2018 Pol Roger Vintage Brut Magnum 1.5L, Champagne

I like the berry fruit aromas mingling with bread crust, grapefruit and lemon pastries. It's lively on the palate, with excellent structure and a bright wild-berry character. Clean and nicely focused. 60% pinot noir and 40% chardonnay. Disgorged 2024. Drink or hold.

94 points jamessuckling.com

The 2018 Brut Vintage, with a dosage of seven grams per liter, exhibits a delicate bouquet of ripe orchard fruits, pineapple, peach, sweet spices and pastry, followed by a full-bodied, rich and elegantly creamy mid-palate that segues into a fleshy core of fruit with a penetrating, long and saline finish. Admirers of Pol Roger’s style will love it.

93+ points YC robertparker.com

2018 Pol Roger Vintage Brut from Champagne is a beautifully composed wine that embodies the elegance, precision and quiet power that define the house style. Pol Roger, one of the last great family-owned Champagne houses, is celebrated for crafting wines that combine richness with freshness, and the 2018 vintage captures that balance with remarkable poise. It reflects a year of generosity and harmony, where ripe fruit and vibrant acidity came together under near-perfect growing conditions across the Montagne de Reims and Côte des Blancs.

The blend is composed of 60 percent Pinot Noir and 40 percent Chardonnay, all sourced from 20 Grand and Premier Cru vineyards. The Pinot Noir contributes structure and depth, while Chardonnay adds finesse, purity and longevity. After the first fermentation in stainless steel, the wine undergoes secondary fermentation in bottle and is aged for over six years on lees in Pol Roger’s deep chalk cellars — among the coolest in Champagne — enhancing texture, complexity and persistence.

Bright gold with a fine, persistent bead. Ripe pear, yellow apple and white peach open the aromas, followed by lemon curd and grapefruit. Brioche, toasted almond and hazelnut emerge underneath, with hints of ginger, honey and chalk appearing as it warms in the glass. The palate is generous and creamy, but there is plenty of acidity beneath the ripe fruit. Citrus, pastry and roasted nuts build through the middle before a long, dry finish of lemon peel, chalk and gentle spice.

Seared scallops with browned butter, lobster with lemon, roast snapper or crab and Gruyère tart all have the richness to meet it. A plate of good sashimi would take it in a fresher direction, while aged Comté makes a compelling argument for keeping the bottle going after dinner. This deserves a proper champagne glass rather than a narrow flute.