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Pol Roger Champagne Event at The Tasting Room

Last night, my husband and I went to the Pol Roger Champagne event at The Tasting Room in Uptown Park. This tasting was set up with a live feed with the winery and with the importer for a question and answer type discussion during the event. This was the first event of this type that TTR had hosted. It was an intimate group setting which was limited to only twelve guests. I think the format does hold great promise but we did experience some technical difficulties on our end which I am sure will be rectified in the future.

 Pol Roger is one of the smaller Grand Marque Champagne houses which has been family-owned and operated since its establishment in 1849. They own 50% of the vineyards from which their grapes are sourced which is very unusual and obtain the rest exclusively from 1er and Grand Cru vineyards. Their total production is 1.5 million bottles per year yet they maintain their traditional production methods including hand-riddling every bottle.

We were fortunate enough to taste four of their offerings:

 Pol Roger Brut Reserve "White Foil" NV- The blend was equal parts Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. It displayed light toasty aromas with touches of lemon zest and floral notes and had a creamy-smooth dry apple lightly lingering finish. $61.99

 Pol Roger Pure Brut NV-I was very excited to try this one as I had not had this particular zero dosage style and it did not disappoint. It was also equal parts Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. It had fresh aromas of citrus, peach and yeasty bread dough with a fabulous acid attack in the mouth with a zesty green apple, chalky finish. $71.99

 Pol Roger Brut Blanc de Blanc Vintage 1999-100% Chardonnay, of course. This was a more complex, full-bodied style with a warm brioche and honey bouquet with some mineral and floral notes. It had a toasted almond, lightly-spicy long buttery finish. $143.99

 Pol Roger Brut Rose Vintage 2002-A blend of 50% Pinot Noir, 35% Chardonnay and 15% Pinot Meunier. This wine was a bright salmon pink with endless bubbles and lots of ripe strawberry and raspberry aromas with some floral notes on the nose. It was full-bodied with a lingering dry, fruity finish. $112.99

 All four of these Champagnes exhibited the expected crisp, dry elegance of each particular style. All were exceptional, you are only limited in your selection by your own style preferences, occasion and budget. (Prices shown here are those at The tasting Room). 
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