Champagne Louis Roederer Cristal Brut (in gift box) 2015

There’s Champagne and there’s Cristal, a legend ever since Tzar Alexander II demanded it in special clear bottles in 1876. The fact that the wine wasn’t commercially available until 1945 merely elevated its cachet. More recently, Cristal gained notoriety as the preferred Champagne of high-profile rap artists including 50 Cent and Puff Daddy. Sales continue to boom. Hugh Johnson calls it “fabulous, one of the most luscious Champagnes, racy but deeply flavoured”. Its rare quality is derived from Roederer’s Grand Cru vineyards, which rank 98% on the region’s Echelle des Crus (a vinous league table). Suckling describes its “tremendous freshness and elegance”, while Vinous calls it “rich, dense and explosive, with tremendous textural intensity”.