Champagne [Sham-Pain]

“Sham-Pain”
Current “rules of disgorgement” state that champagne and sparkling wines are “celebration only” wines. Served with the purpose of commemorating something and not to be enjoyed for what they themselves are…really good wine, yes wine.

With all of this ego and pride “flowing” it is no wonder that we only want to decide once a year what bubbles to purchase! Complicated by the fact that the “confused consumer” has dictated what is available for purchase. Extra-Dry, which would better match our American sweet tooth [since we drink colas like water] is very hard if not impossible to find. Why, we never bought it so they stopped shipping it; not to mention many people liked Brut better because Extra-Dry was “too dry.” Dam dam dam those labels! Think I am kidding, why you think they have animal wine labels, because they taste soooo cute! It is simply the power of suggestion. Also, our confusion and lack of consumption of Champagnes has kept others from entering the market. Australia for example has the French involved in producing great products in their country but they will not ship to the U.S. because they became worn-out just trying to get us to drink Shiraz!

Why drive a formula 1 race car in rush hour traffic? Going by sheer taste, it is hard to justify spending up to 5 times more for a producer’s cuvée de prestige versus a Non-Vintage. Non-Vintages are a blend on different years that enables each Champagne house to maintain its style or flavor on wine. The middle tier and harder to find but worth searching for is “Vintage” Champagne, made from a single year, this wine offers refined flavors for half the price of the cuvée de prestige or cuvée spéciale and tete de cuvee.

Yes, Champagne has a purpose and should be enjoyed often, but why not give some others a chance; sparking wines from California, Spain [cava], Germany [Sekt] and Italy [Asti] make great substitutes for Champagne. Offering a refreshing style without the price pressures of supply and demand! Even France has it’s own offering from other parts of the region that offer good value, Champagne-like wines called crémant from d'Alsace and crémant de Bourgogne [Burgundy] are the most popular. Called crémant because they are done in the Champagne style of a secondary fermentation in the bottle, which causes higher pressure and therefore smaller bubbles then you can get from any other methods like adding CO2 to a tank. The Champagne style or Champenois is considered the best and can be emulated by many other regions around the world, usually at a better price. Quality and preference are the other considerations.

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. ~ Madame Lilly Bollinger

What to look for...

France
Produces non-champagne sparkling wines called Cremant. Look for:
Crémant d’Alsace- made mainly from Pinot Blanc; may also contain Pinot Gris, Riesling, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Rosés are made with Pinot Noir. Crémant de Bourgogne- uses thirty percent Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc or Pinot Gris. Aligoté is added to round out the final blend.
Crémant de Loire- the largest sparkling producer outside of Champagne- uses a blend of the Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc or Cabernet Franc

Italy
Makes several great sparkling wines from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, but even more exciting varieties are made with the Prosecco grape and called Asti. Formerly known as Asti Spumante, the name was changed to distinguish it from cheaper U.S. brands. Sparkling wines from the Moscato grape are made in a frizzante style, which has slightly less bubbles.

Germany
Makes Sekt. The best examples are made from Riesling, and their labels state the following: “Deutscher Sekt” [made with German grapes.] The best of the best in this group are made in the méthode champenoise.

Spain
Makes sparkling wines called cava from grapes like Macabeo, Parellada, Xarel·lo, and Subirat. Wines made from Chardonnay were introduced about thirty years ago and add further refinement to these expressive wines. The traditional method must be used which is the same as in champagne, with the second fermentation taking place in the bottle.

United States
Produces sparkling wines made in both the champagne method and the charmont process. The latter is a less expensive style, made in a manner similar to the way soft drinks are made, with the occasional use of a concrete pit. YUMMY! Better versions range from brut to sec, but remember no hard and fast rules apply. If you have a taste for American sparkling wines but not the French, it is probably due to the fact that our version of brut often contains the same amount of sugar that French demi-sec has.