It finally happened. In a very rare decision, the government enlarged the champagne growing region today to another 40 villages, so that more champagne can be produced. (Actually, the Champagne region used to be bigger, but when the AOC rules were introduced for French wines, lots of towns opted out for stupid reasons and have been regretting it ever since.)

Changing a wheat field to a champagne vineyard multiplies the value of the land 350 times.

Unfortunately, the new champagne vineyards will not be producing champagne for at least another 10 years.

There are many sparkling wines made in France besides Champagne, and some of them even taste better. Are any of them made in the area that is now to be included in the Champagne region?

I'll drink to that!

Prost

Here is an interesting elaboration on this topic, from a few months ago:


http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/26/di...mp;oref=slogin

Yes, I had read that article at the time and it is quite complete with all of the explanations.

However, it should not be imagined that everybody growing grapes in the Champagne region is a millionaire. A few years ago, I had to help a young man from that area to get his financial documents together so that he could rent an apartment. Due to his age, his parents had to provide a financial statement as well. They owned a few hectares of vineyards, of which the production is sold to Mumm every year. Their revenue consisted of one bank transfer a year from Mumm, the amount of which was equivalent to maybe 6 months of salary for someone working in an office, and the rest of their revenue came from the French welfare system. There are lots of small farmers who subsist the same way.

>>>There are many sparkling wines made in France besides Champagne, and some of them even taste better. Are any of them made in the area that is now to be included in the Champagne region?<<<

No, some wine-producing regions (Bourgogne, Alsace, Loire, Limoux..) are allowed to name their sparkling wine "cremant" if it meets some quality requirements. These regions are far away from Champagne.

Each of these cremants has its own character due to the minerals in the soil and the grape variety which is used. They are often excellent bargains because you can get them for 5 or 6 Euros per bottle.

However, I doubt if they really reach the quality of champagne. Champagne has extremely high quality requirements and these make the stuff to expensive. You cannot buy cheap champagne (less than 12 Euros per bottle) and there is no bad champagne (unless is has gotten too old or was treated wrongly). A good champagne is divine, and no other other sparkling wine beats it

The champagne region is relativly large, has grown once before in my life time and will do so again if there is enough demand.

The quality standards are not particularly hard or difficult to achieve. Some champagne tastes nicer than others.

That the wine is under pressure 4 to 6 bar, is a blend of other wines and generally drunk young ensures that there is little bottle variation. Though errors can occur.

A number of champagne houses own fizz producers in the Loire. While the French nuts will tell me this never happens the locals know that a truck can drive from Loire full of Loire wine to Eperney and drive back full of Champagne. After all the wine is normally blended to get a consistent flavour

The reason that Champange is so expensive is because people will pay for it. The production process is relatively low cost and the same as Method Champagnoise or Method Traditional of such as the Cremant or other local names.

Finally it could be argued that the process of freezing that is used in Champange actually hurts the wine and some producers eg Brunet in Loire use a Robot to take the crown cork off the bottle and stick the cork in. For my point of view Loire Chenin fizz or Cab Franc is actually a better wine

The reason why champagne is so expensive is the quality standards which are much higher than for any other sparkling wine, e.g.

* the exclusive planting of only three vine varieties: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier
* Within any cru, or village, entitled to the Champagne appellation, plantings can only take place on expressly defined parcels not throughout the entire commune as in most other vine-growing regions
* New plantings are authorized by the European Union
* Replanting requires the uprooting, within the same parcel, of a vine covering the same area
* Spacing between rows of vines must not exceed 1.5 meters
* Distance between vine-stocks in the same row must be between 0.9 and 1.5 meters;
* The sum of the space between rows and the distance between vine-stocks must be less than 2.5 meters
* Only four pruning methods are permitted and the maximum height of buds from the ground depends on the pruning system used: Chablis and Guyot short-cuts, 0.6 meters; Cordon de Royat and Marne Valley cuts, 0.5 meters
* The pruning cut must be short and in accordance with the cru and vine-stock. Only the Chablis and Cordon de Royat cuts are allowed for growths ranked from 90-100% in the Echelle des Crus; Guyot and Marne Valley cuts are permitted for lesser ranked parcels
* The pruning system for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vines must be Chablis, Cordon de Royat or Guyot. The Marne Valley cut is authorized for Pinot Meunier only
* The right to the Champagne appellation applies only to those grapes obtained within a maximum yield per hectare, which is laid down every year by law

I recently was in a Michelin-star-awarded restaurant. The sommelier made a great fuss about a fantastic sparkling wine which should taste like champagne.

