Champagne & Diamonds
Champagne is obviously the drink of choice at special occasions, marking an occasion as something important and to be remembered.
One wonderfully romantic idea for gentlemen who want to propose to the love of their life that we think will melt the heart of any lady, is to plan to enjoy a good bottle of champagne together, & to place the diamond engagement ring inside your fiances flute of champagne.
Imagine her surprise as she takes the flute & sees the champagne bubbles clinging to a beautiful diamond ring – this is the kind of romantic gesture that ladies dream about!
You can easily select an excellent vintage champagne that would be ideal from this website, and there is an incredible choice of diamond rings (like the one below) & other diamond jewellery at this diamond necklaces website.
You will only get one chance to propose to the special lady in your life, so why not make it extra special and something that she will remember with happy memories for the rest of her life by proposing to her in an extremely romantic and chivalrous way.
Check our buy champagne online page & visit sparkling direct for some wonderful champagne gift sets that would be perfect for the special occasion!
An exquisite 18ct white gold solitaire engagement ring - £999 at Diamond Necklaces.
Champagne Blog
Welcome to our champagne blog. This is where we’ll keep you up to date with the latest champagne offers, champagne competitions, and other champagne news.
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Mumm Champagne
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Types of Mumm Champagne:
G.H.MUMM Cordon Rouge is a full bodied champagne and is the icon of the house wearing the red ribbon since 1876,
G.H.MUMM Demi-Sec is the perfect champagne to serve with desserts. It is a bit sweeter than the Cordon Rouge. The blend used to create this champagne comes from a single harvest with mature reserve wines.
G.H.MUMM Rosé was introduced in 1957 with the name Cordon Rose. A Japanese artist and friend of the company chairman at the time, Leonard Foujita created a fresco depicting “The Virgin in the Vines”, which became cuvée’s emblem and appears on the metallic cap on top of the cork.
G.H.MUMM Grand Cru is a champagne that blends wines from five regions of Champagne including Aÿ, Bouzy, Avize, Verzenay and Cramant, which are all rated 100% on the quality scale.
G.H.MUMM Millésimé only uses grapes from that specific year’s harvest. This champagne is not created every year, as the harvest must warrant the excellence needed to create this fine champagne. The blend can only contain wines that are produced from that year’s harvest.
G.H. Mumm has only declared 53 Cordon Rouge vintages in 130 years which include the years of 1874, 1880, 1884, 1887, 1889, 1892, 1893, 1895, 1898, 1900, 1904, 1906, 1911,1920, 1921, 1923, 1926, 1928, 1929, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1937, 1945, 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, and 1999.
Mumm de Cramant is a rare cuvee that has been created since 1882 exclusively from Chardonnay grapes from the Cramant terroir. The Mumm de Cramant has only been for sale rarely since 1960. Prior to this time, this champagne was reserved for the owners or friends of the House of G.H. Mumm.
At this time, this champagne can only be found in specialty outlets and the finest restaurants.
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The History of Mumm Champagne
The House of G.H. Mumm throughout history has a strong lineage that includes knights and barons and can be traced back to the 12 century. The champagne producing family can be traced back to 1761, when Peter Arnold Mumm began a wine production and distribution business in Cologne.
By the beginning of the 19th century, Peter Mumm’s sons, Jacobus, Gottlieb and Phillip, established a champagne house in Rheims. The House of G.H. Mumm was officially established in 1827. The family created champagne a bit different from other houses of the era in that they purchased grapes directly from the growers instead of purchasing must or grape juice.
This gave G.H. Mumm, control over the quality of grapes that he used in creating his wines and champagnes. Today, the House of G.H. Mumm ranks as the third largest champagne producer in the world and sells close to eight million bottles every year.
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Louis Roederer Champagne
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Types of Louis Roederer Champagne:
Louis Roederer Brut Vintage 1999 is a very popular champagne rated very good to excellent with a score of 93 out of 100. The champagne offers high acidity, nutty, and fuller flavor.
