Cristal Champagne

Cristal Champagne and Pop Culture

It goes without saying that Cristal Champagne is huge in American hip-hop culture. In Japan, the Yakuza have made Cristal a fashion accessory that coordinates with their irezumi (tattoos) and missing little finger. Not to be outdone, cash-laden Russian mafia-types like to display their indifference to excessiveness by downing bottle after bottle of the pricey Champagne at the chicest bars in Moscow.

For some reason Louis Roederer's prestige cuveè has become an archetype of excess and a symbol of ostentatious indulgence. In the U.S., Cristal has become synonymous with gansta rappers and other club-going celebrities. So, if you run with that type of crowd, go clubbin with Jay-Z or P. Diddy, then you've probably had a few glasses of this French spritzy golden liquid. Apparently Posh and the Becks drink only Cristal, so don't even bother sending a bottle of Dom their way. When I think of Cristal Champagne, a couple of words come to mind, extravangance and hype—and Cristal has a dump truck load of both.

Louis Roederer

Besides marking the year the American colonies decided to break from England, 1776 was also the year that the Louis Roederer Champagne House was founded by M. Duboise in Rheims, France. Since then, it has become one of the largest and most prestigious family-owned Champagne Houses that has endured its share of trials and tribulations. Louis Roederer himself was not present in its beginning but joined his uncle's enterprise in 1827 and inherited it in 1832.

Exhibiting no lack of ego, he gave it his own name. If nothing else, Mssr. Roederer was a great marketer and successfully penetrated the global marketplace with his Champagne. By the time of his death in 1870, Louis Roederer had turned his House into the leader in worldwide sales with the firm's two most important export markets being Russia and the United States, especially Russia, the Land of the Tsars. Marketing genius must be in the Roederer genes, in 1876 his son, Louis Roederer II, created a special cuveè for Tsar Alexander II. It was called, Cristal.

Champagne of the Tsars

There are several legends surrounding the origins of Cristal Champagne, all linked back to Tsar Alexander II. The primary story and the one endorsed by Louis Roederer, is first that Champagne had become the fashionable bubbly beverage of the Russian aristocracy. (Just think of Anna Karenina sharing a glass with Count Vronsky before their lives get overly intertwined and complicated.) If vodka was the ubiquitous beverage for the rabble-rousing proletariat, Champagne was Mother Russia's milk for the Imperial Court and aristocracy.

The Tsar took a liking for the sweeter (sec) natured composition of the Louis Roederer and commissioned his own Champagne. Furthermore, the Tsar wanted to make sure no one confused his Champagne with any of the other common bottles of bubbly wine that everyone else was drinking. Besides being insecure, Tsar Alexander was also borderline paranoid and felt that his admiring subjects wanted to assassinate him. He requested that his Champagne be bottled in clear crystal so that his favorite liquid did not mask an explosive charge or dagger. Roederer responded to the challenge by having a Belgian glassmaker produce a thick lead crystal bottle with a flat bottom.

The clear glass bottles were so strong that they did not need the punt (the indent on the bottle's bottom) to withstand the Champagne's pressure. The Tsar was pleased that his Roederer was different than everyone else's. No doubt the Russian Imperial Coat of Arms on the label also helped make a unique statement about the wine and set it apart from the competition. From that point on, Cristal became the traditional Champagne for the Romanovs of St. Petersburg, well, at least up until 1917.

A Different Cristal Story

The story above is a basic version. Another one has a couple of chiseling brothers, Leon and Gustav Bousigues, in France producing knock-off Champagne and adopting a deadbeat character named Theophile Roederer as a front man for their contraband label. In France this was illegal but in Russia, legal issues were more a state of mind and the two brothers began unloading their contraband there and garnering significant popularity.

According to this story, Tsar Alexander II, liked the brother's sweet version of Champagne and their unique clear crystal bottle and chose their Cristal as his personal Champagne. With the downfall of the Tsar Nicholas, the fate of the brother's Cristal Empire deflated and Louis Roederer acquired the derelict firm's assets including the Cristal Cuveè and its clear bottle design in bankruptcy. Thereupon, whitewashing the Cristal legacy.

Which is true? It is convenient to swallow the official Roederer story line but more interesting to contemplate the Bousigues version. Ooh-la-la.

Post Russian Revolution

With the loss of their best Russian customer, Tsar Nicholas, Louis Roederer hit hard times as their market dried up. However, Camille Orly-Roederer, widow of the grandnephew to the patriarch, Louis Roederer, set out to expand their Champagne empire. She rebuilt the company and began a program to increase their vineyard holdings in the Champagne region. By the mid-1990s, Louis Roederer claimed almost 500 acres of vineyards. These vast holdings gave Roederer the strength to be their own primary supplier of grapes for their Champagne. The result is their ability to maintain their autonomy and business independence, keeping Louis Roederer within the family. Today, Frederic Rouzaud, Camille's great-grandson, runs the company with his father, Jean-Claude serving as Chairman of the Board.

Cristal Secrets

So, why has Cristal Champagne become such a cult wine favorite? Perhaps one secret behind their success is their source for grapes, their own vines. They pick only the best grapes from their own Grand and Premier Crus within the Champagne region. Typically, Cristal is a blend of 45% Chardonnay and 55% Pinot Noir. It's the fizzy jewel of the House. The Champagne is aged 6-7 years on the lees with another six months after disgorging. Cristal is best to hold for up to a decade before popping the cork.

Stylized Champagne

One primary characteristic for Cristal is its expensive, the 2000 vintage goes for roughly $250.00 with auction prices all over the place. Earlier vintages can be had in the $500+ range. Looking past the price, the secrets to Cristal's style are not well hidden behind its clear glass bottle and opaque amber cellophane wrapper. The Cristal today is probably different than the one Tsar Alexander II took a fancy to in 1876. Today's Cristal is made in a drier Brut style that is marked by citrus, hints of biscuit, occasional honeyed texture and a sprig of acid bite. Cristal is perhaps slightly sweeter than other vintage Bruts but in a good vintage, the pricey elixir will show finesse, be expressive and demonstrate marvelous complexity. One bit of advice, sunlight is not a friend to Champagne and it best to keep your bottle of Cristal cellared in the dark until you are ready.

The Ultimate Champagne?

Can the actual Champagne meet the hype and a person's expectation? It's definitely an upper-tier prestige cuveè but is it worth the inflated price? To some perhaps but there are others who swear by Dom Pérignon and find it more vivacious and illuminating than Cristal. Others might be enticed by a Perrier-Joüet Fleur de Champagne and its Art Nouveau bottle. One shouldn't exclude Krug and their elegant Grand Cuvée. Then again mon amis, there's Champagne Salon. These are not quite as expensive as a Cristal and but they can win your Champagne-loving heart just as easily. You might also consider lowering your expectations a few rungs and consider other Champagnes to meet a more modest budget. Think about it, you can get a case of excellent bubbly wine for the price of a single bottle of Cristal. Note also, that Louis Roederer owns one of my favorite sparkling wine producers, Roederer Estate in California's Anderson Valley. They produce some of the best sparkling wine in the Roederer style for less than $25, far more affordable.

What Happened to the Hip-Hop Lovefest?

Tsk. Tsk. In 2006, after Louis Roederer's Managing Director, Frederic Rouzaud, responded in a less than complimentary fashion to a reporter's question about Cristal's association to the gangsta rap hip-hop community. As a result, Jay-Z and P. Diddy, two high profile Cristal evangelists, put a cork in their Louis Roederer Champagne and switched allegiance.