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Sir Winston Churchill was Pol Roger's most illustrious devotee and customer. This champagne is made in his honour. The composition of the blend is a closely guarded family secret but from tasting it is likely that the champagne features a large percentage of Pinot Noir with the remainder made up from Chardonnay. The grapes are all from Grand Cru vineyards which were under vine during Churchill's lifetime and it is only ever made in the very best vintages. It is made in a style which Churchill himself favoured: robust, mature and long-lived.
Dosage: 10.5 g/l
Churchill's relationship with Pol Roger dates back to 1945, although he had been a loyal customer as far back as 1908. At a luncheon given by the British ambassador to France after the liberation of Paris, Churchill met the charming and captivating Odette Pol-Roger and began a friendship, indulged by his wife Clementine, which lasted until Sir Winston's death in 1965. Each year on his birthday, Odette would send him a case of vintage champagne. In honour of his friendship, Churchill named one of his favourite racehorses after her, and made sure that she was invited to lunch at the British embassy every time he was in Paris. Despite never actually visiting 44 Avenue de Champagne, Churchill proclaimed it "the most drinkable address in the world". So close was his relationship with the family that, on Churchill's death, Pol Roger put black-bordered labels on the bottles destined for the UK. In 1975, Pol Roger went one step further and named their prestige cuvée after him, making it in the robust, mature style that he liked so much.
The exact composition of this Cuvée is a family secret but it is likely that Pinot Noir dominates 70-80% of the blend with the rest being Chardonnay. The grapes are all from Grand Cru vineyards which were under vine during Churchill’s lifetime and it is only made in the very best vintages. The 1998 vintage shows all the hallmarks of a truly outstanding year with high natural sugar content in the grapes and an excellent level of acidity indicating an exceptional overall balance and long ageing potential.
Given its youth the wine still holds a lot in reserve but it has a masculine structure and phenomenal length.
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