Last Friday, as the sun finally emerged in rain-lashed Anderson Valley, I stopped to taste at Roederer Estate and was reminded all over again why this is one of America’s best producers of sparkling wine.

The latest vintage of their top cuvée, elegant, layered 2002 Roederer Estate L'Ermitage, is a fine example, with baked apple and brioche aromas, tarte tatin flavors and a sleek texture that's both crisp and creamy. Almost a decade old, it still shows plenty of tiny bubbles, is just beginning to reveal its depth, complexity and richness, and promises even more in the future.

The Louis Roederer Champagne house in France, famed for its high-end Cristal bottling, first put down California roots in 1982, choosing sleepy Anderson Valley in northwest Mendocino County because of its marginal climate. Cool air and fog from the Pacific Ocean, 10 miles away, funnel down through the 15-mile-long valley, keeping high acidity in the grapes and resulting wines. That's perfect for sparkling wines.

Since its first vintage in 1988, Roederer Estate has been known for its non-vintage brut blend and then its stellar rosé. The L'Ermitage vintage bottling debuted in 1993. It's made only in exceptional years -- they skipped 2001, for example, and there will be no 2005, 2008 or 2010. Amounts are small, just over 8,300 cases in 2002, a fraction of the estate's 180,000 case production.

Winemaker Arnaud Weyrich walked me through the process -- only the best pinot noir and chardonnay grapes from the vintage, the use of the traditional méthode champenoise, and aging the blend on the yeast for 5 1/2 years to obtain more complexity and finesse.

All this, and the L'Ermitage costs less than most non-vintage French Champagnes. I think of it as an affordable luxury to drink now and a collectible you can put away to get even better.

Zester Daily contributor Elin McCoy is a wine and spirits columnist and author of "The Emperor of Wine: The Rise of Robert M. Parker, Jr. and the Reign of American Taste."

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Great pick Elin, and a bargain too! Cheers!

a guest , October 11, 2011