An extraordinary achievement this, made by the famously difficult saignée method, yet with a wonderful onion skin colour and poised aromas of lemongrass, small red berried fruit and pink grapefruit. Rodolphe Péters from the eponymous Champagne house in Le Mesnil sur Oger demonstrates why he is seen as one of the very finest winemakers in Champagne, coaxing wonderful complexity from his reserve wines ( aged in a solera) and ensuring definition and purity from the base wines, the purity and elegance of the 25% Pinot Noir component quite breathtaking. Despite the relatively modest time on lees (three years), there is definite pedigree here, and, given the aspiration to forge a new style of rosé, a triumphant aura of complexity and latent potential. The very high expectations have been matched... and then some!

A pale rosé Champagne, lightly copper in color, with an appealing nose of ripe fruit and spice. Lightly mouthwatering and satin-like on the palate, a harmonious version that layers ripe notes of white cherry, blood orange sorbet and nectarine with savory accents of salted almond, oyster shell and saffron. Not a powerhouse, but finely-detailed throughout, and long on the well-cut finish. Drink now through 2028.