Today we're going to talk about Champagne. Even the name sounds romantic! It conjurs up all sorts of images - of extravagance, of jubilant celebrations, of fine stemware, of smoked salmon and caviar canapes, of long walks on the beach... oops, getting a bit carried away there...
Let's regroup.
Only bottles that are produced in a designated area of the Champagne region in France can be labelled 'champagne.' All bubbles made elsewhere must go by the rather less-appealing moniker of 'sparkling white wine.' Although, there are of course variations on the theme. Some companies 'sex up' their labels by adding the words 'methode champenoise' or 'methode traditionelle' or, rather more bluntly: 'brut' (which, quite frankly, doesn't have quite the same ring to it as 'champagne.')
I long considered champagne a tipple reserved solely for the rich, the famous, gangsta rappers and movie moguls (and certainly out of the reach of a mere plonker like me!) However, in the last few years prices dropped significantly and you no longer have to take out a second mortgage to obtain a bottle (or three).
I have found the following drops regularly available for less than 50 big ones (not bad considering you can easily drop $40 for some of our better domestic bubbles). These are all non-vintage (NV) champagnes, which means a blend of grapes were used, from different years (or vintages). You will generally pay around $30 per bottle more for a 'vintage' champagne, in which 100% of the grapes used came from the same year, and that year will be shown on the bottle.
- Lanson Black Label NV
- Piper Heidsieck NV
- Charles Heidsick Mis en Cave Brut
- Moet et Chandon NV
Yours in plonk,
The Plonker
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