Louis Roederer Blanc de Blancs 1999 is another popular champagne very good to excellent with a score of 94 out of 100. The champagne is full and fresh with lemony hint.
Louis Roederer Brut Rosé 1999 is a very popular rose champagne rated very good to excellent with a score of 93 out of 100. The color is very pale salmon with just a hint of sweet strawberry and herbs.
Louis Roderer Cristal 1996 is a champagne rated very good to excellent with a score of 97 out of 100. Wine connoisseurs love the lemony nose; herb tinged, and agree it is just about perfect.
Louis Roederer Cristal 1990 is one of those champagnes that is considered perfect with a score of 98 out of 100. WE all know wine and champagne tasters never give any champagne or wine a score of 100. This wine offers high acidity and bold nutty toasty notes.
Louis Roederer Brut Premier is composed of 56% Pinot Noir, 34% Chardonnay, and 10% Pinot Meunier, including 10% of reserve wines. The champagne is aged in oak casks for 2-6 years.
Louis Roederer Brut Vintage is composed of 66% Pinot Noir and 34% Chardonnay. On average, the champagne is aged for fours years on lees and then six months after disgorging.
Louis Roederer Brut Vintage Rose is composed of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay. On average, the champagne is aged for fours years on lees and then six months after disgorging.
Louis Roederer Blanc de Blancs is composed of 100% Chardonnay. The champagne is aged for fours years on lees and then six months after disgorging.
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The History of Louis Roederer Champagne
The Louis Roederer Champagne house was established in 1827. In the beginning, the largest groups of customers were Russians. In 1917, due to revolutionaries, Louis Roederer lost the majority of his clientele.
From 1832 until 1870, Louis Roederer took the house to top world ranking by selling 2,500,000 bottles with 390,000 in the United States and 660,000 in Russia.
In 1876, Louis Roederer II became heir to the house. At this time, Louis Roederer created the Cristal cuvée for Tsar Alexander II.
In 1909, Tsar Nicolas II designated Louis Roederer as the official supplier to the Imperial Court of Russia.
Today, the Louis Roderer has grown to a very large champagne house in many different countries.
The main house of course is in Reims where it all began with other houses all over the world including in California, United States the Roederer Estate and Scharffenberger; Champagne Deutz and Maison Delas in the Rhone Valley; Ramos Pinto and its vineyards in Douro, Portugal; Les Domaines Ott in Provence; and Château de Pez and Château Haut Beauséjour in Bordeaux.
Louis Roederer is most famous for their Cristal. It may be considered to be the most popular among celebrities.
Louis Roederer owns 180 hectares of vineyards and it the majority of cases, uses at least 80% of their own grapes for their champagnes.
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Laurent Perrier Champagne
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Types of Laurent Perrier Champagne
The Laurent-Perrier Ultra Brut champagne is created without adding any sugar. This happens to be a signature of Laurent-Perrier and is one of the few that still create a champagne of this type.
The Ultra Brut is created with nearly equal parts of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, but from grapes from very ripe harvests. The grapes used for this delicious champagne must have high sugar levels and low acidity.
Laurent-Perrier Brut L-P is the standard house style of Laurent Perrier using Chardonnay grapes as the prominent grape in its creation. Wines from more than 55 crus make up the blend. This champagne ages for three years.
Laurent-Perrier Brut Millesime 1996 is a vintage champagne, which is only created in the very best years. This champagne is composed of close to equal parts of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir and from wines from the very best crus.
Laurent-Perrier Grand Siecle is created with a Pinot Noir and Chardonnay blend. Chardonnay being just a bit more than half with 12 villages supplying the grapes including Ambonnay, Verzenay, Mailly, Avize, Cramant, Chouilly and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, which are classified at 100% Grands Crus.
