The new Louis Roederer Brut Collection is numbered as a series, just like Krug Grande Cuvée and Laurent Perrier Grand Siècle. The wine is composed of 56% of 2017, with 34% coming from a solera-like perpetual reserve that is even parts of the five previous vintages: 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016. The balance (10%) comes from large oak barrel reserves going back to 2009. The perpetual reserve is always kept at 50/50 Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and the final blend is 42% Chardonnay, 36% Pinot Noir and 22% Meunier. The results are a wine that is both more complex and expressive than the Brut Premier that it replaces, but surprisingly also much fresher. The dosage has been dropped to around 8g/L and the balance is perfect. By adding the collection number to the founding date of the house, 1776, you get the year it was bottled. If you subtract one from that number, you get the base vintage, for this first release, it is 2017.