WINES & CHEESES with Liz Wheadon
Champagne
What is Champagne? Champagne is sparkling wine made from grapes grown within the region designated by the Appellation Controlee system in France as being Champagne. The history starts back with the first champagne house – Gosset that started around 1500 AD as a still wine producer. It was not until around 1700 AD when Dom Perignon the cellar master at the Benedictine monastery of Hautvillers in the Champagne district of France began to successfully trap the bubbles that result of a secondary fermentation in the bottle .
There are some reports that record Dom Perignon as having invented Champagne, he did not in fact invent Champagne, but did successfully trap the bubbles in the bottle and keep them there. Over the following centuries production techniques were systematically refined and perfected. Today the reputation of Champagne is unrivalled in the bottle, and consumers worldwide now have an insatiable demand for these wines. So much so that demand has outstripped supply and Champagne prices are starting to soar. This demand has also seen the boarder for the Champagne region reviewed and expanded in a very controversial decision.
There are many different types of Champagne produced and a large number of Champagne houses. The following details the styles and my recommendations within each style.
Non Vintage Champagne
Often referred to as the house style, a non vintage Champagne is made year in and year out from a blend of many vintages. The aim of the blending process is to give a consistent style. The blend as well as being from wines of many vintages can be a blend of Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay, in proportions that suit that Champagne producers style.
Vintage Champagne
Vintage champagne can only be made from grapes grown in a specific year. Vintage champagne can be a blend of the three varieties, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay. Unlike Non Vintage champagne, Vintage Champagne ages very well and benefits from time in the cellar. Like the port houses in Portugal, the Champagne producers review each year and decide whether they will ‘declare’ a vintage year. Even in a declared vintage year for the region, not all producers will make a vintage. Some like the Champagne house of Salon have even higher standards and very rarely produce any wine. Vintage champagnes are unique and very special, they give you a little picture of that year, that vineyard and the skill of the producer neatly packed into a bottle.
Blanc de Blanc Champagne
Meaning ‘white of white’ Blanc de Blanc style champagnes are only made from Chardonnay grapes. This style can be produced as a Non Vintage or as a Vintage style. Typically this style of Champagne is a lot leaner and shows more lemon, lime, chalk characters. With age Vintage Blanc de Blanc is magnificent.
Zero Dosage
Champagne starts it’s life as a still wine, once in the bottle a secondary fermentation takes place. The remove the sediment from the bottle, the neck is frozen, the cap removed and the sediment now frozen comes out. The bottle is then topped up with dosage, this adds the desired level of sweetness to the Champagne, the amount in each wine is different from house to house. Zero Dosage Champagnes are ones where no dosage is added, these are bone dry examples. Often described as the salad without the dressing, allowing you to perhaps see all the faults that the dosage covers.
Prestige Cuvee
The top production of the house, these wines are the very best from each Champagne producer. There are many available in New Zealand, my top five would be;
1. Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill
2. Piper Heidsieck Rare
3. Moet & Chandon Dom Perignon
4. Salon
5. Philipponnat Clos de Goisses
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