Laurent-Perrier Cuvee Rose Brut is considered the best selling rose champagne in all the world. The method used to create this champagne is very different from other champagne houses. The base of this champagne is obtained by drawing juice off of the grapes in the vat, rather than simply blending red and white wines.
Laurent-Perrier Alexandra Rose was created fro Alexandra as a surprise wedding gift by her father Bernard de Nonancourt. This champagne is created in limited qualities and is considered the rarest and most precious champagne created by Laurent-Perrier.
Laurent-Perrier Demi-Sec was during the 19th century often referred to as Laurent-Perrier Excellent. Over 55 crus make up the blend and 10 to 20 percent of reserve wines are added to the blend. In some cases, more reserve wines are used. The Laurent-Perrier Demi-Sec is known as soft gentle champagne often served with sweet dessert dishes, such as pastries or chocolate.
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The History of Laurent Perrier Champagne
In 1812, Alphonse Pierlot from Chigny-les-Roses moved to tours-sur-Marne on the land named Plaisances and La Tour Glorieux and starts producing the first champagnes on the house.
Alphonse Pierlot places Eugene Laurent as his cellar master in 1881 and along with his wife Mathilde Emilie Perrier run the champagne house.
On November 12, 1887, an article appeared in the Illustrated London News about Laurent-Perrier Champagne regarding the champagne had no sugar added. Eugene Laurent passes away in 1887, at which time his wife Mathilde takes control of the estate and linked her surname with the house to create the brand Veuve Laurent-Perrier & Cie.
By 1914, under the control of Mathilde the house produces a record-breaking 50,000 cases of Champagne.
During World War II like all champagne houses weakened. During this time, Mathilde hired Alexander Fletcher Keith Machenzie to expand and introduce their brand to Great Britain.
Mathilde passes away in 1925 and Eugenie inherits the champagne. The house is still struggling due to WWI and Eugenie decides to sell the champagne house. She sells Laurent-Perrier to Madame Louise Lanson de Nonancourt, sister to Champagne producers Victor and Henri Lanson.
The next few years, Marie Louise Landon de Nonancourt fought to keep the champagne house alive during World War II and even hid 100,000 bottles of champagne behind the wall while her sons, Maurice and Bernard, were fighting in WWII.
Maurice was to be the heir of the house; however, he was taken prisoner and killed in the concentration camp of Oranienbourg. WWII ends in 1945 and Bernard de Nonancourt breaks into Hitler’s cave with his tank regime, close by the Eagle’s Nest where half a million bottles of wine including several hundred cases of Salon Champagne, were discovered.
Bernard starts out as an apprentice in the houses of Lanson and Delamotte and learns all there was to know about the creation of champagne. In 1949, Bernard takes over ownership of Laurent-Perrier.
Throughout history, Laurent Perrier Champagne House has seen success and innovative inventions and methods of creating their famous champagne.
In 1950, Laurent Perrier Champagne House was the first to use stainless steel tanks; in 1958 Laurent-Perrier introduced the first multi-vintage prestige cuvee, the Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle; and in 1968 Laurent-Perrier introduced the first ever Cuvée Rosé Brut made from 100% Pinot Noir.
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Lanson Champagne
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Types of Lanson Champagne
Lanson Black Label Brut is a non-vintage brut with a racy, lingering taste. The composition of this champagne is 35 percent Chardonnay, 50 percent Pinot Noir, and 15 percent Pinot Meunier, which is allowed to age three years.
Lanson Ivory demi sec is a non-vintage champagne that offers a smoothness that you will enjoy with desserts. The composition of this champagne is 35 percent Chardonnay, 50 percent Pinot Noir, and 15 percent Pinot Meunier, which is allowed to age three years.
Lanson rose brut is a non-vintage rose champagne, which is one of the most popular rose champagnes in the world for over 50 years. The composition of this champagne is 32 percent Chardonnay, 53 percent Pinot Noir, and 15 percent Pinot Meunier, which is allowed to age three years.
