Rosé Champagne has a long history at Maison Mumm. Early in the 19th century — before most of the world's most celebrated Champagne houses had even been founded — the father of Georges Hermann Mumm was already producing a well-regarded "oeil de perdrix" Champagne, its deep pink hue recalling the color of a partridge's eye. The first Mumm Cordon Rosé cuvée was released in 1952 by René Lalou, the house's president and presiding figure of the 20th century. The Cordon Rosé was served at the table of the Élysée Palace. In 1958, the painter Léonard Foujita — the celebrated Franco-Japanese artist — designed a rose motif that has decorated the Mumm rosé bottles ever since.

This is one of France's most historically pedigreed rosé Champagnes, produced by the world's fourth-largest Champagne house from 120+ crus across the Champagne region, with 60% Pinot Noir, 22% Chardonnay, and 18% Pinot Meunier as the base blend — joined at blending by 14% still red wine from the house's own Pinot Noir vineyards to create the luminous pale salmon color and the forest fruit intensity that defines the Cordon Rosé's distinctive character. Tastings.com awarded 95 Points. Multiple critics have found strawberries, cherries, red currants, vanilla, and caramel on the nose — with a creamy, round, balanced palate of candied pink grapefruit zest, toasted brioche, melon, and spice — driven by a bright, snappy acidity that carries the lingering, smoke-tinged finish.

At $50 at Blackwell's, this is the most generously priced prestige rosé Champagne currently on our shelves — 95-point, Élysée-served, 19th-century-heritage, Foujita-decorated, luminous pale salmon Mumm Grand Cordon Rosé at a price that makes it as appropriate for a Tuesday evening as it is for a celebration.

Origins & Craftsmanship

G.H. Mumm was founded in 1827 — established in Reims by three German brothers, Gottlieb, Jacobus, and Philipp Mumm, who carried the winemaking heritage of their father's Cologne-based wine business to the Champagne region. The house took its full name when Peter Arnold Mumm's grandson, Georges Hermann Mumm, took the reins in 1852 — and the Cordon Rouge, with its distinctive diagonal red ribbon, became one of the most recognized symbols in Champagne. Today Mumm is the world's fourth-largest Champagne producer, owned by Pernod Ricard, and one of the official Champagnes of the Kentucky Derby and the Melbourne Cup.

The Grand Cordon Rosé is made from the same rich palette of 120+ crus that defines the standard Cordon Rouge blend — representing all the diversity of the Champagne region's terroirs, from the Montagne de Reims's Pinot Noir power to the Côte des Blancs's Chardonnay elegance to the Vallée de la Marne's Pinot Meunier freshness. The base blend of 60% Pinot Noir, 22% Chardonnay, and 18% Pinot Meunier is the precise specification that the house has refined since the 1952 inaugural release. The color and intensity come from a 14% addition of still red wine from Mumm's own Pinot Noir vineyards at blending — the assemblage method that gives the Cordon Rosé a more structured and more specifically Pinot Noir-influenced character than a saignée rosé of comparable depth would produce. Dosage is 1.0 g/L — essentially bone dry, allowing the fruit and the structure to lead without sweetness softening the picture.

Critics Reviews

Tastings.com — 95 Points:
Confirming the Grand Cordon Rosé's standing among the finest value rosé Champagnes in the category.

Mumm Napa / G.H. Mumm official tasting notes:
Color: "Luminous pale pink salmon, enlivened by shades of orange."
Nose: "Intense fruit aromas of strawberries, cherries, and red currants, with a swirling undercurrent of vanilla and caramel."
Palate: "Lively, energetic and perfectly dry in the attack, with a long savory finish."

Mumm official (extended description):
"Embodying a unique personality for a rosé champagne, Mumm Rosé has the strength and structure of Pinot Noir, balanced with the elegance of Chardonnay and the fruitiness of Meunier. A proportion of red wine brings intensity and notes of forest fruits to this luminous cuvée to create a rosé that is at once elegant, light, intense, and fresh."

"This creamy rosé is round and balanced, with a bright backbone of snappy acidity driving flavors of candied pink grapefruit zest, toasted brioche, melon and spice. Lingering, smoke-tinged finish." Wine Spectator 91 Points

"Rich and smoky, with a powerful blast of dustiness. Nectarine flavors carry the long, fresh palate to a clean, fruit-forward finish. Shows a tiny burnt, rustic character and isn't overly lively in terms of bead. Good for drinking this year and next." Wine Enthusiast 91 Points

Tasting Profile

Nose
Luminous pale pink salmon with shades of orange — the 14% still Pinot Noir addition producing the most specifically vivid and the most specifically elegant rosé Champagne color available. The nose opens with intense strawberry and cherry leading the aromatic picture — the Pinot Noir-dominant base blend's most directly varietal fruit contribution in its most vivid and the most immediately appealing form. Red currants add the most specifically sharp and the most refreshingly tart secondary berry dimension. A swirling undercurrent of vanilla and caramel follows from the reserve wine and the lees contact. Forest fruits deepen the picture. The brightness and the freshness that the Cordon Rosé is specifically celebrated for is most immediately apparent in the most vivid and the most luminous aromatic entry — energetic and immediately inviting.

Palate
Creamy, round, and balanced with a bright, snappy acidity driving every flavor note. Lively and energetic at the entry — perfectly dry, the 1.0 g/L dosage allowing the Pinot Noir structure and the fruit to lead without sweetness. Candied pink grapefruit zest adds the most vivid and the most surprising citrus dimension. Toasted brioche adds the warmth and the yeast-contact richness. Melon and spice add secondary complexity. The strength and structure of Pinot Noir carries through the mid-palate — the 60% Pinot Noir base and the 14% still red wine addition producing genuine red fruit presence without heaviness.

Finish
Long, savory, and smoke-tinged. The lingering smoke-tinged finish is the most memorably specific and the most specifically distinguished quality for any rosé Champagne in the Blackwell's section — a slightly toasty, slightly earthy quality that adds complexity beyond the fruit-forward aromatic entry. Strawberry and cherry persist. The 1.0 g/L dosage keeps the close bone dry and clean.

Quick Overview

Food Pairings

The structure, dryness, and Pinot Noir weight make this one of the most food-versatile Champagnes in the section:

• Seafood — oysters, lobster, scallops, shrimp
• Salmon marinated with fresh cranberries — the house's own recommended pairing
• Charcuterie — the Pinot Noir structure supporting cured meats
• Spicy Asian and African dishes — the snappy acidity and berry fruit cutting through heat
• Fresh cheeses — goat, brie, and soft-ripened
• Strawberry desserts — the most natural flavor mirror available

Cocktail Suggestions

Mumm Rosé Spritz
3 oz G.H. Mumm Grand Cordon Rosé · 1 oz Aperol · splash of soda water · orange slice over ice. The red currant and strawberry carry through Aperol's bitterness in the most broadly accessible and the most specifically summer-occasion aperitivo available.

Champagne Rosé Cocktail
3 oz G.H. Mumm Grand Cordon Rosé · ½ oz elderflower liqueur · dash of Peychaud's bitters · fresh strawberry garnish. The forest fruit and vanilla carry through elderflower in a cocktail of genuine elegance.