Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/188061
tried to make cider, "But the apples are more for human consumption and not so suited to the task," says Weyrich. As for the grape vines, "We have clear days with bright sun but cool and mostly foggy nights, which is really beneficial to grapes as they don't ripen so fast, especially our Pinot Noir, which is finicky and doesn't like to be rushed. With a sparkling wine you want to retain freshness, crisp acidity. Proximity to ocean creates the ideal conditions to grow these European varietals," Weyrich explains. Roederer Today quality sparkling wines. Jean-Claude decided to employ a local boutique winery to make a small batch of test wine, so that he and Bugatto could ultimately decide on the area's potential. The results were greatly to their liking and in 1982 Roederer was established with roughly 580 acres of sheep pasture and land dotted with fruit trees, little of it planted to vine. They kept some heirloom apple trees as a tribute to the valley and even The Roederer Estate has one goal in mind: to create a wine equally as good as in Champagne, that carries a California price tag. Their entry level Brut runs about $23 and their superbly rich L'Ermitage is $47, with the limited L'Ermitage Rosé climbing to $70. Part of the reason Roederer can keep prices at truly reasonable levels is owing to the fact that they own all of their vineyards, a detail that sets them apart from most other producers making sparkling wines in California—giving them control of when to pick, evaluating block after block in a systematic and timely approach to harvest. The 2013 harvest got underway in late August and Weyrich says that a combination of a dry spring and mild to warm temperatures throughout the growing season allowed for even ripening and an earlier-than-expected harvest. As of late August, "The maturity of the phenolic components is coming together nicely and yields are good. So you have quality and quantity having dinner at the same table: a fairly rare occurrence!" Weyrich tells THE TASTING PANEL. "In California, we are the only estate that has such an extensive use of reserve wine. And we are one of the two large sparkling makers that are estates. There's us and Domaine Carneros," says Weyrich. At Roederer, under his watch, everything is made in the méthode champenoise, grapes are handharvested and all the winemaking decisions are made as if operating in Champagne. Though when it comes to labeling, Weyrich hesitates to use the words "non-vintage" to describe his non-vintage wines. Explaining this in a jocular tone, he remarks, "It's a multi-vintage cuveé, because what is non-vintage? Non-vintage is nothing!" From 200 blocks, picked within three weeks of one another, tasting at Roederer Estate begins in December and finishes in March just before bottling in April. "We are matchmakers in a way," says Weyrich, "as we try to assess qualities and flaws and we taste the cask and the reserve and assess the strength, working to match those together so we can overcome the elements of a vintage that might be missing." The benefit of making a sparkling wine in the méthode champenoise manner is that the cuveés age exceptionally well. Of Roederer's vintagedated L'Ermitage (annual production ranges from zero cases to 8,000 in truly impressive years), Weyrich is a big fan of the 1996 and 2002 because of the rich and complex tertiary qualities they've developed. On the subject of aging wine and aging in general, Weyrich sees the arch in a positive light: "You tend to shy away from older vintages when you are younger, but then you learn to acquire the taste for less fruitiness, and that layered complexity, a bit of that butterscotch, richness, complexity that you learn to enjoy and like." TASTING NOTE Roederer Estate 2004 L'Ermitage (SRP $47) Straw colored with flecks of rose gold. A burst of fresh red and yellow apples give way to lemon curd, butterscotch and toast. A superbly creamy mousse overwhelms the palate as that apple character mingles with citrus notes and a limestone minerality. The finish is beautiful and persistence offering delicately toasted hazelnut overtones. —J. C. october 2013 / the tasting panel / 75 TP1013_066-107.indd 75 9/23/13 10:34 PM