Pol Roger Winston Churchill 2012

• Already great after a little aeration

• A great year for Winston Churchill

Richard Juhlin has just written a tasting note that sums it up perfectly: Oh, so young, but so seductively beautiful. Here it is easy to go wrong in a blind tasting if you are in too much of a hurry. Initially, the scent is disturbingly weak, but with time in the glass and after opening, the entire typical scent spectrum that makes up Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill comes so slowly. The bone structure is narrow and lean, but unbreakable and sturdy like a California Sequoia and is derived from hard metal Pinot Noir from Verzenay. The mouthfeel is magnificent from the start with a contrast between softness and expanding power together with young lively aromas of grass, gooseberries and strawberries. Over time, the whole wine becomes more homogeneous and aristocratic, where dark chocolate, licorice, the crust of a freshly baked baguette, Gravenstein apples, Nice olives, orange nougat, cherries and mint interact beautifully in a unique symphonic harmony that the good Winston had loved.

The rating of 95(93) must be viewed in the context that most good champagnes get rated 70 to 80 by Juhlin and that only one time 100 points have been awarded. Coincidentally for a 1928 Pol Roger.

Pol Roger does not specify the cuvée or the vineyards. However, Pinot Noir is dominant, accounting for 70 to 80% of the blend, as are the vineyard holdings. These are Grands Crus. The focus is probably on Verzenay. The Chardonnay probably comes mainly from the Grands Crus Avize and Le Mesnil. As vinification in steel tanks with malolactic fermentation is very mainstream, the secret of Winston Churchill lies in the quality of the grapes and the composition of the cuvée.

After a mild, dry winter, which was only really cold at the beginning of February, the weather became unusually warm towards the end of March. The vines budded early but were affected by several late frosts. These reduced the flowers and resulted in small yields. Hot, sunny weather from the end of July to the beginning of September ensured that the grapes reached ideal ripeness. However, the acidity remained quite high. The harvest began on 10 September and ended on 26 September.

Like many 2012 wines, Winston Churchill is already showing itself from a very attractive side. It still has potential for at least another 15 years, but will not be as long-lived as 2002 and 2008.

96+ William Kelley conquerparker.com Pol Roger's newly released 2012 Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill is showing brilliantly, bursting from the glass with youthful aromas of honeyed pears, toasted brioche, pomelo, fresh pastry, green apple and mandarin orange, with hints of stone fruit emerging with time in the glass. Full-bodied, vinous and textural, with an enveloping core of fleshy, concentrated fruit, bright acids and an elegant pinpoint mousse, it concludes with a long, penetrating finish. More muscular and vibrant than the generous and charming 2009, the 2012 ranks alongside the 2008 and 2002 as one of the three finest renditions of Sir Winston Churchill this millennium—and in style it resembles a hypothetical blend of those two vintages.

96 Antonio Galloni vinous.com Pol Roger's flagship Brut Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill is fabulous in 2012. Rich, open-knit and seductive, the 2012 will drink well right out of the gate, although it certainly has the pedigree to age well for decades. Lemon confit, chamomile, dried flowers, mint, spice and a kick of brioche infuse the 2012 with notable textural richness and resonance. Time in the glass brings out gorgeous aromatic lift to round things out. The 2012 is classy and polished all the way

750 mL

12.5

Champagne

Pinot Noir & Chardonnay

Sulphites

• Brut

France

Pol Roger, 1 Rue Winston Churchill, 51200 Épernay, France