Cristal 2018: When a Hot Summer Meets 150 Years of History
There are announcements where I drop everything else for a moment, and the news that Louis Roederer is presenting the new 2018 vintage of Cristal definitely falls into that category. Not just because Cristal is, for me, one of the most exciting prestige champagnes out there, but because this release happens to coincide with the cuvée's 150th birthday. Cristal was originally created in 1876 for Tsar Alexander II, a story I find fascinating every time I read about it.
What makes Cristal so special to me?
As an enthusiast, Cristal has never simply been "just another prestige champagne" to me. It's a cuvée that has traditionally defined itself very strongly through terroir, with grapes coming exclusively from Grand-Cru sites. For the 2018, the grapes come from Verzenay, Verzy, Beaumont-sur-Vesle, Aÿ, Avize, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, and Cramant. That reads like a map of the finest corners of Champagne, and that's exactly what appeals to me.
A vintage that was anything but easy
Weather-wise, 2018 was a real rollercoaster: an unusually wet winter, a mild, stormy spring, and then a summer that, from everything I've read about it, even broke the heat records of 2003. Dry, sunny, hot. For viticulture, that sounds risky at first, but apparently the harvest was abundant and the grapes arrived at the house in nearly perfect condition. That surprises me a bit, since with hot vintages I'd normally expect issues with acidity.
How Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon responded to the heat
This is where it gets really interesting for me. Cellar master Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, who has been in charge of Roederer's cellar since 1999, seems to have made a very deliberate counter-move in 2018. Instead of the usual roughly 45 parcels, 57 were used for this vintage, presumably to balance out the heat extremes of individual sites and bring more complexity into play. I also find it fascinating that the Chardonnay share was increased to 43 percent, alongside 57 percent Pinot Noir. That makes total sense to me: in a hot year, Chardonnay provides the freshness and acid structure that Pinot Noir may no longer be able to deliver on its own after a summer like that.
Oak use was also reduced, with only 28 percent of the wines vinified in oak, less than usual. And apparently the wines were racked and bottled more quickly after fermentation than usual, to avoid too much richness and weight in the wine. Malolactic fermentation was skipped entirely, coming in at zero percent. To me, this reads like a very thoughtful overall concept: everything geared toward preserving freshness and tension in a hot year, rather than risking a heavy, overripe wine.
Biodynamics as a common thread
One detail I find particularly notable: 2018 is already the sixth Cristal vintage to come entirely from biodynamically farmed vineyards. Roederer began converting large parts of its own sites to biodynamics years ago, and it seems this approach now runs consistently through the entire Cristal production. To me, that's a sign that this isn't about a marketing label, but about a long-term philosophy in the vineyard.
Long aging, late disgorgement
With roughly 6.5 years on the lees and a disgorgement only in September 2025, Roederer has once again taken its time. The dosage sits at 7 grams per liter, which is on the moderate side for prestige cuvées, though by no means bone-dry. No Blanc de Blancs was produced for 2018, by the way, which I personally find a shame, but understandable given the challenges of the vintage.
My expectations
I haven't tasted the 2018 yet, of course. According to retailers, it won't hit shelves until fall 2026. But just the description of the vinification already makes me curious: a hot vintage deliberately steered toward tension rather than opulence, with more Chardonnay, less oak, and no malolactic fermentation. If that pays off, this could turn out to be one of the more structured, tightly built Cristal vintages in recent memory. I'll definitely be picking up a bottle as soon as it's available, and of course I'll share my honest impressions here once I do.