Pol Roger Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill 1998

The 1998 Brut Cuvee Sir Winston Churchill opens with intriguing, exotic notes of smoke, cured meats and tar. This is a big, sweeping Sir Winston Churchill endowed with layers of perfumed ripe pears, quince, flowers and spices in a style that balances a generous expression of fruit with acidity and minerality. Everything is in the right place in this delicate yet deeply satisfying Champagne. This bottle was disgorged at the beginning of 2007. Winston Churchill is Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with Pinot playing the leading role. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2023.

1998 Brut – Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill: (from magnum). A gloriously fresh and superbly classy nose of remarkable complexity evidences plenty of citrus, floral and yeast elements on the pear and apple-scented aromas. There is equally fine complexity to the wonderfully delineated middle weight flavors that caress the palate and are supported by a full-on but not foamy mousse on the beautifully textured and hugely persistent finish. This is a stunner of a Sir Winston that I have been a big fan of since it was released. The 2000 is finer and more graceful but if you enjoy bold flavor authority and punch coupled with terrific depth, the ’98 is significantly more interesting. Note that in magnum format this still has not reached its zenith and will need at least another 5 to 8 years to do so. 96/2020+
Pomme

Fine top note of refreshment and then great depth underneath. Very tight fine bead. Dry end. Great breadth. Herrumph of a broad Churchill chest. Bravo! Long. Drink 2008-2015. Date tasted 27th Jan 09.

Grape type, "100% proprietary secret;" this Cuvée was created inhomage to Sir Winston Churchill to embody the qualities he preferred in his Champagne: robustness, a full bodied characterand relative maturity; the fruit is from grand cru vineyards that were under vine during the lifetime of Churchill and this is onlymade in the best vintages). I am not always knocked out by the quality of what I find with this prestige cuvée, but when it'sright, it's really right. A glorious and superbly classy nose of remarkable complexity that is neither young nor aged slidesgracefully into equally complex flavors that caress the palate and the aspect that makes this all the more appealing is thesappiness on the finish that confers a textured character to the mouth feel. If there is a nit, and I stress that it's only a nit, thisis perhaps not quite as refined as the very best grands cuvées in Champagne but in a sense, this is like the old man himself -great but not necessarily a man of finesse. Whatever anthropomorphic descriptor you wish to invoke, this is a great examplethat could be drunk and enjoyed now or easily held for another ten years.