Thomas Cottrell is Bellevue Club’s wine consultant and the owner of La Cantina Wine Merchants.
Do you know what sets December apart from all the other months of the year—if you’re in the wine game, that is? It’s the month when Americans buy—and drink—most of the Champagne they consume in the course of the year. Not that it’s all that much, mind you. The French and the English each consume much more Champagne than we do, with much smaller populations doing the
consuming. It’s an embarrassment.
For a long time I’ve tried to redress this difference, personally and by encouraging others to emulate my efforts. Recent sales figures prove that my endeavors have been in vain. So I’ve changed my approach. We Americans may never catch up with those other countries in our volume; but perhaps we can equal, or surpass them ... in style. But before we can drink Champagne stylishly we must rid ourselves of a few old myths about the bubbly drink. What follows are just a few such misconceptions, and the truths that refute them. Myth: Champagne is only for special occasions. Balderdash. Use my philosophy: enjoy Champagne whenever you get the chance—no wine cheers the soul like bubbly. Madame Lily Bollinger, of the famous Champagne producer, put it best: “I drink Champagne when I’m happy and when I’m sad. Sometimes I drink it when I’m alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I’m not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise I never touch it—unless I’m thirsty.”
Myth: Never put Champagne in the freezer. I do this all the time. It does no more damage to a bottle than putting it in an ice bucket. The trick is to not leave it there too long; 30 minutes is just about right for most tastes. Set the kitchen timer.
Myth: An open bottle of Champagne must be consumed or it spoils/loses its bubbles. There’s a gadget called a Champagne stopper that solves this problem; it costs less than $10. I have about a
dozen of them, at home, at the office, in my luggage ... you get the idea. With one of these babies you could open a bottle, store it in the refrigerator, and have one glass a day for a whole week. Perfect!
Myth: Once refrigerated, Champagne must be kept there until consumed. This is one of the most insidious of the myths, and the destroyer of countless bottles. The truth is that, yes, it’s not a good idea to chill a bottle of any wine and then take it back to cellar or room temperature; but leaving it in the refrigerator is so much worse! The fridge is far too cold for any wine to spend more than a day or two resting there; the cold simply kills the fruit in the wine. Ever had a bottle of expensive Champagne - usually it’s Dom - after it’s been in the Frigidaire for a year and wondered what the fuss was all about? Now you know what happened.
Speaking of Dom Perignon ... the world’s most famous wine didn’t get that way without reason. Expensive it is, it’s also a fine drink. Every time I’ve tasted it “blind” against top Champagnes, it’s placed in the top three (surprising most of us). Never turn up your nose at Dom; I never do. Which brings up the question of all the most famous brands of Champagne, once called the Grandes Marques: Bollinger, Deutz, Heidsieck (all three of them), Krug, Moet et Chandon, Mumm, Louis Roederer, Pol Roger, Ruinart, Taittinger and Veuve Clicquot (not to mention the ones I forgot)—you won’t go wrong
with any of them. Of course, you’ll have your favorites—I certainly do. But they’re all impressive because, like the Dom, they earned their reputations. But we’re discussing style. So why not try something cutting edge, names you’ve never heard of, the récoltants? They don’t advertise—they’re too small. But these grower Champagnes, small producers who only use grapes they’ve grown themselves, offer a delicious alternative—and fine value—compared to the Big Boys. Here are a few of my personal favorites: Paul Bara, Egly-Ouriet, Rene Geoffroy, Pierre Gimonnet, Larmandier-Bernier, Lenoble, Pierre Peters, Jacques Selosse, and Vilmart. I’ve left more than a few off my list, but these are my current favorites. They all offer a special taste of Champagne, distinctive and unique. They’ll be harder to find than the famous names, so ask your favorite wine merchant. Your inquiries will be well worth it ... and December is the best time of year to launch your search.
