With more than 170 years in family hands, Pol Roger stands as one of the most unique houses in Champagne.
The stories of wartime Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill are many and colourful, but the man had taste – that fact is undeniable. This taste, and the play of chance, brought Churchill and the Pol Roger family together in 1944 during the reopening of the British Embassy in Paris in 1944. The ties between the two families grew strong. Pol Roger was Churchill’s favourite Champagne, and he even named his favourite racehorse Pol Roger.
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. It is made in a style which Churchill himself favoured: robust, mature and long-lived.
The first “Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill” was from the 1975 vintage and was released, in 1.5L only in 1984 with the launch taking place at Blenheim Palace. There followed 1979, 1982, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998,1999, 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006.
The latest vintage, 2008, is the seventeenth of this great cuvée and is released only after 9 years of cellaring.
The opulent golden colour of the wine is enlivened by a fine, harmonious stream of bubbles. At first, the rich nose boasts notes of white flowers and freshly baked brioche aromas. As the wine warms in the glass, it exudes scents of dried fruits and toasted almonds and hazelnuts, combining with a hint of orange zest.
On the palate, the wine is immediately powerful and yet exquisitely well-balanced; refreshing flavours of citrus fruit, notably grapefruit, are coupled with creamy notes of pastry.
This wine combines the fullness of the much-celebrated 2008 vintage with the unparalleled and much-loved style of the Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill. A long, lingering finish indicates that this wine has fantastic ageing potential.
