La Rioja Alta “Viña Ardanza” 2000

"Pol Roger's brightly colored, white-golden NV Pure Extra Brut is an undosed blend of equal parts of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier that has been aged four years on the lees. This excellent sparkling wine offers a pure, fresh, precise and yeasty bouquet of white fruits intertwined with lemon aromas, some notes of freshly baked rye bread and very subtle smoky flavors (although the wine has never seen any oak). The mousse is as fine and delicate as you can expect from a Pol Roger, and so is the complexity and refined elegance of this Champagne; it is is truly dry, straight and fresh, but also intense, firmly structured and reveals a nice iodine flavor in the long finish. This wine is as subtle as it is complex, and you should give it a second chance if you tend to underrate the first sip. The finish is really remarkable in its tightness, length and purity. Try it with shellfish!" - Stephan Reinhardt, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate