Louis Roederer et Philippe Starck Brut Nature Blanc 2015.

The ripe, continental 2015 vintage gave us wines with magnificent concentration, incredible depth and an interesting vegetal, sappy character — Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, Cellar Master.

THE STORY OF AN ENCOUNTER

Conceived as an exchange and shaped by friendship, this wine is first and foremost a result of the free-thinking that came out of a meeting between Louis Roederer’s CEO Frédéric Rouzaud, his cellar master Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon and the designer Philippe Starck. Their conversations led to the creation of the very first Brut Nature in 2006 and the relationship continued to grow over the years to give us the 2009 and 2012 vintages. The Brut Nature was born from an idea of the dreamed-for, perfect champagne. It is a wine that captures the freshness of the clay soils in a sunny year, a wine of truth, the testimony to an encounter, a soil, a year, free spirits and the independent spirit that runs through the Champagne House. It is a champagne that perfectly encapsulates this new exploration of a Louis Roederer terroir.

By allowing us to interpret his words, Philippe has enabled us to go beyond boundaries that we would not otherwise have crossed were it not for his clear vision and guidance. The more precise he was in the description of his dream, the more precise we were able to be in the creation of his champagne — Frédéric Rouzaud, CEO.

THE EXPRESSION OF A TERROIR THE BLACK SOILS OF CUMIERES

Cumières clay hillside, turned towards the sun and basking in its light, is a hallowed enclave, whose grapes always possess a remarkable fragrance and richness. These black soils, on the banks of the Marne river, have long been known to produce generous, opulent and intensely fragrant grapes. In warmer years the grapes obtain incredible ripeness and a higher vibration which gives us this lovely contrast between fruity intensity and salinity. This terroir is composed of the three “Chèvres" plots which are situated on a small hillock on the outskirts of the village of Cumières. They were formerly used as grazing land and have a variety of different exposures. “Les Pierreuses” is the highest, most pebbly, south-facing section of the hillside, whilst “Les Chèvres” lies further down near the road, faces southeast and has a higher clay content. Lastly “Les Clos” is a small, southwest facing mound with the highest clay content of them all.

A unique and dynamic language that stems from the work in the vineyards — Philippe Starck, designer.

GENTLE AND MEASURED GROWING PRACTICES

This terroir is worked gently using a respectful and measured winegrowing approach to preserve its unique energy. This gentle and respectful approach to winegrowing enriches the spirit of the place, the origins of the wine and the clay composition of the soils. The blend of varietals further reinforces this unique expression of the wine’s origins. The grapes are picked on the same day and pressed together, all at once, a technique commonly employed by our forefathers. No further blending is carried out after this point and the wines are directly bottled at the end of the fermentation process.

Brut Nature is a laboratory that allows Louis Roederer to push this living matter, this biodiversity, as far as we can, to see to what extent this biodiversity could perhaps take over from many of our practices — Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, Cellar Master.

THE SPECTACULAR 2015 VINTAGE

2015 was a continental year that blessed us with perfectly ripe grapes with intensely fruity aromas, a dense texture and remarkable concentration. It was a spectacular vintage with a hot, sunny summer, record high temperatures and a glorious end to the season with rainy spells that helped to slow the ripening. This cool end to the growing cycle resulted in juicy grapes with a particularly interesting sappy, vegetal character.

We're heading in the right direction for the future — Philippe Starck, designer.

VINTAGE

An extraordinary vintage which is also the year in which the Champagne region was recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site! 2015 followed the continental trend of that decade: a mild, wet winter and a hot, dry summer. The summer, hot and sunny, brought record-breaking temperatures and water stress. The second half of August brought some very welcome rain, giving the vines some much needed relief. Thanks to this fresh finish, the vines produced juicy, ripe and concentrated grapes. Our ambition for this vintage? To capture the concentration which is the hallmark of this spectacular vintage!

The Nature 2015 is an intense and perfectly honed wine. It is very expressive yet also minimalist, pure, fresh and elegant.

TASTING NOTES

Yellow hue with shimmering highlights and an even flow of lively bubbles.

The bouquet is pure, elegant, vertical, rich and concentrated. Nuances of ripe fruit combined with exceptional finesse: fine, delicate citrus peel (lemon, orange) and vanilla (Madagascar bourbon vanilla) along with warmer notes of baked apple and Tarte Tatin that gradually give way to aromas of nougat.

The palate offers a marked and singular contrast: it is very expressionist thanks to the broad, juicy, almost sensual texture of the Cumières clay soils in a sunny year, yet distinctly minimalist due to a fresh, pure, mineral and mouthwatering backbone associated with its zero dosage. Ripe citrus fruit combines with warm stone notes further accentuating the mouthwatering, umami sensation. The finish is light, energetic and ethereal.