Not a Burgundy copy

The eagerly awaited still wines (Coteaux Champenois AOP) from Louis Roederer celebrate their premiere: The 2018 Pinot Noir comes from a 43-acre parcel in the Charmont vineyard in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ and is named Camille Charmont. The Chardonnay 2018 is grown in Le Mesnil-Sur-Oger.

The Camille Volibarts are historic Chardonnay clones planted in the Volibarts site (55 ares). Both wines will be available from Schlumberger from March 2021, of course in strictly limited quantities (prices 160 and 140 euros). The name Camille refers to Camille Olry-Roederer, the great-grandmother of Roederer owner Frédéric Rouzaud, who took over the management of Louis Roederer after the death of her husband Léon Olry-Roederer in 1932 and remained at the head of the company until 1975. Cellar master Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon revealed that they had worked on it for 15 years, starting with the selection and planting of suitable plots geared towards the production of still wine. “The big issue is the tannins. We want to express the terroir of the crus of Mareuil-sur-Aÿ and Le Mesnil-Sur-Oger, only as still wine and not as usual with pearls. This expression comes through the tannins. We definitely didn’t want to make a copy of Burgundy.”