There’s one thing I’ve always known about Champagne – I love it. It’s not just the taste. It’s the sense of occasion that comes with the popping of the cork, the bubbles and the instant joie de vivre. Plus I’ve long admired it from a marketing perspective. I can’t think of another category where the branding, merchandising and general fervor created is as slick. Well maybe jewellery (would you like some metal with that Tiffany blue box?).

I knew I’d eventually make my way to the region in question and when I did I was almost more interested in the provenance of the stuff than drinking it. Almost. I learnt a few things that surprised me – and may just surprise you.

Christian Lacuisse from Champagne Lacuisse Freres demonstrates a stage of the méthode champenoise

1. Bubbles in wine were originally a fault (and definitely not a selling point)

Before ‘Champagne’ came along, the Champagne region produced only still wines and nondescript versions at that. Wine with bubbles was the result of an accidental second fermentation in the bottle and more often than not the bottle would explode as a result of the pressure. Even if the bottle didn’t explode, the wine was likely to be undrinkable. At a time when winemakers didn’t understand the science behind fermentation, the sparkling stuff was a liability and certainly not a tempting proposition to drink or sell.

Pinot noir grapes growing in Sermiers, a town in the Champagne region

2. Champagne is made from three grapes

Think of the iconic wines tethered to a single terroir and often they are a single variety such as Burgundy (100% Pinot Noir grapes), White Burgundy (100% Chardonnay grapes) and Chablis (also 100% Chardonnay grapes). So it may come as a surprise that Champagne is almost always a blend of three grapes – Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay. Yes – two red grapes and one white. So why isn’t Champagne a red wine? Because the grapes are pressed gently during production and there’s no skin contact during fermentation which is what generally gives wine its colour.

Champagne bottles are stored in the underground caves of the Taittinger Cellars in Reims

3. Dom Perignon was NOT the granddaddy of Champagne

Not only did the Dom not invent Champagne, it’s highly unlikely he ever even made sparkling Champagne. Dom Perignon was the cellarmaster of his abbey from 1668 to 1715 when fizzy wines were widely considered faulty – it’s more likely that he spent his time trying to prevent his wines from sparkling. This is in stark contrast to the more modern persona built up around him which romanticises his role in the creation of Champagne. Certainly his still wines were highly regarded at the time, but he did not exclaim to his fellow monks to “come quickly, I am tasting the stars!”. This was in fact exclaimed in a print ad almost two hundred years after his death. But why let the truth get in the way of a compelling brand story?

The Pommery sommeliers take their jobs very seriously

4. The region didn’t initially want to produce wine with bubbles

Champagne was always a still wine region but in the first half of the 18^th century the still wines of the region were not selling due to competition from other French wine regions. The locals were desperate for an edge and had noticed an international interest in sweetened wine with bubbles so begrudgingly and out of economic desperation started to produce more of the sparkling stuff. Read More