Lanson Gold Label Brut Millesime offers many prestigious years of labels including 1904, 1928, 1955, 1971, 1990, 1995, or 1996, which has accredited Lanson with the reputation of delivering excellent vintage champagnes. The composition of this champagne is 47 percent Chardonnay and 53 percent Pinot Noir, which ages for at least five years.
The Lanson Champagne House is known for its wonderful champagne and has partnered with sporting clubs, institutions, and events across the world.
For close to thirty years, Champagne Lanson is the exclusive Official Supplier of champagne to Wimbledon. The special edition to commemorate this partnership is a Lanson Black Label bottle, using the Wimbledon colors.
Lanson is also an Official Partner for the Monte-Carlo Masters Series.
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The History of Lanson Champagne
Lanson champagne house is one of the oldest houses still in existence founded in 1760 by Francois Delamotte. After his death, his son Nicolas-Louis took control of the house in 1798. At this time, Nicolas-Louis chose the Maltese Cross as the company crest. He joined a partnership in 1828 with Jean-Baptiste Lanson and in 1837 gave the company the name of Lanson et Cie.
Jean-Baptiste was an ambitious person along with his sons, Victor-Marie and Henri, which began exporting the champagne to England, Holland, and Russia.
By 1848, the company was thriving and took up a new residence on Boulevard Lundy in Reims, on the former site of a Gallo-Roman villa belonging to the Order of Templars who where the keepers of the Maltese Cross.
By the 19th century, Lanson was supplying the courts of United Kingdom, Spain, and Sweden.
Lanson chooses grapes from 800 acres in the Champagne area known for the noble varieties of grapes used to create champagne being the Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, and the Chardonnay.
The winemaker at Lanson chooses the grapes after they have pressed to create the perfect blend for the champagne.
The Champagne Lanson House does not use the malolactic fermentation method like others champagne houses in the area, but uses their own method and tradition that ensures the freshness and optimal development of the wines’ flavors, allowing vintages to mature fully and evolve their complete array of aromas.
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Bourgeois Diaz Champagne
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Types of Bourgeois Diaz champagne
Cuvée Distinguée Brut is composed of 40% Pinot Meunier, 20% Pinot Noir, and 40% Chardonnay and 20% reserved wine. The color is a light yellow tint.
Cuvée distinguée rosé is composed of 40% Pinot Meunier, 20% Pinot Noir, and 40% Chardonnay, and 18% is AOC Champagne red wine. The color is of course a light pink with a slight strawberry aroma.
Cuvée distinguée demi-sec is close to the Cuvée Distinguée Brut with the difference being the liquor dosage, which makes this champagne the best to go with foie gras and desserts.
Bourgeois Diaz Vintage Champagne is composed of 50% Pinot Noir and 50% Chardonnay. This is a mature champagne with a light yellow color.
Son’s cuvée – La Cuvée du Fils is composed of 40% Pinot Meunier, 30% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay and 50% coming from oak-cask-raised wine, displaying a golden tint that is warm and elegant, with a perfectly blended of oakiness.
Millésime is composed of 50% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir, with a fragrance of ripened yellow fruit highlighted with a shade of oakiness.
The House of Bourgeois has won many awards including:
France
Maçon 2009 : Cuvée séléction : Médaille de bronze
Chardonnay of the World 2006: Cuvée de L’Ecu 2000 : gold medal
Chardonnay of the World 2002 – 2005: Cuvée de L’Ecu : silver medal
French Great Wine Competition 2006: Cuvée du Dernier Siècle 1998 : bronze medal
England – Londres – World Wine Awards 2009: Cuvée dernier siècle 2002 :Bronze Award
Belgium – Brussels World Competition 2009: Cuvée de l’Ecu blancs de blanc pur Chardonnay Millésime 2000 :silver medal
Japan – Japan Wine Challenge Tokyo 2005: Cuvée de l’Ecu : Gold medal
Canada – Montreal World Wine Selection 2007: Cuvée de l’Écu 2000 : silver medal
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The History of Bourgeois Diaz Champagne
The Bourgeois-Diaz champagne house has been creating exquisite champagnes for four generations on the hillsides of Crouttes sur Marne, Nanteuil sur Marne and Villiers Saint Denis.
