Critic ratings
robert_parker
2007
Rating:
96
–96
A blend of 72% Pinot Noir (mainly from Aÿ and Verzenay) with 28% Chardonnay (Cramant and Oger), Bollinger's 2007 La Grande Année Rosé Brut is a rich and powerful yet fresh and tightly woven Champagne that gets its characteristic coral color from the addition of 6% red Côte aux Enfants Pinot Noir from Aÿ. Fermented entirely in barrels and aged under natural cork, the 2007 offers a chalky-pure and matured bouquet of redcurrants, green figs, dark chocolate, minty and dried floral expressions. Very fresh and elegant on the palate, this is a full-bodied, dense, complex and structured rosé with a long, intense and well-structured finish that reveals the youthful soul of this fresh and chalky 2007. This is a long-distance runner and surely a wine to have with poultry dishes such as duck or pigeon. It will strongly benefit from further bottle aging. Tasted in May and June 2018 from lot L1733457 that was disgorged in November 2016.
robert_parker
2007
Rating:
94
–94
Containing some 6% red wine from Bollinger's La Côte aux Enfants vineyard, the 2007 La Grande Année Rosé offers up a complex bouquet of dried orange peel, walnuts, confit lemon and crisp orchard fruit. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, chalky and structured, with bright acids and a more overtly phenolic chassis than its white counterpart, concluding with a long, delicately nutty finish.
robert_parker
2004
Rating:
91
–91
The 2004 La Grande Année Rosé is based on 68% Pinot Noir and 32% Chardonnay, 89% from Grand Cru villages and 11% from Premier Crus. Disgorged in July 2013, this salmon colored rosé champagne displays fine red berry and floral flavors on the nose, whereas the palate is vibrant, taut and linear; it is full of tension, power and minerality, and extremely refreshing but not as elegant and refined as the white twin. The finish is a little bit stringent.
robert_parker
2004
Rating:
96
–96
The 2004 Brut Rose La Grande Annee is a beautifully focused, vibrant wine endowed with striking minerality and fabulous overall balance. Clean veins of chalkiness run through the fruit in this energetic, taut Rose, while seductive floral notes linger on the finish. The 2004 is 68% Pinot Noir (including 5% still Pinot) and 32% Chardonnay, 89% from Grand Cru villages and 11% from Premier Crus. The 2004 is very young, but it is going to be nearly impossible to resist. It is a dazzling effort from Bollinger. Disgorged September 2011. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2029.
Bollinger is of course one of the great names in Champagne. The Special Cuvee is typically one of my favorite wines in its price range, but it is the 2004 Rose La Grande Annee that steals the show this year. Bollinger is unique among Champagne houses in that the reserve wines are all bottled in magnum and with natural cork, a huge, labor-intensive effort.
Importer: Terlato Wines International, Lake Bluff, IL; tel. (847) 604-8900
robert_parker
2002
Rating:
93
–93
The 2002 Brut Rose La Grande Annee is rather delicate and subdued at first, but then emerges beautifully in the glass, turning richer and weightier with air. The wine possesses gorgeous inner perfume, superb length and great overall balance. The 2002 Brut Rose La Grande Annee is 62% Pinot Noir and 38% Chardonnay, with the addition of 7% still Pinot from Ay. The vineyard blend in 2002 is 73% Grand Cru, 27% Premier Cru. This bottle was disgorged in May, 2009. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2019.
This is a beautiful set of new releases from Bollinger, one of Champagne’s reference-point houses. The wines are aged in neutral oak barrels, while all of the reserve wines are aged in magnums, a painstaking procedure that must be seen to be truly appreciated. This year I didn’t taste the entry-level NV Special Cuvee or Brut Rose, but the Special Cuvee in particular is typically one of my favorite Champagnes in the $75 price range.
Importer: Terlato Wines International, Lake Bluff, IL; tel. (847) 604-8900
robert_parker
2002
Rating:
94
–94
The 2002 Brut Rose La Grande Annee is a beautifully detailed, subtle wine. A noble, intriguing bouquet leads dried roses, berries, minerals all of which come together with gorgeous articulation. There is a wonderful balance between the vinosity of the Pinot and the more chalky, minerally elements that preserve freshness. The finish is totally impeccable and classy. In a word: Sublime. This is Lot L001831. Disgorged November 10, 2009. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2015.
This is an exceptional set of new wines from Bollinger, one of Champagne’s historic houses. From top to bottom, there isn’t anything Bollinger isn’t doing well these days. I recently sat down with Chef de Caves Matthieu Kaufmann to taste through a range of the house’s 2009s. Readers will find notes on that tasting on www.erobertparker.com One of the distinguishing features of the Bollinger style is the aging of reserve wines in magnum under cork (not crown seal), a painstaking labor of love. Bollinger also has some of the most informative back labels among the region’s larger producers. It would be great to see Krug, Moet & Chandon, Roederer, Taittinger, Veuve Cliquot and a number of the region’s big houses follow suit.
