H. Billiot Fils Brut Rose
-
Wine &
Spirits -
Robert
Parker -
Wine
Spectator -
Jeb
Dunnuck
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
A generous and delicate blend rosé to which our red wines, produced and aged in barrels for 18 to 24 months depending on the year, will bring all the fruit of our Pinots Noirs.
Blend: 70% Pinot Noir, 10% Pinot Noir, 20% Chardonnay
Professional Ratings
-
Wine & Spirits
This is an exuberant rosé of pinot noir (including 20 percent chardonnay and 10 percent of the pinot vinified as a red wine). The pale copper-pink wine ferments in stainless steel and gains its substantial richness from Ambonnay fruit. The brisk chalk tension takes the red-currant flavors in a refreshing direction, a vinous Champagne with the kind of lush richness that would be delicious with ripe Camembert or other bloomy-rind cheese.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The NV Brut Rose Grand Cru blossoms beautifully in the glass with layers of fruit that fill out in the glass. As always, Billiot’s Rose is a rich, broad-shouldered wine with plenty of intensity and vinous depth.
-
Wine Spectator
Well-knit, with fresh acidity and a subtle tang of salinity married to flavors of wild strawberry, nectarine, chalk and pickled ginger set on a lacy mousse.
-
Jeb Dunnuck
The NV Champagne Brut Rosé is 80% Pinot Noir (10% vin rouge from 2016) and the remainder Chardonnay. It is lifted with a perfume of strawberries and cream, peach rings, and fresh flowers, and the palate is medium-bodied and refreshing, with an energetic mousse and a clean, modest finish. More tangerine citrus and a bit of salinity appear on the finish. This is a lovely entry rosé to drink over the next 10 years. Best after 2022.
Billiot’s five hectares of vines are all in Ambonnay, spread over 18 parcels. Even more impressive is that all but one of their parcels are on the mid-slope, in the most favored portion of the vineyard area, expressing the classical character of this famous village. "The wines of Ambonnay are very vinous, with a lot of strength," says Serge’s daughter, Laetitia "but they are also very fine, with delicacy and finesse. They stay fresh for a long time." All of the wines are fermented in enameled steel tanks, which Billiot prefers to stainless steel, and the wines are neither fined nor filtered. In addition, they do not go through malolactic: "We have 100-percent grand cru vines, which always give a high degree of maturity,” says Serge Billiot, “so we don’t need the malo."
What are the different types of sparkling rosé wine?
Rosé sparkling wines like Champagne, Prosecco, Cava, and others make a fun and festive alternative to regular bubbles—but don’t snub these as not as important as their clear counterparts. Rosé Champagnes (i.e., those coming from the Champagne region of France) are made in the same basic way as regular Champagne, from the same grapes and the same region. Most other regions where sparkling wine is produced, and where red grape varieties also grow, also make a rosé version.
How is sparkling rosé wine made?
There are two main methods to make rosé sparkling wine. Typically, either white wine is blended with red wine to make a rosé base wine, or only red grapes are used but spend a short period of time on their skins (maceration) to make rosé colored juice before pressing and fermentation. In either case the base wine goes through a second fermentation (the one that makes the bubbles) through any of the various sparkling wine making methods.
What gives rosé Champagne and sparkling wine their color and bubbles?
The bubbles in sparkling wine are formed when the base wine undergoes a secondary fermentation, which traps carbon dioxide inside the bottle or fermentation vessel. During this stage, the yeast cells can absorb some of the wine’s color but for the most part, the pink hue remains.
How do you serve rosé sparkling wine?
Treat rosé sparkling wine as you would treat any Champagne, Prosecco, Cava, and other sparkling wine of comparable quality. For storing in any long-term sense, these should be kept at cellar temperature, about 55F. For serving, cool to about 40F to 50F. As for drinking, the best glasses have a stem and a flute or tulip shape to allow the bead (bubbles) and beautiful rosé hue to show.
How long do rosé Champagne and sparkling wine last?
Most rosé versions of Prosecco, Champagne, Cava or others around the “$20 and under” price point are intended for early consumption. Those made using the traditional method with extended cellar time before release (e.g., Champagne or Crémant) can typically improve with age. If you are unsure, definitely consult a wine professional for guidance.
Associated with luxury, celebration, and romance, the region, Champagne, is home to the world’s most prized sparkling wine. In order to bear the label, ‘Champagne’, a sparkling wine must originate from this northeastern region of France—called Champagne—and adhere to strict quality standards. Made up of the three towns Reims, Épernay, and Aÿ, it was here that the traditional method of sparkling wine production was both invented and perfected, birthing a winemaking technique as well as a flavor profile that is now emulated worldwide.
Well-drained, limestone and chalky soil defines much of the region, which lend a mineral component to its wines. Champagne’s cold, continental climate promotes ample acidity in its grapes but weather differences from year to year can create significant variation between vintages. While vintage Champagnes are produced in exceptional years, non-vintage cuvées are produced annually from a blend of several years in order to produce Champagnes that maintain a consistent house style.
With nearly negligible exceptions, . These can be blended together or bottled as individual varietal Champagnes, depending on the final style of wine desired. Chardonnay, the only white variety, contributes freshness, elegance, lively acidity and notes of citrus, orchard fruit and white flowers. Pinot Noir and its relative Pinot Meunier, provide the backbone to many blends, adding structure, body and supple red fruit flavors. Wines with a large proportion of Pinot Meunier will be ready to drink earlier, while Pinot Noir contributes to longevity. Whether it is white or rosé, most Champagne is made from a blend of red and white grapes—and uniquely, rosé is often produce by blending together red and white wine. A Champagne made exclusively from Chardonnay will be labeled as ‘blanc de blancs,’ while ones comprised of only red grapes are called ‘blanc de noirs.’