The Bourgeois family has vineyards totally 7 hectares divided among Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir, and chardonnay grapes. The tradition of the Bourghese family in the way they care for the vines during all seasons to ensure the grapes are perfectly cared for to produce the best grapes to create their refined and elegant champagnes.
The vineyards are located on hillsides with south and south-west exposure growing only three types of grapes that are used to create champagne being the Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier.
Traditionally the Bourgeois family ensures the grapes are pressed in Coquard presses, vinified in stainless steel vats or oak barrels. Malolactic fermentation is carried out where as the oak barrels are used to create special blends such as the “La Cuvée du Fils” translated meaning “the son’s blend”.
Bourgeois Diaz still utilizes traditional methods when creating their delicious champagnes. The method that has been passed down through the generations is known as malolactic fermentation, which produces champagnes with a closer and natural affinity to the fruit.
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Veuve Clicquot Champagne
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Types of Veuve Clicquot Champagne
Veuve Clicquot Brut Yellow label is a signature non-vintage champagne.
The flavor is full and crisp dry champagne that is comprised of a blend of two third black grapes, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier and one-third Chardonnay. The black grapes are used for balance and body whereas the Chardonnay grapes adds elegance. The champagne is gold in color.
Veuve Clicquot Rose in a non-vintage rose that has a fruit base. This champagne is made using 50 to 60 different crus. The Veuve Clicquot Rose is based on Brut Yellow Label’s traditional blend, which is 50 to 55 percent Pinot Noir, 15 to 20 percent Pinot Meunier, and 28 to 33 percent Chardonnay.
This blend does include a high percentage of reserve wines as much as 25 to 35 percent, which helps to ensure consistency. Some of the reserve wines are nine years old.
Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame 1998 is a pale gold color with just a hint of jade glints.
The wine is truly crystal clear with fine bubbles. The scent at first is acacia, ferns, and chalk, but the aroma that stays is that of citrus fruits, apricots, and quince. Once the champagne hits the taste buds the lingering flavor of sweet almond emerge is added. The blend is almost two-thirds Pinot Noir.
“Once in a while, there is a young beauty that will age into a more profound older beauty; La Grande Dame is part of that rare breed.” -Wines & Spirits
Veuve Clicquot Demi Sec is comprised of mainly Pinot Noir with of course the other delightful grapes Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier along with reserve wines. The champagne is offers a sweet fresh harmony and tiny bubbles.
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History of Veuve Clicquot Champagnes
Veuve Clicquot champagne house was established in 1772 by Philippe Clicquot-Muiron. Many believe that Veuve Clicquot was the champagne of choice during 1811 as the Comet vintage of Veuve Clicquot was categorized as the first truly modern champagne due to the methods that were used such as the technique of remuage.
Francois Cliquot, Philippe Clicquot-Muiron son, married Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin in 1798. In 1805, Clicquot passed away. His widow came to in control of the champagne house.
During the Napoleonic Wars, Madame Clicquot worked hard to have her wines in royal courts especially that of Imperial Russia. Madame Clicquot passed away in 1866 but not before she established a name as a prominent champagne house and respected brand.
Veuve Clicquot holds a royal warrant of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.
During the 19th century, Madame Clicquot and her cellar master, Antoine de Müller, created the riddling rack that made the crucial process of dégorgement both more efficient and economic.
In 1987, Veuve Clicquot became part of the Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy group of luxury brands, and owns a controlling interest in New Zealand’s Cloudy Bay Vineyards.