Importer: Terlato Wines International, Lake Bluff, IL; tel. (847) 604-8900
robert_parker
1999
Rating:
94
–94
Again, this has a very fine mousse. Salmon hue. A very well defined, succinct nose with hints of apple-blossom, rose petals, dried flowers and a touch of creme brulee. The palate is almost understated on the entry, the builds nicely with superb acidity, hints of walnut, smoke a hint of rose water. Great precision on the finish with a lingering, mineralite finish. Tasting against the non-vintage rose, it is wine that has finer focus. Superb. Tasted October 2008.
robert_parker
1999
Rating:
91
–91
The salmon-colored 1999 La Grande Annee Rose is a pretty Champagne that offers terrific balance in its expansive, sweet core of fruit and expressive aromatics. The warm, opulent quality of the vintage comes through in the wine's soft, caressing texture. As outstanding as this wine is, it doesn't quite have the complexity I had hoped for. That may come with further cellaring, only time will tell. The 1999 La Grande Annee Rose is composed of 65% Pinot Noir and 35% Chardonnay, with 7% of still Ay Pinot, all first pressing juice. 82% of the fruit came from grand cru vineyards while 18% came from premier cru sites. The dosage was 7-9 grams and this bottle was disgorged in March 2008. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2014.
Under the direction of Chef de Caves Mathieu Kauffmann, Bollinger produces one of the most consistent lineups in Champagne.Bollinger is one of the handful of larger firms that manages to put out consistently high quality wines despite its size. This estate based in Ay is probably best known to the public through its long association with the James Bond films, which is quite possibly one of the most successful product placement campaigns of all time. Despite the show biz glamor that has inextricably become part of the Bollinger mystique, at their best these are serious wines with significant aging potential. The low-dosage R.D. (recently-disgorged) series can be tremendous, and the Vielles Vignes Francaises, made from pre-phylloxera Pinot Noir vines, is one of Champagne's most exotic bottlings. The estate favors neutral oak barrels for the aging of its top wines. One of the most unique aspects of this estate is that the reserve wines are aged in magnum, rather than in tank, which is the prevailing custom in the region. Bollinger's back labels are quite informative, but it would be nice to see disgorgement dates as well on the non-vintage wines.
Importer: Terlato Wines International, Lake Bluff, IL; tel. (847) 604-8900
vinous
2004
Rating:
96
–96
The 2004 Brut Rosé La Grande Année is a beautifully focused, vibrant wine endowed with striking minerality and fabulous overall balance. Clean veins of chalkiness run through the fruit in this energetic, taut Rosé, while seductive floral notes linger on the finish. The 2004 is 68% Pinot Noir (including 5% still Pinot) and 32% Chardonnay, 89% from Grand Cru villages and 11% from Premier Crus. The 2004 is very young, but it is going to be nearly impossible to resist. It is a dazzling effort from Bollinger. Disgorged September 2011.
vinous
2004
Rating:
94
–94
(disgorged May, 2012; L218732): Bright orange-pink. Potent, mineral-accented aromas of redcurrant and blood orange, with smoke, anise and floral accents and a hint of chalky minerals. Sappy red berry and candied citrus flavors show excellent vivacity and put on weight with air. Finishes plush and expansive, with bitter orange pith and ginger notes adding lift and bite. Showing impressive complexity now but this should be even better in a couple of years.
vinous
2005
Rating:
90
–90
A pretty, delicate wine, the 2005 Brut Rosé La Grande Année is also a bit more intriguing than the Grande Année, as it has more mid-palate pliancy and greater overall depth. Crushed flowers, sweet red berries, cinnamon and rose petal notes inform the effortless, gracious finish. Disgorged: May 2015.
vinous
2012
Rating:
96
–96
The 2012 La Grande Année Rosé is airy, gracious and so wonderfully inviting. Crushed flowers, mint, white pepper and red berry fruit are all gracefully woven together. Today, the 2012 is naturally quite young and still shows the tension of a Champagne that was disgorged just a few months ago. Readers who prefer Champagnes with softer edges and a bit more flavor complexity will want to cellar the 2012. I have to admit, I very much like the wine today, in its youthful state, where its energy and focus are front and center.The 2012 is a blend of 67% Pinot Noir and 33% Chardonnay taken from 21 villages built around a core of Aÿ and Verzenay Pinot Noir and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and Oiry Chardonnay, crus that are quite complementary. Disgorged January 2020. Dosage is 8 grams per liter.
vinous
2014
Rating:
97
–97
The 2014 Rosé La Grande Année is airy, gracious and full of energy. Crushed rocks, white pepper, red berry, mint and blood orange lend striking aromatic intensity and presence. Finely cut and taut, the Rosé is a nervy Champagne that needs time to come together. The Rosé is blended from a base of the Blanc plus 5% still red Pinot from Bollinger’s Coteaux des Enfants vineyard in Aÿ. Perhaps because of its later disgorgement vis-à-vis the Blanc, the Rosé is a bit tight today. Disgorged: August, 2021. Dosage: 8 grams per liter.
