A terrific new entry level cuvee crafted in the elegant Roederer style, the fresh and refined 94 pt. Louis Roederer Champagne Collection 243 offers fragrant concentrated fruit with chalky salinity and vibrant acidity on a steady stream of pinpoint bubbles, a deliciously complex, terroir-driven Champagne from an iconic producer promising pleasurable drinking for years to come at an outstanding value.
Established in Reims in 1776, Louis Roederer inherited the champagne house that would become known as Champagne Louis Roederer in 1833, remaining one of the few family-run houses in the region for over two centuries and now managed by seventh generation Frederic Rouzaud. Labeled as a numbered series similar to Krug Grande Cuvee and Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle, the Collection series from Louis Roederer Champagne was conceived by Rouzaud and Chef de Cave Jean-Baptiste Lecaillon in response to consistently warmer vintages in the region, creating the new cuvee to emphasize freshness and encouraging sustainable practices among the estate’s growers to more transparently express each vineyard’s unique terroir, with the inaugural Collection 242 release based on the 2017 vintage. Blending in 31% from a perpetual reserve created in 2012 that is stored in stainless steel and topped off every vintage, Lecaillon also added 10% of oak-aged reserve wines dating back to 2009 to the base wine from the warmer 2018 vintage to craft the Collection 243 cuvee, revealing unique flavors and complexity that are distinctly different from 242, a departure from the consistent “house style” Grand Marques strive to produce year over year. Numbered with the difference between its bottling date of 2019 and the house’s founding date of 1776, the Louis Roederer Champagne Collection 243 is mostly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir with a smaller amount of Pinot Menuier sourced from the 2018 vintage that Lecaillon aged for four years, revealing “a vibrant Champagne that's fine and creamy on the palate” according to the Wine Spectator’s Alison Napjus, its mouthwatering textured fruit beautifully balanced by fresh acidity with fine beaded bubbles on a toasty finish.
An appealing cuvee that “really makes you want another glass straight away” according to Decanter’s Georgina Hindle, the enticing 94 pt. Louis Roederer Champagne Collection 243 is ready to be enjoyed now and cellar worthy over the next decade, described as a meticulously crafted “step up” from the former Brut cuvee by the Wine Advocate’s William Kelley and an unbeatable value for Champagne lovers seeking age worthy complexity at an entry level price.
Dried-lemon, apricot, green-apple, salted-almond, walnut and light caramel notes. Vinous and layered, with small and tight bubbles. Excellent focus and intensity. Based on 2018, with reserve wines going back to 2009. Dosage 8g/L. Drink now.
94 points, James Suckling (Aug 2022)
The NV Champagne Collection 243 Brut is the third release and is based on the 2018 vintage, with the addition of 30% of the perpetual reserve started in 2012 and 10% reserve wine that has been aged in oak. It is ripe and balanced, with yellow flowers, honeycomb, and plum, and it has elegant concentration and underlying tension, precise mousse, and rich salinity, with lingering notes of croissant and delicate smoke. This will be an exciting wine in the range to follow. Drink 2022-2037.
93 points, Audrey Frick, Jeb Dunnuck (Nov 2022)
Based on the 2018 vintage and complemented by reserve wines from a solera established in 2012, as well as younger foudre-aged reserve wines, Roederer's newly released NV Brut Collection 243 is a pillowy, enveloping Champagne evocative of crisp stone fruits, honeycomb, white flowers and buttery pastry. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and generous, with an ample core of fruit, bright acids and a saline finish, it will offer demonstrative drinking on release.
92 points, William Kelley, Wine Advocate (Issue # 262 - Aug 2022)
A vibrant Champagne that's fine and creamy on the palate, almost plush, but bright and well-balanced throughout. Reveals a chalky base note that underscores layers of ripe pear and nectarine fruit, mandarin orange peel, oyster shell and chamomile. Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier. Drink now. 40,000 cases imported.
92 points, Alison Napjus, Wine Spectator (Dec 2022)
The Collection 432 is a blend of 42% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir, and 18% Pinot Meunier, coming 1/3 each from the La Rivière, La Montagne, and La Côte vineyards. 31% comprises perpetual reserve (a solera-type blend) of 2012-2017 vintages. 10% comes from reserve wines aged in oak, including 2009, 2011, and 2013-2017 vintages. Yet this blend is mainly (59%) from the hot 2018 vintage. 26% of the wine went through malo-lactic, and the dosage is 8 grams per liter. Pale lemon-straw in color, it skips out of the glass with bright citrus and stone fruit notes of lemon curd, white peaches, and ripe, juicy pears, followed by hints of marzipan, baking bread, nutmeg, and honeysuckle. The palate is finely built with adeptly crafted tension and seamless dosage use, while the bubbles are super-fine and impressively persistent. It finishes long and creamy. I love how the fleshiness of the warmer 2018 vintage has been toned down, allowing the grace and sophistication of this consistent house to shine through.
92 points, Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Independent (Apr 2023)
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