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Dom Perignon Champagne
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Types of Dom Perignon champagne
Dom Perignon Vintage or Brut 1996 and 2000 are the most popular. The composition of both is Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in close to equal proportions. Vintage 2000 offers hints of white pepper and gardenia with just a slight taste of ginger with pear and mango to excite the taste buds.
Dom Perignon Rose is a very popular champagne with elegance, balance and a creaminess that is exceptional. Dom Perignon Rose Vintage 1998 is a rare but magnificent champagne with perfect balance and a pale salmon color.
Dom Perignon Oenotheque is the same Dom Perignon everyone loves only that it has spent more time aging.
This type of Dom Perignon champagne ages for at least 13 years instead of the normal 7 years for vintage or Brut. Oenotheque could be considered rare as it is in limited quantity. Dom Perignon Oenotheque champagnes are the rarest of all Dom Perignon’s champagnes offering a wonderful taste sensation that only comes around once in a lifetime.
All Dom Perignon champagnes are aged at various levels or peaks. The first peak is at seven years when the champagne is most vibrant. The second peak is between 14 and 20 years when the champagne takes on greater depth and vigor. The last peak is after 25 years at the time when the champagne reaches full maturity.
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History of Dom Perignon Champagne
Dom Perignon like many champagnes and wines has its beginning in the monastery. Father Pierre Pérignon was appointed the cellar master at the Benedictine Abbey of Hautvillers in 1668.
The creation of champagne was attributed to Dom Perignon; however, the true story did not really have to do with a person at all, but the natural process that occurred while fermenting the wine.
Dom Perignon was however, the person that did everything in his power to stop the bubbles that were causing the bottles of wine to explode.
The way the story is told about the invention of champagne is that the grapes were picked late in the year. This did not allow the yeasts enough time to convert the sugar into alcohol before the cold winter months.
Fermentation stopped during the winter and then when the temperatures began to get warmer fermentation started again. At this time, the fermentation started creating carbon dioxide, which became trapped in the bottles of wine, thus causing the bubbles.
Even though Dom Perignon may not have invented champagne, but he is accredited with many other components that have aided in the taste and production of champagnes such as blending, the method used to create champagne, developing a method to press black grapes to create a white juice, and to fight exploding bottle he used stronger bottles created by the English as well as Spanish corks.
Dom Perignon is also honoured as the spiritual father of wine and champagne making.
Dom Perignon champagnes are not created every year as the grapes are not the same year and if the grapes or harvest does not meet the quality standard then no vintage champagne will be created that year.
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Krug Champagne
Read Our Reviews of Krug Champagne Here
Types of Krug Champagne:
Krug Grande Cuvée is the signature of Krug and their unique style of blending. Krug Grande Cuvée is blended by using 50 wines from 3 different grape varieties, 20 to 25 growths, and six to ten different years, thus the reason for its richness and power.
The taste of the Krug Grande Cuvée is said to be an explosion of flavors, mellow, mature, crisp, and clean.
Krug Rosé has to be the sensual champagne of the Krug House.
The pale pink gold color and fragrant bouquet often embrace you long before the exotic taste.
The first Krug Rosé was created in 1983 with experiments by Henri and Remit Krug. The unique flavor was introduced to their father Paul Krug II, who knew nothing of the antics of his sons to create this now adoring Rosé.
The unique blend of wild berries, exotic spices, and concentrated flowers dancing on the taste buds is a delight. Krug Rosé is created from skin-fermented Pinot noir grapes with traditionally fermented Pinot noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot meunier.
The Krug Clos du Mesnil is that one exception in the blending method of the Krug House.
The Krug Clos du Mesnil is created with a single grape variety, a single year, and the same vineyard. A hint of honey is the distinct flavor found in this exquisite champagne.
The composition of the Krug Clos du Mesnil is one hundred percent Chardonnay grapes grown in the clos du Mesnil vineyard in the village of Mesnil-sur-Oger in the renowned Côte des Blancs.
