2012 L'Ermitage Brut Rose
Founded in 1982, Roederer Estate is nestled in Mendocino County’s fog-shrouded, Anderson Valley. As the California property of Champagne Louis Roederer, Roederer Estate builds upon a centuries-old tradition of fine winemaking. The premium grape growing region’s proximity to the ocean gives rise to a gentle cycle of warm days and cool nights, allowing grapes to mature slowly on the vine and develop full varietal character.Among the very few California sparkling wine houses that only sources estate-grown fruit, Roederer Estate is also meticulous about all its farming decisions. The winemaking process begins with in-depth knowledge of the Estate soils to introduce open lyre trellis system or high density plantation, extends to the decision to farm vineyards organically and biodynamically, and finishes by painstakingly tracking grape maturity to achieve perfect balance at harvest.
L’Ermitage, Roederer Estate’s special tête de cuvée, is a sparkling wine made only in exceptional years from pre-selected, estate-grown grapes. Carrying on the tradition of Champagne Louis Roederer in France, Roederer Estate produces its sparkling wines in the French méthode traditionelle and adds special oak-aged reserve wines to each blend. L’Ermitage debuted with the 1989 vintage.
95 Points, Cellar Selection
“This wonderfully elegant and subtle wine is well-suited for a special occasion now through at least 2025. It offers complex and intriguing aromas of toast, ginger and raspberry followed by a light but creamy mouthfeel buoyed by minute, persistent bubbles.”
— Wine Enthusiast, Jim Gordon, December 1, 2020
95 Points
“This has a great nose, bursting with blood orange, candied ginger and lemon peel aromas, with hints of marzipan, leading to steely and mature flavors that linger delicately on the spicy finish. Nicely combines freshness and maturity. Drink now.”
— Wine Spectator, Tim Fish, October 21, 2020
94 Points
“It's rare to find a sparkling wine outside of Champagne with this rosé's finesse. The Roederer Estate team, led by Arnaud Weyrich and under the guidance of Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon in Reims, are rosé specialists. They produce this wine by first selecting the top fruit from Roederer's 580 acres of estate-owned vineyards, blending virtually equal amounts of chardonnay and pinot noir as the base wine, and including a small amount of delicately macerated pinot noir for color and fragrance. That points up the pale-pink raspberry freshness of this eight-year-old youth. Like the best release of L'Ermitage, those flavors have precision, a concentrated presence and ethereal finesse.”
— Wine & Spirits, Josh Greene, October 2020
94 Points
“Pale salmon-pink, the 2012 L'Ermitage Brut Rosé offers up fresh aromas of red berries, melon and peaches with nuances of mushroom, hay, toast, citrus peel and floral perfume coming through with time in the glass. The medium-bodied palate offers concentrated, pure, fresh fruits with lightly toasty accents, energetic mousse and addicting freshness on the long finish. Lovely! This was disgorged in June of 2019 and made with about eight grams per liter dosage.”
— The Wine Advocate, Erin Brooks, September 10, 2020
95 Points, Cellar Selection
This wonderfully elegant and subtle wine is well-suited for a special occasion...