Champagne is a celebration. No special occasion necessary. Open champagne because it’s Tuesday or Thursday or any other day. Open champagne simply to enjoy this marvelous beverage.
Champagne is an exciting aperitif. It is especially delightful before dinner. It also goes well with many dinners and, if you have one of the sweeter styles in mind, after dinner as well.
But before you grab a bottle and pop the cork, some misconceptions need to be put aside and a few facts kept in mind.
First never pop the cork and risk spewing the precious wine all about. Leave that to movie makers. The correct way to open a bottle of champagne is slowly. Start by putting a towel over the cork. The towel will prevent a drenching in the unlikely event the cork does pop. Slip one hand under the towel to release the wire bail. Do not remove it. Now hold the cork firmly through the towel with one hand. With the other hand turn the bottle and gently twist the cork off. Pressure inside the bottle with help push the cork out with a subtle “poof.” Some plastic stoppers are more difficult, but they will push out too.
Serve chilled. Some prefer ice cold, but too cold and the delicate flavors can be lost.
Pour champagne into a flute or tulip style of glass that will let the bubbles rise freely. Do not use the so-called champagne glass for champagne. These squat (saucer on a stem) glasses, supposedly designed to match the shape of Marie Antoinette’s boob, may be fine for sherbet, but they kill bubbles and are difficult to drink from. Start by pouring about half a glass, let the foam settle and then finish the pour to avoid overflow.
Now some basic facts. Champagne is a sparkling wine from Champagne, France, a region about 90 miles southeast of Paris. Many would argue that it is the greatest of all sparkling wines, though very good ones are now produced in California and elsewhere. But beware. France has strict rules about naming wines and today most prominent wineries elsewhere, the quality producers, abide by these rules. So if a bottle is labeled champagne but is not from Champagne, France, the wine inside may be a phony too.
Dry, or unsweet, champagne is labeled “Brute.” Bottles labeled “Extra Dry” are a bit sweeter and the term “Dry” refers to still sweeter styles. The sweetest versions are usually named “sec” or “demi-sec.”
Spumante is the Italian word for sparkling, thus asti spumante, a popular, sweet to quite sweet sparkling wine. Germans call their sparkling wine “Sekt” and the Spanish use the term “Cava.”
In the past, California wineries typically ignored the French rules and indiscriminately called their sparkling wine champagne. But that has changed. For one thing, some of the finest champagne makers now have California vineyards and are producing California sparklers.
There are various ways of producing sparkling wine. The method preferred by most quality producers follows principles developed in Champagne over the past some 300 years. Credit for that, rightly or wrongly, starts with a Benedictine monk who was the cellar master at the Abby of Hautvillers. It’s said he initially developed the intricate process for persevering a wine’s natural effervescence that makes a sparkling wine what it is.
Today, 295 years after his death, his name, Dom Perignon, is synonymous with fine champagne.
Fine champagnes, same as fine still wines, are expensive. But don’t let that stop you. If you have a limited budget, start with a popular priced sparkling wine, a cava maybe, and enjoy. Select the level of sweetness to match your taste. Chill and pour. Your friends will be impressed.