A rare Krug champagne that many desire is the Krug Clos d’Ambonnay.
This is another exception to the rule in that Krug Clos d’Ambonnay is created with only grapes grown in the village of Ambonnay.
The composition of Krug Clos d’Ambonnay is one hundred percent Pinot Noir grapes from the Clos d’Ambonnay vineyard on the edge of the village of Ambonnay , on the southeastern curve of the Montagne de Reims.
Read Our Reviews of Krug Champagne Here
The History of Krug Champagne
Johann Joseph Krug learned the art of champagne making while working for nine years at the champagne Jacquesson when he came to the area as a German immigrant from Mainz on the Rhine. In 1843, instead of working for other champagne houses, he established the Krug at Reims champagne house. The champagne house has been in the family since that time and today the business is ran by Henri Krug since 1962 along with Eric Lebel. The champagne house is part of the global luxury brands conglomerate Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy also known as LVMH. Most of the companies in this group still run their company with a bit of independence in order to keep their own unique style and reputation.
The Krug Champagne house owns 20 hectares of vineyards in Aÿ, Le Mesnil, and Trépail. They also receive grapes from other long-term contract growers. The vineyards in Aÿ produce the Pinot Noir for the non-vintage Rose. Le Mesnil vineyards produce the Chardonnay grapes that create the Clos du Mesnil Blanc de Blancs vintage.
The Krug family is known for creating unique champagne with a commitment to excellence. Krug is known for only producing premium blends in which the tradition fermentation methods are still used in that using oak barrels and aging for at least 6 to 8 years. The method used by the Krug house has been passed down through six generations in which tradition is the center of their success.
Read Our Reviews of Krug Champagne Here
Bollinger Champagne
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Bollinger is one of the last remaining independent Champagne houses managed by the family since 1889.
Types of Bollinger Champagne:
Special Cuvée is a non-vintage classic champagne blend that uses grapes from a specific year as well as the addition of reserve wines. This champagne has been described as “classic, Pinot-dominated Champagnes of great potential longevity and complexity” by Tom Stevenson.
The blend is unique in that it utilizes 10 percent of reserve wines, which in some cases is up to 15 years old. The composition of the Special Cuvée is 60% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay, and 15% Pinot Meunier.
Grand Année is a vintage champagne, which is only produced when Bollinger believes they have an exceptional harvest. The meaning of Grand Année once translated is great vintage thus the reason to reserve the creation to ensure the expression of the character of the vintage.
Bollinger will only choose the best wines, cru by cru to use to create Grand Année. This vintage champagne is available as a Rose as well.
The champagne will stay on its lees for five years and will age in bottle under cork instead of the normal crown seal. Composition of the Grand Année is 65% Pinot Noir, 35% Chardonnay, and 0% Pinot Meunier.
Vieille Vignes Françaises is a vintage champagne, which is often regarded as Bollinger prestige cuvee.
This unique and delightful champagne is only made in small quantities from two small vineyards. The grapes are severely pruned which causes them to produce 35 percent less juice per vine which creates an astonishing rich wine.
Most popular Bollinger champagnes include:
Special Cuvée
La Grande Année – 1992, 1995, 1996, and 1997
La Grande Année Rose – 1995 and 1996
Vieilles Vignes Françaises – 1992 and 1996
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The History of Bollinger
Prior to the founding of the champagne house, one of the founding families owned land in Cramant. The Villermont family was in the business of wine making and in the 1750 settled at 16 rue Jules Loget that was to be known as the head office for Bollinger in later years.
Jacques Joseph Placide Bollinger was born in Ellwanger in 1803, and moved to the Champagne region in 1822. He started out working at the Muller Ruinart champagne house.
On February 6, 1829, the Champagne house Renaudin Bollinger was founded in Aÿ by Hennequin de Villermont, Paul Renaudin, and Jacques Bollinger. The partners agreed that the Villermont name would not be placed on the labels.
