Pol Roger Brut Champagne Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill 2012

99 points/'Top 100 Cellar Selections 2021 (#63),' Wine Enthusiast: "The great 2012 vintage shows well in this rich, full Champagne. Dominated as usual by Pinot Noir, the wine is powerfully ripe and impressively full of white fruits and tight minerality. Ready to drink from 2022, it is worthy of aging and certainly drinkable even in 10 years time. Alcohol 12.5%. (Oct 2021)"

98 points Tyson Stelzer (The Champagne Guide): "(predominantly pinot noir [more than 60%], as Winston Churchill was a pinot drinker, the balance chardonnay, all from grand cru villages under vine at the time of Churchill; full malolactic fermentation; aged almost 10 years on lees). The beauty, delicacy and gravitas with which the modern Sir Winston articulates grand cru Montagne de Reims in the finest seasons is monumental indeed, and 2012 harks back to the mythical 2008. Its bouquet is entrancing, delivering succulent red cherry and raspberry fruits of such purity that it is as if the grapes have only just been plucked. Chardonnay takes a secondary role in this grand season, drawing out a long finish of citrus focus. Nine years of age marks out of a wondrous and effortless entanglement of fruit mince spice, vanilla bean, brioche, crème brûlée and toast. The ripeness of 2012 furnishes a juicy succulence that unites seamlessly with the pinpoint precision that heralds Pol Roger, in an expansive landscape of pure white chalk minerality. A pristine, elegant and delectable Sir Winston to delight while the 2008 awaits its moment! (Edition VII; 2024)"

98 points/'Le Coup de Coeur,' La Revue du Vin de France: "Let's conclude with the sumptuous Churchill 2012 cuvée which borders on the sublime, offering a nice level of maturity and an elegance rarely expected. (2022)"

98 points James Suckling: "Intense aromas of strawberry and subtle apple with pie crust and some ash and stone. An almost smoky undertone to the aromas. Full-bodied and very layered with ultra fine tannins that give it a rough-cut, velvety texture. It’s very flavorful, yet so checked and reserved at the same time. Compact, tight palate that is deep and powerful. Very vinous at the end and in the mouth feel. Spicy and biscuity at the finish. Mostly pinot noir with chardonnay and only grand cru. More density and complexity than the 2008. Seven years on the lees. Delicious and luxurious to drink now, but giving this some age will make it even better. (4/6/21)"

97 points Wine Spectator: "[$360 list] Sleek, with racy acidity, this tightly-meshed version nonetheless offers a lovely range of flavors, with ripe black cherry and currant fruit and accents of pomegranate, candied kumquat and raw almond. Finely detailed, creamily swaths the palate in silk-like texture, carrying the expanding flavor profile through to a graphite- and spice-laced, lasting finish. Drink now through 2032. 600 cases imported. (6/30/21)"

96+ points William Kelley (Wine Advocate): "Pol Roger's newly released 2012 Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill is showing brilliantly, bursting from the glass with youthful aromas of honeyed pears, toasted brioche, pomelo, fresh pastry, green apple and mandarin orange, with hints of stone fruit emerging with time in the glass. Full-bodied, vinous and textural, with an enveloping core of fleshy, concentrated fruit, bright acids and an elegant pinpoint mousse, it concludes with a long, penetrating finish. More muscular and vibrant than the generous and charming 2009, the 2012 ranks alongside the 2008 and 2002 as one of the three finest renditions of Sir Winston Churchill this millennium—and in style it resembles a hypothetical blend of those two vintages. Drink: 2022-2045. (Mar 2021)"

96 points Antonio Galloni (Vinous): "Pol Roger's flagship Brut Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill is fabulous in 2012. Rich, open-knit and seductive, the 2012 will drink well right out of the gate, although it certainly has the pedigree to age well for decades. Lemon confit, chamomile, dried flowers, mint, spice and a kick of brioche infuse the 2012 with notable textural richness and resonance. Time in the glass brings out gorgeous aromatic lift to round things out. The 2012 is classy and polished all the way. Drink: 2022-2037. (Nov 2021)"

95 points Simon Field, MW (Decanter): "A deep lemon gold colour, a decorous and persistent bead and then an enticing aromatic of orchard fruit, yeast, spice and crystallised lemon, behind that the softly beguiling lure of magnificently self- assured Pinot Noir. More immediately attractive than illustrious forebears such as 2002 and 2008, the wine is already encyclopedic in scope, vanilla pod and a lick of sour honey brightly predictive, with more ascetic, chalky, pithy notes underwriting the rigours of today’s structure. A wine of great dignity, authority and bearing... (Mar 2021)"

95 points Peter Moser (Falstaff): "Creaminess on the nose is immediately evident, segueing into a lovely note of dry corn husk and salty shortbread with an echo of ripe Mirabelle. The palate continues with the same creaminess and a shortcrust vibe, smooth, billowing, almost mellow – but then there is the lovely and bright freshness that is sunny but brisk. It is the saltiness and a hint of oystershell that keeps pulling you back to this understated but really complex wine. Lovely now, certain to evolve. (11/19/20)"

Tom Stevenson calls Pol Roger's Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill "one of the greatest prestige cuvées of modern times." It is only released in exceptional vintages, and in fact Pol Roger produces Vintage Champagnes more frequently than the Churchill.