Champagne Through History
Most people reserve champagne for special occasions and celebrations and is often thought of as an expensive indulgence. The main thing that makes a bottle of sparkling wine champagne is its place of origin. The Champagne area in Northern France is the only place where real champagne comes from. Champagne must be made and fermented in a particular way as well as coming from the Champagne region according to the The Comité Interprofessionel du Vin de Champagne. The term champagne is legally protected and is recognised within the European Union as well as several other large wine producers around the world. Only select sparkling wines produced in certain parts of America still use the term champagne.
Like all wine related drinks, the different tastes have different names and vary from being sweet to dry. The tastes vary depending on how much sugar is added to the drink with Brut being the driest and Demi Sec being the sweetest. Although wine glasses are more common, the champagne flute is specifically designed for this prestigious drink. There are three different grapes The Comité Interprofessionel du Vin de Champagne stipulates can be used in the making of champagne. The chardonnay is produced by the white grape whilst the pinot noir and the pinot meunier come from the black grapes.
There are several myths that surround both the production and the actual champagne glasses. Dom Perignon is often assumed to be the first person to add the bubbles to champagne. There are several different stories as to how champagne came about. Its most widely agreed that the first sparkling wine was created by Benedictine Monks in the beginning of the 17th century. Dom Perignons’ association with the affluent drink isn’t unfounded. Perignon made great improvements to the fermentation process. Another quaint myth associated with the consumption of champagne is the shape of the traditional champagne coupe which is a more bowel shaped champagne flute. Marie Antoinette is said to have has the champagne coupe modelled on her left breast. These rumours cannot be true as champagne and its consumption were already invented over one hundred years before she was born, but they add to the air of the drink being for the privileged and wealthy.
