Bollinger : La Grande Année Rosé 2012

Disgorged with eight grams per liter dosage, Bollinger's 2012 Brut La Grande Année Rosé is showing beautifully, wafting from the glass with aromas of raspberries, plums, orange rind, walnuts and fresh bread that only hint of the complexity to come. Full-bodied, broad and vinous, with fine depth at the core, a pinpoint mousse and racy acids, it concludes with a long and perfumed finish. The blend includes 5% red wine exclusively from Bollinger's La Côte Aux Enfants vineyard—which imparts delicate phenolic grip.

Enticing aromas and flavors of wild strawberry, apricot and Macadamia nut are woven with accents of saffron, ground ginger, honey and orange peel in this seamlessly knit rosé in a vinous style. Satiny in texture, with an overall grace that belies the powerful tension and focus throughout, driving the lasting finish. Drink now through 2035.

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. (Originally published in August 2020)

A beautiful, alluring palette with a lovely fruit identity. It’s spot-on and precise, with fruit that reaches into florality and macerated fruit. The palate is broad and balanced. The power builds crescendo-style, leading to a superb retro of flavors.

(disgorgement: 08/2019) The nose is fresh and offers very fine richness, lovely grain finesse, elegance, and depth. It reveals notes of raspberry, peach cream and, more lightly, fresh cherry, along with small touches of crushed apple, fine hints of lychee and peach blossom, as well as discreet notes of biscuit and almond, plus an imperceptible hint of vanilla cream in the background. The palate is fresh, mineral, fruity, balanced, precise and offers a certain richness (yet in balance), elegance, a zesty backbone, a lovely creamy texture, and precision. The effervescence is very fine, creamy, and elegant. On the palate, this Champagne shows notes of juicy/fresh lemon and fresh raspberry, and more lightly fresh strawberry, joined by a touch of citron, crushed green apple, subtle hints of custard, very discreet pastry notes, and an imperceptible touch of Bourbon vanilla pod. Good length.

As a rich dense Champagne that manages to bring in so many complex flavors, this is impressive. It has tense acidity, along with fresh red fruits that are just beginning to deepen and concentrate. They are balanced with the minerality and acidity as well as the weight of the Pinot Noir. Begin to drink this beautiful wine now although it has many years ahead of it.