Changes in Champagne
Catherine Fallis has a good overview of the changes in Champagne in Sommelier Journal:
- Demand is outstripping supply: “The 2007 harvest produced the equivalent of 335 million bottles of Appellation d’Origine Contrôllée (AOC) wine and 53.1 million bottles of wine in reserve (wine that can’t be sold), which should fulfill current market needs. But what about next year and the years after that? If the current pace continues, the 85,950 planted acres now producing the wines of the Champagne AOC will not be enough.”
- Quality is suffering as a result: “Virginia Philip, MS, sommelier at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla., believes that market demands may already be dictating changes at the grandes marques(the major Champagne labels): “Stylistically, I would argue that the wines are being released earlier and the vintage Champagnes too consistently. In the past, we would see vintage Champagne released three to five times per decade. Now it seems as if all the big houses are releasing every year.””
To my palate, the grandes marques have been waning in quality, albeit slowly, for several vintages. I hardly ever purchase wines from these producers–Moet & Chandon, Veuve Cliquot, Roederer, Pol Roger–anymore, even though I love champagne. Instead I have turned my sights (tastes?)–and you should too– the the “grower champagnes” of the region. Producers like Aubry, Egly-Ouriet, Pierre Peters and Rene Geoffroy are less well known than their more broadly marketed counterparts, but are more than comparable in terms of drinking satisfaction.
Champagne, more than any other wine, is a triumph of marketing. (for more on this see Champagne by Don & Petie Kladstrup). It seems that the grandes marques are becoming a victim of their own success. However, excellent grapes are still being grown there, and excellent wines being made. They are just a bit harder to find.
1 comment
Greatings,
Thank you! I would now go on this blog every day!
Have a nice day
Elcoj