At the time when Jacques Bollinger married Charolette de Villermont, the champagne house was managed by the Bollinger family. The label did not become the sole property of Bollinger until the 1960’s.
Jacques and Charolette had a daughter that had two sons, Joseph and Georges. The sons took over the management of the champagne house in 1885, but the sons were responsible for developing the image of the brand when Bollinger became the official supplier to the British court, receiving a Royal Warrant in 1884 from Queen Victoria.
The family has managed and expanded the facilities as well as the amount of vineyards owned and at this time maintains over 150 hectares of vineyards. The company produces several labels of champagne with the most popular being vintages labels such as vintage Vieille Vignes Françaises, Grand Année, and non-vintage labels like Special Cuvée.
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Moet & Chandon
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Types of Moet et Chandon Champagne
Moet et Chandon White star is comprised of three wine varieties, which offers a soft maturity with an aroma of fruits such as peaches and pears with just a hint of nuts.
Moet et Chandon Brut Impèrial Rosè is comprised of three wine varieties with just a higher percentage of Pinot Noir. The usual proportions for Brut Impèrial Rosè include 50-60% Pinot Noir, 20-30% Pinot Meunier, 10-20% Chardonnay, and 20-30% reserved wines.
Moet et Chandon Nectar Imperial is comprised of three wine varieties with just a higher percentage of Pinot Noir. The usual proportions for Nectar Imperial include 50-60% Pinot Noir, 20-30% Pinot Meunier, 10% Chardonnay, and 10-20% reserved wines.
Moet et Chandon Grand Vintage is a blend of 50% Chardonnay, 34% Pinot Noir, and 16% Pinot Meunier.
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The History of Moet Champagne
Moet et Chandon is one of the world’s largest champagne producers as well as being a distinguished champagne house. Moët et Chandon holds a Royal Warrant to supply champagne to Queen Elizabeth II.
Claude Moët began the champagne house in 1743 under the name of Moët et Cie and immediately began shipping wine from Champagne to Paris. During the reign of King Louis XV, the demand for sparkling wine or champagne increased. Shortly after establishing, the champagne house had among their clientele nobles and aristocrats.
In 1750, Moet started doing business with Madame de Pompadour. She supplied the Royal Court at Compiègne with Moët’s champagne. At the same time, Claude Moet established businesses in colonial America, Germany, Spain, and Eastern Europe.
Claude Moet passed away in 1792 and his grandson Jean-Rémy Moët took control of the champagne house. At this time, he expanded the business by purchasing the vineyards of the Abbey of Hautvillers.
In the 19th century, Moet champagne was still a royal drink.
Moet was a famous name all due to the delightful champagnes that were created. Moet rubbed elbows with many rich and famous of the time and even dedicated the Moet et Chandon Brut Imperial to Napoleon.
Once this connection was made, Moet soon had many other influential clientele including Tsar Alexander II of Russia, Emperor Francis II of Austria, the Duke of Wellington, Madame de Staël, Queen Victoria, and the Prince Royal of Russia.
During the 1820’s it is believed that on average 20,000 bottles of Moet champagne was sold every year. In 1832, Jean-Remy Moet retired and his son Victor Moet along with son in law Pierre-Gabriel Chandon de Briailles was placed in charge. At this time, the name was changed to Moët et Chandon.
In 1842, Moët et Chandon introduced their first vintage champagne. The best selling brut was introduced in the 1860’s, which was Brut Imperial.
World War I was hard on Moët et Chandon as it was with most champagne houses in France. The offices and guests houses were destroyed. However, after the war, Moët et Chandon introduced their Dom Pérignon brand of vintage champagne in the late 1920’s.
By the 1950’s Moët et Chandon, Count Robert-Jean de Vogüé became the leader of the champagne house. No longer a family owned business but a corporation; by 1962 Moet et Chandon became the first champagne house to be listed on the French stock market.
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Champagne
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