He made a blind test with me. Of course, I detected the typical champagne taste at once although it was an inexpensive champagne and the sparkling wine was really good. B

ut really good sparkling wines are more expensive than cheap champagnes, and the cheapest champagne is still better than the best sparkling wine. This includes sparkling wines like Ferrari(Italy) or Roederer Estate (California).

I believe that it is legal to use small quantities of other grape varieties permitted in Champagne in addition to the three you mentioned above..

Traveller while the words are long the costs are not. For instance cutting a twig the right length or the wrong length costs the same amount and since it is the same standard in the whole region there staff do not need specialised training.

A/C rules are A/c rules and these are really no more onerous than other major areas

Champagne prices are what the market will carry. The hidden costs of sales i.e. advertising has to be carried to maintain the fiction of a hgh value but that is all.

Strangley I can understand that say Krug will be a bit more expensive than the basic Pol Roger as the grape sorting table is an expensive item. But as some once said to me it is at least reassuringly expensive. Final thought (and i'll stop) what is the point is showing off your skill and ability by celebrating with a cheap bootle of plonk. The high price makes the sale not detracts from it.

The UK has always absorbed the largest share of champagne production, but the demand is definitely shifting to Asia, so champagne should be out of reach before long.

After all, that already happened to cognac years ago, when Hong Kong became the biggest consumer in the world (You thought they drank tea with their meals? Go to any restaurant and you will see them drinking cognac mixed with water.).

>>>For instance cutting a twig the right length or the wrong length costs the same amount and since it is the same standard in the whole region there staff do not need specialised training.<<<

Such words are outright insulting.

Growing grapes for a good wine is an art and it requires training. There are families who have developed this art over several generations.

You surely can say with American arrogance: this does not count. We use untrained chicanos to cut our vines. If the French insist in employing skilled staff, it is their own fault.

This attitude is exactly the reason why Californian wines will NEVER reach the standard of European wines.

BTW, the best champagnes are not Krug or Dom Perignon or Roederer Cristal. The best come from small vintners who do not spend money for marketing. When you spend a few days in the region, you will find them and you will discover that they produce excellent qualities at decent prices.

You don't have to go to France to find the RM (grower) Champagnes! They are very popular even in the US but remain a bit under the radar since the big names do all the advertising.

But to say that they are better than the Krug is a bit of a stretch. Better value for money, probably. Better than many of the grande marque Champagnes, often. But better than the Krug????

The big champagne houses are buying up large chunks of SE England as it is geologically identical to the Champagne region.

So coming soon - Champagne from Sussex!

I think the chalk lines/deposits that form the Champagne caves also form the cliffs along the English coast around Dover..

Yup - it's called the Paris Basin.

The channel is a quite recent development (for which both countries arwe heartily grateful).

Traveller I have to admit that I am not American and have spent many years both in the wine trade, visiting wineries and of course in Champagne. Amazingly I have even taken over 8 days worth of exams in the subject.

Despite this knowledge and my understanding of the ability to market simple stuff as complex and the best use of Branding etc. I do like Champagne (not as much as many other fizzy wines) and I agree Krug is not the best wine from the area but it is one of the most expensive and well known of the area's wines.

Still the area has grown again as Chablis did recently. It also has to be appreciated that other wine areas are grubbed up (using French gov money and EU money) not because the wine is better or worse but because the profits are lower.

Cheers

traveller1959,

<i>This attitude is exactly the reason why Californian wines will NEVER reach the standard of European wines.</i> European arrogance?

You might be surprised to know that back in the late 70s, an American red wine came in first in a blind tasting, conducted in France, against French wines. It is also interesting to note that French vinification is Americanizing; at least that's the impression I get and regret.