyards, La Cote Aux Enfants, located in the village of Ay. This plot of Grand Cru, measuring less than one hectare, is only used for red when the grapes are perfectly ripe. Made exclusively of Grand Crus and Premier Crus from Champagne, the grapes selected are from the cuvee to keep nothing but the best juice. 23 crus make up the composition of the Grand Annee Rose, of which 73% are Grand Crus and 27% are Premier Crus. The first fermentation was done in small oak casks (205, 225 and 410 litres), lot by lot, cru by cru, grape variety by grape variety. This allows Bollinger to use a very strict selection process. Bollinger only uses old casks (5 years old or older) to ensure that neither tannin or oak flavours are imparted to the wines. This method increases both the aromatic complexity and the ageing capacity of such wines. Grande Annee Rose ages in the cellars under natural cork. After bottling, the second fermentation and the ageing in the cellars is done using a real cork stopper, which ensures a better barrier against oxidisation than the crown cap. This process, quiteunique in champagne, is a guarantee of freshness and allows the aromas to keep their bouquet and clarity. The intense colour is due to an addition during initial blending of 7 to 8% red wine, made with grapes from La Cote Aux Enfants.

Grape Variety:Pinot Noir (62%) and Chardonnay (38%) (The addition of 6.5 % Pinot Noir from La Cote Aux Enfants and vinified as red wine gives the blend its colour and its ripeness)

Vins Rare