Under the same roof…A blind Champagne & Rosé Champagne tasting

Our good friends from the Finest Bubble are delighted to present to us an intriguing challenge…

Members are invited to compare 8 pairs of Blanc and Rosé Prestige Cuvée Champagnes, chosen from the same Champagne house, under the guidance of Finland’s first Master of Wine, Essi Avellan MW, Champagne journalist and author.

Champagne from either of the two black grapes has the ability to be pink; pressing Pinot Noir or Meunier grapes straight after picking gives near white juice. A few Champagne Houses ferment the black grapes with the skins for the pink colour, but a large majority of Houses get the desired Rosé colour by adding 8-20% of locally made red wine from Pinot Noir grown in the warmer villages of Bouzy and Aÿ.

The red wine is blended before the still wines enter the bottle for the second fermentation, with the style of Rosé varying significantly depending on the Chef de Cave’s preference. The winemaker might prefer a Rosé Champagne with a hint of influence from the red wine, or alternatively a Champagne that will be distinctly different to the Blanc version, expressing red wine characteristics.

With live voting, Members will blind taste the handpicked selection of Blanc Champagne prior to tasting the Rosé, and will decide on a preference without any brand preconceptions. A competition will be taking place throughout the evening to ascertain who can correctly identify the pairs and match the Blanc de Blancs and Rosé from the same Champagne house…

We will enjoy:

2007 Bollinger La Grande Année & 2007 La Grande Année Rosé
2006 Dom Pérignon Blanc & 2005 Rosé
1995 Dom Pérignon P2 Blanc & 1995 P2 Rosé
2002 Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs & 2002 Rosé
Krug Grande Cuvée 163rd Edition & NV Krug Rosé
NV Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle & 2004 Laurent-Perrier Alexandra Rosé
2009 Louis Roederer Cristal Blanc & 2009 Cristal Rosé
2006 Taittinger Comtes Blanc de Blancs & 2006 Rosé